Blue Ridge Parkway road trip: Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains

The parkway's 469 miles run along the Blue Ridge from Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains. Speeds are low, so drive times are longer than the miles suggest.

Stops
5
Nights
5
Driving
412 mi
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Layers of forested ridges fading into the distance under a blue sky, seen from a roadside overlook.

The route by road

Point at a leg of the route, or tap it, for its drive time.
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The stops, in order

  1. Waynesboro, Virginia

    A stop on the way

    Near the parkway's northern end at Rockfish Gap.

  2. 1 h 28 min · 95 mi from Waynesboro

    Roanoke, Virginia

    1 night

    The largest city along the parkway.

  3. 3 h 05 min · 180 mi from Roanoke

    Blowing Rock, North Carolina

    1 night

    Mountain town near Grandfather Mountain.

  4. 1 h 38 min · 86 mi from Blowing Rock

    Asheville, North Carolina

    2 nights

    Biltmore Estate and the River Arts District.

  5. 1 h 02 min · 51 mi from Asheville

    Cherokee, North Carolina

    1 night

    The parkway's southern end, at the Great Smoky Mountains.

Day by day

5 days with the nights above. Drive times are for a car without traffic; a day over six hours is flagged.

  1. Day 1: Waynesboro to Roanoke

    Night in Roanoke

    1 h 28 min · 95 mi

  2. Day 2: Roanoke to Blowing Rock

    Night in Blowing Rock

    3 h 05 min · 180 mi

  3. Day 3: Blowing Rock to Asheville

    Night in Asheville

    1 h 38 min · 86 mi

  4. Day 4: In Asheville

    No driving

  5. Day 5: Asheville to Cherokee

    Night in Cherokee

    1 h 02 min · 51 mi
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Photo: View from Stoney Fork Overlook along the Blue Ridge Parkway, near Deep Gap, North Carolina. “Blue Ridge Parkway October 2022 1 (Stoney Fork Overlook)” by Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. “Newfound Gap - October 2023 - Sarah Stierch 03” by Missvain, CC BY 4.0. “Skyline Drive overlook view” by APK, CC BY-SA 4.0. “Natchez-Trace-Parkway-Highsmith” by Carol M. Highsmith (1946–), Public domain.