7 Day Southern Road Trip Itinerary [ TX, LA, MS, AR, OK ]

Teddy and I took a road trip for his birthday so he could visit his last two states in the US to round out all 50! We visited five states on the trip – Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. We visited a National Park, historic small towns, saw friends, took a plantation tour, visited a military park, explored a few parks and preserves, did some scenic driving, some hiking, and learned cowboy history. It was a blast!

Below you’ll find suggestions on what to do each day if you plan to do some portion or all of this trip. I’ve linked both blog posts to a deeper dive into some of the areas as well as posts to hotels, restaurants, and experiences to help you in your research. I’ve also included a map at the bottom of the post to show you the route we took. We drove about 1800 miles and did 27 hours of driving which is about 4 or so hours on average per day. Teddy and I don’t mind driving and being in the car for 3-6 hours a day to get places so keep that in mind as you plan your own trip. You may want to take it slower or skip some places and arrive faster than we did!

Day 1 – Magnolia Silos

Early morning flight into Dallas/Fort Worth
Magnolia in Waco
Buc-ees in Waller
Whiskey Cake in Houston to see friends
Stay at the Best Western in Lake Charles Bayou

Day 2 – New Orleans

Day 3 – Vicksburg, Mississipi + Tensas River Wildlife Refuge

Vicksburg National Military Park
Tensas River Wildlife Refuge
The Waters Hotel in Hot Springs National Park

Day 4 – Hot Springs National Park + Talimena Scenic Byway

Walking The Promenade
The Pancake Shop
Fordyce Bathouse Tour
Scenic Drive in Hot Springs
The Ouchitas Coffee
Talimena Scenic Byway
Redrock Canyon Grill
The Bradford House in Oklahoma City

Day 5 – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Hunny Bunny Biscuit Co.
The Town of Gutherie
Arcadia Round Barn
University of Oklahoma Campus
Bricktown Water Taxi
Stockyard City + Cattleman’s Cafe
Oklahoma City National Memorial
Boom Town Creamery
The Bradford House

Day 6 – Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma

Dutch Bros Coffee
Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge Scenic Drive
Quanah Parker Lake
Hiking the Forty-Foot Hole Trail
Medicine Park + Old Plantation Restaurant
Texican Court
Dinner at Two Mules Cantina

Day 7 – Fort Worth Stockyards

Buc-ees
Fort Worth Stockyards
The Biscuit Bar
Daily Cattle Drive
Downtown Shops
Coffee Break at Gold Handle Coffee Co
Lunch at H3 Ranch
Music at Stockyard Station
Flight home!

These states are usually lesser known than the iconic road trips through other parts of the US like the Southwest, Northwest, New England, or the Southeast. With that in mind, we still tried to scope out the types of things we like to do on a road trip like local coffee shops, small towns, mountain views, hiking, nature preserves and wildlife, ranching, National Parks, and local history. If you find yourself in the southern portion of the US, be sure to check out some of these spots!