John Coffee Memorial Bridge on the Natchez Trace Parkway in Mississippi

9 Most Scenic Drives in Mississippi

Mississippi’s scenic drives follow rivers, battlefields, pine forests, and Delta farmland rather than mountain passes or coastal cliffs. The Great River Road traces the Mississippi River past historic towns and Civil War landmarks. The Natchez Trace Parkway cuts through quiet woodland and preserved heritage sites, linking centuries-old travel routes to modern road infrastructure. In the eastern part of the state, the Noxubee Hills Scenic Byway winds through forested uplands and protected wildlife habitat near the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee Wildlife Refuge. Together, these routes show how driving in Mississippi connects landscape, history, and daily life.

Great River Road

The Great River Road certainly earned its name due to its 3,000-mile length and the fact that it crosses through 10 states, following the Mississippi River from Lake Itasca in Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. Many consider the Great River Road the “best scenic drive in America,” requiring nearly 40 hours of straight driving to complete. During that drive, visitors will pass state landmarks such as the Delta Blues Museum, the historical Vicksburg National Military Park, and Natchez, the oldest city along the Mississippi River. The Great River Road isn’t just a means of traveling between destinations; it is the destination.

Natchez Trace Parkway

As one of the longest byways in America, the Natchez Trace Parkway is an official National Scenic Byway that stretches for over 400 miles along the Old Natchez Trace from Natchez, Mississippi, to Nashville, Tennessee. Drivers traveling from north to south, crossing through Mississippi, will journey through the heart of Tishomingo State Park along the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and marvel at the last 23 standing columns and iron staircase of the once-great historic mansion that is now a shell of its former self, called the Windsor Ruins.

Noxubee Hills Route Scenic Byway

The sign at the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge. Image credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region. — The sign at the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge. Image credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Southeast Region, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Noxubee Hills Route emphasizes wildlife and scenic views. Drivers will forget all about their four wheels and the pavement they are driving on as the Noxubee Hills Route sweeps them away to woodlands and lakes. The 43-mile byway crosses through Choctaw, Oktibbeha, Winston, and Noxubee Counties with natural destinations like the Tombigbee National Forest and Bluff Lake, and the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee Wildlife Refuge, now a vital and preserved home for migratory birds, bald eagles in the winter, geese in the spring, and white-tailed deer in the winter, and all the species you may see during your drive.

Gateway To History Scenic Byway

Street view of the Courthouse square in Canton, By James Case from Philadelphia, Mississippi. — Street view of the Courthouse Square in Canton, Mississippi. Image credit James Case from Philadelphia, Mississippi, U.S.A., CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

As one of the newest scenic byways in Mississippi, Gateway to History boasts a beautiful 30-mile drive through Rural Historic Madison County. The scenic byway begins in Madison on Highway 463 at the intersection of Reunion Parkway. Drivers will also travel through Canton, seeing the Canton Courthouse, built in the 1800s, as well as the historic towns of Flora and Livingston. Reaching the end of the byway at the Petrified Forest, a short distance from the Natchez Trace Parkway, the Gateway to History is historically rich with architectural reminders of the past.

Beach Boulevard Scenic Byway

Welcome sign for Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Image credit Clayton Harrison via Shutterstock.

Beach Boulevard Scenic Byway parallels the Hancock County coastline, with plenty of opportunities to ditch the wheels and adopt the sails, venturing onto the Mississippi Sound. Travelers looking to remain in their vehicles will find plenty to see during the 13-mile-long drive. Beach Boulevard Scenic Byway offers so many incredible views of the Gulf with plenty of activities along the coast, such as the Washington Street Launch & Pier in the byway starting point of Bay St. Louis, to Waveland Beach, to the Buccaneer Bay Water Park, and ending at the fishing village of Bayou Cadet.

Brice's Crossroads Battlefield - Chief Tishomingo Scenic Byway

Monument at Brice's Crossroads Battlefield, Mississippi.

The Brice’s Crossroads Battlefield - Chief Tishomingo Scenic Byway is as much an interactive history lesson as it is a scenic drive. Starting at Mississippi’s Final Stands Interpretive Center, at 607 Grisham Street, Baldwyn, drivers will head west along the byway until they reach the namesake of the drive: Brice's Crossroads National Battlefield, containing monuments, cannons, cemeteries, and artifacts from the Civil War. From there, tourists can travel, step-by-step, learning the history of the war, from the location of the first shots fired to subsequent artillery and battle lines. 12 more miles of historic scenery will bring tourists to Guntown’s main street and the end of the byway.

Byways To Space Scenic Byway

Saturn 5 Space Rocket Model Display at NASA John C. Stennis Space Center Visitors Center. Image credit Khrystyna_Pochynok via Shutterstock

Contrary to the name, drivers will, in fact, be unable to reach space via this byway. Alternatively, visitors will experience the roars of rocket engines when they travel through 125,000 acres of NASA Stennis Space Center’s buffer zone. The six routes, including the Pearlington Scenic Byway, Westonia Scenic Byway, Logtown Scenic Byway, Napoleon Scenic Byway, and Santa Rosa Scenic Byway, that cover more than 30 miles of southern Mississippi will take drivers through waterways and along roads lined with towering oak trees. Space enthusiasts will undoubtedly wish they could leave their cars and pilot something more G-force-friendly.

William Faulkner Scenic Byway

Little Tallahatchie River Bridge near Holly Springs, Mississippi.

Explorers and literary enthusiasts will all find something to learn and love while traveling the William Faulkner Scenic Byway, 15 miles along Mississippi’s Highway 30 in the Holly Springs National Forest. The byway was named after William Faulkner, a famous writer born in the state, and drivers can nearly chart the course of his life by following this route and taking short side trips to his birthplace in New Albany and his grave in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Oxford. Those unfamiliar with the writer can also enjoy the byway for other notable stops, such as the Tanglefoot Trail, Puskus Lake, and the Little Tallahatchie River.

Grand Gulf-Raymond Scenic Byway

Cannons at the Civil War Battle in Raymond Military Park, Hinds County, Mississippi. Image credit Norm Lane via Shutterstock

Drivers begin their journey right on the edge of the Mississippi River, with Grand Gulf Military Park, a preserved Civil War fort and former river town near Port Gibson, as their first destination on the Grand Gulf-Raymond Scenic Byway. For a total of 50 miles, drivers will travel northeast, passing through the Rocky Springs Picnic Area and Trailhead to stretch their legs, then crossing the Natchez Trace Parkway, another one of Mississippi's famous byways. Drivers should slow down and enjoy the passing wildlife. Everything from deer to wild turkeys pokes their heads out to view the byway. Finally, the scenic byway ends at the Raymond Military Park, with sections of the Civil War battlefield preserved to this day.

Major Battles Of The American Civil WarThe American Civil War was fought throughout the years 1861 and 1865 between the states of the Union and the states of the Confederacy.

Journeys And Destinations

The Deep South state holds some of America’s most scenic drives, located on its many national byways. There’s truly no better way to experience Mississippi and all it has to offer than visiting historical military sites along the Grand Gulf-Raymond and the Chief Tishomingo Scenic Byway, or the dozens of sites along the seemingly infinite Natchez Trace Parkway. Mississippi is a rare state where the paths taken are just as important as where the paths lead.

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Cole Kennedy February 19 2026 in Places