NPR Road Trips Set: NPR Road Trips: Roadside Attractions, National Park Adventures, & Postcards from Around the Globe

With this exciting set of quirky stories of travel, you don't need to go anywhere to have an adventure. Create a travel group and listen to the CDs; afterward, reminisce about your own travel experiences!

NPR Road Trips: Roadside Attractions

Get your group together for some armchair adventures!

Get out and see fun and quirky American roadside attractions without leaving your facility. This fascinating audio CD will bring you to some of the strangest constructions in these fifty states and you won't have to drive for miles to experience them.

Prairie Dog Town in western Kansas. The Elvis Is Alive Museum in Wright City, Missouri. The Velvet Museum (“Velveteria”) in Portland, Oregon. A 13-foot Styrofoam scale model of Stonehenge. The Largest Ball of Twine in Cawker City, Kansas . . . or is it in Darwin, Minnesota?

Roadside attractions are the staples of the American road trip. Many are slowly disappearing from our highways and byways. Are they culture or kitsch? Are their creators artists or innovators? Listeners are invited along for the ride to decide for themselves.

Track Listing:

Introduction by Noah Adams

Destination: Time Capsule

Unraveling the Story Behind a Big Ball of Twine

Roadside Attractions Fading from Landscape

Riding Seattle’s Space Needle

Missile Museum Sparks Cold War Memories

Present at the Creation: Burma Shave Signs

Backyard Folk Art Thrives in Michigan

Is There an Age Limit on Road Trips?

Cypress Gardens, Essence of Florida

Preacher Selling Elvis Museum on eBay

At Velvet Museum, Get in Touch with Kitsch

Finding Faith Along America's Highways

Blue Chevrolet


Running Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

NPR Road Trips: National Park Adventures

"Hazards, wonders, and famed and lesser-known legends fascinate in this compilation of interviews and narrated descriptions of the country's most treasured and most obscure national parks. . . .This colorful collection never ceases to amaze and inspire." -AudioFile

Grand Canyon National Park is one of the planet’s Seven Natural Wonders, with 4.4 million visitors each year. Who keeps all those people safe, fed, and happy? When the wind blows at White Sands National Monument, legend says the centuries-old ghost of a Mexican maiden appears in the shifting sands. In Yosemite National Park, there’s a guy who tracks road kill with a clipboard and a shovel to pry flattened victims from the blacktop. This colorful collection goes behind the scenery at America’s most popular national parks and introduces listeners to engrossing new perspectives on these native treasures.

Track Listing:

Introduction by Noah Adams

Eavesdropping on America’s National Parks

Hearing Voices: The Geysers of Yellowstone Park

Climbers Reclaim World Record on El Capitan

Cast of Thousands Keeps Grand Canyon Humming

Tale of Lost Love Haunts White Sands

Old Army Friends, Divided at Gettysburg

Mount Rushmore Now Offers Pre-Carving History

Biologists Train Dog to Hunt Everglades Python

Environmental Educator Eyes Yosemite Roadkill

New Orleans Park Has Ear for Jazz

Nature, Neighbors Guide Composer’s Notes

Angel’s Landing at Zion National Park

Wet Winter Brings Life to Death Valley


Running TIme: 1 hour, 15 minutes

NPR Road Trips: Postcards from Around the Globe

We've found the perfect cure for wanderlust with NPR Road Trips: Postcards from Around the Globe! Take a stroll through Paris, ride the rails in the U.K., or experience the excitement of Rio's famed Carnival.

Meet Colin Angus and Julie Wafael, who spent two years circumnavigating the globe using their hands and feet. Turn on the radio in Kathmandu and hear music from the 70s. Learn how robot jockeys are solving a human rights problem in Dubai. (It has to do with camel races.) Join in the wild festivities of Carnival in Rio. And walk through old Beijing before it’s demolished for high-rise development. NPR has correspondents all over the world. As listeners learn, most meet with friendliness and hospitality, even in the most out-of-the-way places.

Track Listing:

Introduction by Noah Adams

China: The New Silk Road

Switzerland: A Bit of Road and a Mischievous GPS Named Heidi

A New Passage to India

Papua New Guinea: Highlands Celebration

Teen to Attempt Solo Sail Around the Globe

Dubai: Robot Jockeys Give Camel Racing a Modern Twist

United Kingdom: A Very British Rail-Riding Experience

Brazil: Rio’s Carnival

Canada: Kayaking Among the Icebergs

Nepal: 1970s Nostalgia Thrives in Katmandu

Spain: Running of the Bulls—for Kids!

Antarctica: Wintering in the South Pole

China: A Walk Through Beijing?s Vanishing Hutongs

Romania: Jet Lag, a Tool for Recapturing Youth

France: April in Paris


Running Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes