I bring you a list of the best audiobooks for road trips of all time. These audible books are a perfect match for family road trips, solo road trips, road trips with tweens, etc
I am sure these audiobooks gonna make your next travel memorable. With every scenic view, these authors are going to charm your journey with their magical words.
Below are the list of best audio books for road trips:
1. A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Bill Bryson is the author of this fantastic piece of writing and available in audio form to amaze you with his narration style.
He is an award-winning travel writer and wrote several books that became bestselling. “A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail” is one of his best books and already sold in a huge volume in different formats including audiobooks, kindle version, and hardcover.
The Appalachian Trail is a trail that covers mesmerizing nature’s beauty including everything a traveler wishes for his trip, from most breathtaking terrain in America–majestic mountains and lakes to a beautiful forest. And this book had covered everything in it and Bill’s narration style has added extra charm to the beauty of nature and to the book.
This is a highly recommended audiobooks for travelers, including solo-travelers, hikers, etc.
Book details:
| Author | Bill Bryson |
| Published on | 2007 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel, Autobiography |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.4/5 |
2. Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster is a nation bestseller authored by Jon Krakauer. The book ranks among the great adventure books of all time.
Into Thin Air depicts the true story narrated by the author’s experience of disaster caused by a deadly storm at the summit of Mt. Everest that has claimed the life of eight climbers and several other stranded by the horrific storm.
Jon Krakauer wrote his journey about how he had decided to participate in May 1996 in an Everest expedition which then later turned into a tragedy killing many of his co-climbers. The incident was recorded as the third-highest recorded number of deaths on the mountain in a single day.
The book is non-fictional but the story excites far better than all those fictional books. This is why I had loved adding this book to the list of best audiobooks for road travellers.
Book details:
| Author | Jon Krakauer |
| Published on | 1997 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel, Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Villard Books |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.6/5 |
3. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
This is a memoir by the author and podcaster Cheryl Strayed. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail narrates the story of the author’s decision of hiking 1,100-mile on the Pacific Crest Trail in the year 1995.
The hardships in her life made her soo strong that she made a strong decision of hiking the pacific crest trail all alone. She lost her mother and then her family and four years later she finally acted on her decision. And, now we have this great piece of adventure among us.
The book was recognized as #1 New York Times Best Seller list and selected for Oprah’s Book Club 2.0. Later a movie was also made based on the story of the book in the year 2014.
Book details:
| Author | Cheryl Strayed |
| Published on | 2012 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel, Memoir |
| Publisher | Knopf |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.6/5 |
4. Notes from a Small Island
This is another great book by author Bill Bryson and could be your best audiobooks for road trips.
Bill decided to write Notes from a Small Island when planning to return to his native place in America. After staying almost for 2 years in the United Kingdom he decided to explore the corners of the country before returning to the USA.
During his trip, he decided to explore the country and island only using public transport. On his way, he describes the beauty and historical importance of places and monuments he visited around Great Britain.
Being a traveler and a travel writer he has done justice writing and sharing it with readers. If you are a traveler or want to read an exceptional book by a travel author, this audiobook could your best travel partner.
The book is available in audiobook format and you can listen to this audio narration while on the way to your next destination.
Book details:
| Author | Bill Bryson |
| Published on | 1995 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.2/5 |
5. Travels with Charley: In Search of America
One of the best audiobooks for road trips by an American author John Steinbeck.
Travels with Charley: In Search of America is travel literature in which the author has penned down his dream of writing about his country on a personal level.
He has written about the people of America and tried to question about liking of new-age Americans and many more such questions.
If you are a traveler and want to learn about writing your travel experience, this book is the right fit for a new travel author inside you.
Book details:
| Author | John Steinbeck. |
| Published on | 1962 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travelogue |
| Publisher | Viking |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.6/5 |
6. Blue Highways: A Journey into America
![Blue Highways: A Journey into America by [William Least Heat-Moon]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51jN-UIN+XL.jpg)
The book will for sure motivate a traveler inside you and to plan for more trips around. Blue Highways: A Journey into America is a book by American author Heat-Moon.
After separating from the wife the author decided to travel America in a circular path covering the forgotten roads of America. The author called these forgotten and less known road as the Blue Highway.
He planned to travel and explore the country through these less known roads traveling on his Van loaded with a camping stove, a portable toilet, etc.
In the book, he covered his experience of traveling to these places and Blue highways meeting new people on the way.
The book became New York Times bestseller list for 42 weeks in 1982. Robert Penn Warren quoted Blue Highways “a masterpiece, makes America seem new, in a very special way, and its people new.”
Book details:
| Author | William Least Heat-Moon |
| Published on | 1982 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel/Biography |
| Publisher | Fawcett Crest |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.5/5 |
7. Ghost Train to the Eastern Star
Do you love traveling on trains? And how about traveling to different countries on a train? Here is a book for you to add to the list of your best audiobooks for road and rail trips. Do not get confused with the title, this book is also the best book for your road trips.
Ghost Train to the Eastern Star is a train travel book by Paul Theroux in which he re-creates his 25,000-mile journey from his earlier exceptional writing and memory, The Great Railway Bazaar.
The author traveled from London, through eastern Europe, central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, China, Japan, and Siberia.
Traveling through numerious countries across Asia from London he has realized many changes which he depicted in this book. This is the second book he wrote and at the time of writing, he was almost twice the age when he wrote his first book.
A whole new era and change he had seen and he wanted to share his travel journey with the world through this book. A must-read book for travelers and aspiring travelers.
Book details:
| Author | William Least Heat-Moon |
| Published on | 2008 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel |
| Publisher | Mariner Books |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.4/5 |
8. Arabian Sands: One of the best audiobooks for road trips
Wilfred Thesiger is a traveler and author of Arabian Sands. Between the years 1945-50, he used to travel to Empty Quarter of the Arabian Peninsula where he explored the lives of local nomadic Arabs called Bedu.
The book was first published in the year 1959 and later translated into multiple languages including Spanish, Italian, etc. Arabian Sands is regarded as the best classic of travel literature.
The book is a good match for a traveler who is looking for the best audiobooks for road trips. This book will help you understand how to explore local places and enjoy people around you.
So, do not forget including this audiobook if you are planning for your next road trips.
Book details:
| Author | Wilfred Thesiger |
| Published on | 1959 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel |
| Publisher | Longmans |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.5/5 |
9. Touching the Void: The True Story of One Man’s Miraculous Survival
Touching the Void is a book based on the author’s true story of climbing 20,814 ft Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in the year 1985.
Joe Simpson is a mountaineer and author and wrote his survival story of climbing in Peru. The book was highly appreciated in the market and over millions of copies were sold.
In the year 1985 when he was on the way to climbing, he slipped down an ice cliff and broke the right leg and knee. And, he wrote everything about his successful survival in his book, Touching the Void.
The book won Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature and the NCR Book Award in the year 1989. After having received a lot of appreciation the book story was adopted in a documentary film in the year 2003.
You should never forget adding this book to your list of best audiobooks for road trips. This book is a real gem for travelers teaching you how to never lose hope and bounce back.
Book details:
| Author | Joe Simpson |
| Published on | 1988 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.6/5 |
10. Down Under: Travels in a Sunburned Country
![Down Under: Travels in a Sunburned Country (Bryson) by [Bill Bryson]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51PSH4K4amL.jpg)
Down Under is another exceptional travel book from the popular travel author Bill Bryson. In the United States and Canada, this book was released under a different title called In a Sunburned Country.
In the book, Bill describes his travel experience to Australia by cars and trains and meeting different people on his way, about the landscape, culture, beliefs, etc.
As one of the most loved travel writers Bills has shown his brilliance in narration and storytelling in this book. This is another great choice of those looking for the best audiobooks for road trips and listen to one of the best award-winning author’s narration.
Book details:
| Author | Bill Bryson |
| Published on | 2000 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Travel |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Amazon.com rating | 4.6/5 |
Final Thought: The best audiobooks for travelers and road trips
In case you want to have a glance over to other popular lists of recommended travel books then go through these lists of best books in different categories.
- 6 Best fantasy fiction books of all time to read once
- Best selling science fiction books of all time: Sci-fi novel
- 7 best fiction books of all time: Bestselling list
I hope you loved this list of best audiobooks for road trips and gonna add to your favorite of audible books. These books will take your travel experience to the next level and by the end, there is a great chance you will love writing your own books.
So, do not forget listening to these audiobooks for your next family, or solo road, friends, or with tweens road trips. Have a great and safe journey! 🙂