Canada

Canada's Icefields Parkway through the Rocky Mountains is one of the great mountain drives anywhere, a long, unhurried run past glaciers, turquoise lakes and wide braided rivers between Lake Louise and Jasper. Few roads anywhere combine such consistent scenery with so little traffic.

British Columbia adds the Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler, a fast, well engineered coastal and mountain route, along with the quieter switchbacks of the Duffey Lake Road inland. On the Atlantic side, Nova Scotia's Cabot Trail loops the Cape Breton Highlands with sea cliffs and forest in close succession.

Distances between highlights are considerable, and the northern routes such as the Dempster Highway demand proper preparation given the remoteness, but the well travelled parkways are straightforward and rewarding for any visiting driver.