Pull Over Here: 14 Coastal Drives With Views You Will Remember

The best coastal drives are not about how fast you cover the miles. They are about where you stop for five minutes that turn into fifteen because the light keeps getting better. The pullouts on these routes are the whole point and each one is worth your brakes and a little patience. Expect sea stacks, cliff paths, picnic tables with ridiculous views, and short trails that start right from the shoulder. I have included specific pullouts, timing tips, and small safety notes so you can enjoy the scenery without stress. Bring a thermos, a charged phone for photos, and a promise to pack out every crumb.

Big Sur on California Highway 1, USA

The stretch between Ragged Point and Carmel is a string of cliffside pullouts that all feel like postcards. Stop at the Ragged Point Viewpoint for your first look at the Santa Lucia Mountains diving into the Pacific, then work north. The Bixby Creek Bridge pullout has clear signage and space for photos if you arrive early, while the Castle Rock Viewpoint gives a quieter angle a few bends away. Garrapata State Park has multiple oceanside pullouts with short paths to wildflower lined bluffs in spring. Fuel and restrooms are limited so top up in Monterey or Cambria and drive with headlights on. Fog often lifts by late morning, which is when the water turns cobalt and the cliffs glow.

Oregon Coast on US 101, USA

US 101 is built for pulling over and the best strategy is to stop often. Face Rock State Scenic Viewpoint at Bandon offers a large signed pullout and a short staircase to the beach for tide pool exploring at low tide. Heceta Head Lighthouse pullouts overlook a perfect cove and you can walk up to the light from the parking area in about fifteen minutes. Between Cannon Beach and Manzanita, Neahkahnie Mountain has multiple cliffside shoulders with broad views of the sand arc below. Keep an eye out for whale spouts at Depoe Bay pullouts in spring and fall. Coastal weather changes fast, so pack a shell and welcome the drama in your photos.

Road to Hana, Maui, USA

This is a slow drive by design with narrow bridges, waterfalls, and leafy tunnels that beg for stops. The pullout just past mile marker 19 leads to Upper Waikani Falls where a short path reaches a broad pool. Honomanu Bay has a gravel shoulder for quick photos of the dark crescent beach backed by valley walls. At Wailua Valley State Wayside, a tidy lot and steps deliver a sweeping view of terraces and the ocean. Farther on, the Koki Beach turnout offers red sands and strong surf that is better for gazing than swimming. Start before 7 a.m., drive with aloha, and use marked areas only so emergency vehicles can pass.

Amalfi Coast on SS163, Italy

The Amalfi Drive clings to cliffs and gifts you viewpoints with every few bends. The Belvedere Positano pullout delivers the classic pastel stack of houses above blue water and is best early before buses appear. Near Praiano, small shoulders face the Li Galli islands and glow at sunset across a calm sea. The Conca dei Marini overlook sits just above the Emerald Grotto and has space for a safe pause and a photo of pines against limestone. Between Amalfi and Atrani, a signed lay by frames both towns in one scene. Park neatly, keep doors mindful of scooters, and reward yourself with a lemon granita at the next village.

Causeway Coastal Route, Northern Ireland

From Belfast to Derry you will find signed lay bys that seem tailored for cliff and castle panoramas. The Magheracross viewpoint near Dunluce Castle is a modern platform with parking and a jaw dropping angle on sea stacks. Torr Head has a small hilltop pullout that reveals Scotland on clear days and breakers far below. Carrick a Rede has a main lot for the rope bridge walk, but the lay bys to the east and west deliver empty horizon shots without the queue. Pause at Ballintoy Harbour for a quick harbor path where basalt meets bright green fields. Even in moody weather the route is a show and the pullouts make rain breaks a pleasure.

Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia

The road runs from Torquay to Allansford with engineered viewpoints that keep things easy. At Gibson Steps pullout you can walk to the beach for low tide views of sea stacks on a scale that humbles. The Twelve Apostles viewing area has big lots and platforms, but nearby Loch Ard Gorge offers smaller crowds and multiple short paths from a single pull in. Johanna Beach and Castle Cove both have clifftop shoulders with whale spotting potential in winter. London Bridge and The Grotto lie a few minutes apart with clear signage and safe railings for cliff edge photos. Drive daylight hours, watch for roos at dawn and dusk, and let the pullouts pace your day.

Wild Atlantic Way Slea Head Drive, County Kerry, Ireland

The Slea Head loop from Dingle is compact, spectacular, and peppered with small scenic lay bys. Dunquin Pier has a cliff edge pullout that reveals the photogenic zigzag path down to the tiny ferry slip. Near Coumeenoole Strand a signed shoulder sits above a perfect beach framed by cliffs and shifting light. Slea Head itself has stone wall lined pull ins where the Blasket Islands hang on the horizon. Stop at Clogher Head car park for a short walk to sea battered rocks and room for a wind sheltered picnic. The loop is best driven clockwise to keep pullouts on your side of the road.

