The relaxation and satisfaction that comes with good music when hitting the road are impeccable. Remember the last time you had a ride around town and how magical that travel-inspired music made your experience.
Was it not just fun? Longer journeys require cool and relaxing music, and below are the ten best songs about traveling that will inspire every wanderlust.
“A Thousand Miles” – Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Carlton’s unveiling solo, a thousand miles, is our top recommended wanderlust-inspired song. Vanessa Carlton is a distinguished American pop singer, and this was among the leading music that catapulted her popularity in the American music industry.
A thousand miles’ main writer was Vanessa herself but Ron Fair and Curtis Schweitzer were the producers. The song earned a global liking and became the #1 trending song in Australia, top-five trending in Ireland, Top-ten trending in France and the UK.
“Africa Song” – Toto Band
Africa tops the list of wanderlust hits of 1980. Jeff Porcaro and David Paich core-wrote the song. Africa came as a solo debut. The song attained #1 on the United State hot 100 billboard chart and the same position on the Canadian charts. It reached a top-ten position in New Zealand, United Kingdom, Australian, and Ireland billboard charts. A year after the release, the band produced a music video.
“Traveling” – Paper Lions
Traveling is a wanderlust-stirred track composed and produced by the Canadian indie rock band. It’s among the bestselling songs that inspire people to get onto the road and have fun. It talks about the fun of traveling the road while exploring the golden road trees. It discusses the wandering views of the road while meeting people on the road.
“Havana” – Camila Cabello
Havana is a travel-inspired song written by Camila Cabello, a celebrated Cuban-American songster. The song was recorded in August 2017 as a profile-raising single. The song got serviced to Radio a month later before it became an endorsed lead single.
Two months later, Camila and Daddy Yankee did a remix of the song, which was uploaded on his YouTube page. It attained a global mega-following, celebrated by singers globally.
“Sweet Home Alabama” – Lynyrd Skynyrd
Sweet home Alabama went viral in 1974, and it was a creation of Lynyrd Skynyrd, a renowned Southern rock band. The song got to no eight on the United States Billboard chart in 1974. Unlike other songs from the band, sweet home Alabama became the most chart hit of the year. It got two TV rock show offers, but the band owners didn’t accept them.
“Route 66” – Nat King Cole
This is the first blues and rhythm song on our list that makes for the best traveling music. Route 66 was composed by Bobby Troup in 1946. The music talks about the United States’ route 66, crisscrossing two-thirds of the western United States, including California, Chicago, Los Angeles and Illinois. The song replicates Bobby Troup’s trip across the United States 40 while crisscrossed United States’ route 66. The song’s name was really a hit.
“Montego Bay” – Amazulu
Montego Bay was a hit back in 1970, written by Amazulu’s songwriter Bobby Bloom. It was a megahit that featured on the Bloom and UK singles. It was ranked #5 on the Canadian RPM 100 chart, eighth on the U.S-based hot 100 chart billboard and number seven on the Australian Go-set singles chart. The co-writer was Jeff Barry, and he happened to be the producer. It features calypso-style Jamaican instruments and a whistler.
“Roam” – B-52
Roam was a megahit in the wanderlust theme music back in the 1980s. Written by B-52 and debuted as a fourth solo, the song’s vocals were intoned by Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson. It was categorized among the megahits on U.S-based billboard charts and number three on Hot 100 charts. The song got gold certification in 1990 from the RIAA.
“Kokomo” – The Beach Boys
Released in 1988, Kokomo was composed and produced by the Beach Boys band. A renowned rock band back then, it made the song considered one of the top hits. The core songwriters were Terry Melcher, John PHILLIPS, Mike Love, and Scott McKenzie.
The recording was performed by Elektra Records and managed to hit the trending charts in the U.S and Australia. It talks of lovebirds that engage in a wanderlust to explore Kokomo, a utopic island in Florida.
“Sailing” – Christopher Cross
Produced in 1980, Sailing was one of the best compositions by Christopher made for wanderlusts. The music officially went live in 1980 as a second single. It became one of the best-selling songs in the United States soon after its release, getting to Billboard Hot 100’s number one.
It got the Grammy Award for the year 1980. Cross used a 3M digital recording system to record the song in 1979 before its debut in 1980.
These are the top ten songs you want to have when hitting the road. They’re all-season songs that can flavor your outings and make your wanderlust experiences incredible. Choose the best of these traveling hits and make your tour’s dreams come true.
Born and raised in Austin, David is a dedicated writer and avid fragrance lover. When he's not trying out perfumes, he enjoys traveling and exploring new restaurants.