WalletHub ranks Utah as one of the top road trip destinations this summer

SALT LAKE CITY ( ABC4 ) — With plenty of hikes, national parks, and activities to offer, it may not surprise Utahns to learn that the Beehive State falls pretty high on WalletHub’s rankings of the best states for road trips .

While it didn’t quite make the cut for the top 10, Utah comes in at number 12 on the list. Here’s what that means, according to WalletHub.

The best state for a road trip is Texas, according to the report . Minnesota and New York came in at second and third place, respectively.

WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe said road trips can be exciting, but people may want to think about going somewhere that is affordable, as some road trip costs have been “heavily impacted by inflation.”

“The best states for summer road trips therefore are those that keep costs low while providing the best driving experience and most fun activities,” Happe said.

WalletHub compared three different categories among all 50 states to determine the final rankings: Cost, safety, and activities.

“We then determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample,” WalletHub said.

Compared to the other states in the rankings, Utah was in 12th place overall, but came in 36th place for cost, 13th place for safety, and 11th place for activities. The closer the ranking is to the number one, the better the conditions are in each category.

Explaining the cost category

Utah ranked 36th in the cost category. In the “cost” category, WalletHub considered six total factors, including the average gas price and the average cost of car repairs.

This category also considered the lowest price of a three-star hotel room and the lowest price of camping. The cost of living index and vacation rentals per capita were the final items considered in this category.

Explaining the safety category

Utah ranked 13th in the safety category. In the “safety” category, WalletHub examined 13 different factors, including vehicle miles traveled per capita and population density.

The rankings also looked at the “share of urban interstates congested during peak hours” and the increase in vehicle travel on the roads (comparing 2023 to 2000). This category also considered the score of the driving laws, traffic indiscipline, the quality of roads, and the quality of bridges.

Traffic-related fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled was a factor that was weighed more heavily (triple weight) than any of the other factors in this category.

The final factors considered in the safety category were a state’s share of uninsured drivers, car thefts per 1,000 residents, the rate of larceny, and violent crimes per 1,000 residents.

Explaining the activities category

Utah ranked 11th in the activities category.

In the “activities” category, WalletHub examined 13 different factors, including historic sites per capita, national parks recreation visitors per capita, and the share of total area designated as national parkland.

A state’s “access to scenic byways” was weighed more heavily, as was the number of attractions it has to offer.

Other factors included zoos and botanical gardens per capita, amusement and theme parks per capita, and fairs and festivals per capita over the summer.

Nightlife options per capita, miles of shoreline, and “idealness of summer weather” were other factors considered in the activities category. Summer weather rankings were based on a previous WalletHub ranking .

Finally, WalletHub also looked at accommodation and food service establishments per capita, as well as state and local “direct general expenditures on parks and recreation per capita.”

For more information — and for each state’s full rankings — click here .

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