Garden Route between Mossel Bay and Storms River, South Africa

The N2 and its side roads offer repeated chances to stop for coastal drama. The Dolphin Point pullout near Wilderness overlooks a long beach and a historic rail bridge with frequent whale sightings in season. Map of Africa viewpoint is a quick detour from the highway and shows the Kaaimans River looping through green hills like its name. At Knysna Heads, signed lots lead to cliff platforms with safe railings and wild views into the Indian Ocean. Between Plettenberg Bay and Nature’s Valley, the Bloukrans Pass lay bys give a look into a deep forested gorge. Keep valuables out of sight and enjoy the engineered viewpoints that make this route easy.

Cabot Trail, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada

This celebrated loop mixes headlands, inlets, and highland plateaus with frequent Parks Canada pullouts. Skyline Trail parking is the gateway to a boardwalk that ends in one of the best whale watching lookouts you can reach on foot. Black Brook Cove has a beachside lot with picnic tables and a waterfall a short stroll away. Lakies Head pullout frames granite and a still cove that glows at sunset on calm evenings. Between Pleasant Bay and Cheticamp the road rises to bluffs with signed lay bys where bald eagles ride thermals. Shoulder seasons bring empty lots, crisp air, and golden light.

Atlantic Ocean Road, Norway

This short but unforgettable section of County Road 64 leaps from islet to islet with sculpture like bridges. The Eldhusøya rest area is a boardwalk loop with built in overlooks and a sizable car park, perfect for photos in any weather. Color line pullouts before and after Storseisundet Bridge give that famous curve over gray water shot. Small signed lay bys let you watch storm waves in safety when the weather turns wild. Bring a wind layer, keep off wet rocks, and let the engineered platforms do the risky work for you. Combine this drive with the coastal detour to Bud for fishing village scenes in soft light.

Snæfellsnes Peninsula Route 574, Iceland

The Utnesvegur encircles Snæfellsjökull and sprinkles neat pullouts beside lava, beaches, and bird cliffs. Lóndrangar viewpoint has a marked lot and a short path to sea stacks where kittiwakes nest on green ledges. At Djúpalónssandur the parking area leads to a black pebble beach and rusted ship relics that make moody photos on gray days. The Saxhóll crater pullout includes steps to a summit panorama with ocean on both sides. At the north coast, Kirkjufell has signed lay bys for safe angles on the famous mountain and its small waterfall. Go clockwise to keep the sea at your shoulder and the pullouts easy to access.

Vicentina Coast N268 and local lanes, Algarve and Alentejo, Portugal

Southwest Portugal keeps its wild edges with frequent miradouros and small cliff parks. The Cabo Sardão pullout has stork nests on sea stacks in spring and a lighthouse that glows at golden hour. Near Arrifana, the viewpoint lot sits above a right point break and a crescent beach perfect for a cliff top picnic. Amado and Bordeira have generous sand dune car parks with boardwalk lookouts that face a sprawling Atlantic. Farther south, Ponta da Atalaia offers tide pools and blowholes a short stroll from the signed lay by. Winds can be brisk, but the views repay your extra layer.

Costa Brava GI 682 between Tossa de Mar and Sant Feliu de Guíxols, Spain

This serpentine road strings together rocky coves and pine fringed headlands with well placed miradors. The Mirador de Sant Elm pullout looks down on a flawless bay and a town that glows at sunset. Cala Giverola has a shoulder with stairs to a high terrace where the water flips between emerald and cobalt. Mirador de les Penyes is a small lay by for a cliff line panorama without guardrails in the frame. In spring and autumn the road is quieter and parking spots open easily. Drive slowly, use the dedicated bays, and treat each mirador as its own micro hike.

Great Coast Road between Westport and Greymouth, New Zealand

State Highway 6 hugs a raw shoreline with rainforest on one side and Tasman Sea on the other. The Punakaiki Pancake Rocks pullout has a main lot and a loop path to blowholes that thunder on incoming tides. Strongman Mine Memorial viewpoint provides a wide angle of cliffs and wild surf with safe fencing. Motukiekie Beach lay bys give access to a dramatic low tide walk among sea stacks if you time it with the charts. The road also features unnamed gravel shoulders where nikau palms frame moody horizons. Weather swings fast here, which only makes your photos better.

This article was written by Hunter and edited with AI Assistance