Longest road in the world crosses two continents and extremely dangerous land

Spanning two continents and thousands and thousands of miles, the longest road in the world could offer one epic road trip - you just have to avoid the most dangerous part.

While other epic drives allow you to completely lose yourself in good tunes and delicious road snacks, this is a trip where you'd need to keep your wits about you.

The huge Pan-American Highway begins at the very top of Alaska, and ends at the tip of Tierra del Fuego in South America.

Covering a distance of 15,000 miles, the road travels through both North America and South America, passing through numerous countries as well as famous cities like Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

The idea for the epic highway was first proposed by the US in 1923, apparently in a bid to bring nations closer together. And possibly also to boost sales of US-made cars and exports.

After the countries involved reached an agreement, Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and the US signed the Convention on the Pan-American Highway in 1937.

Getty Stock Photo

Construction on the road began, though as you can probably imagine, it didn't come together quickly.

The original section of highway runs from Laredo in northern Mexico to Buenos Aires in Argentina, with various branches then available to continue the journey.

As the road covers so many miles, there will naturally be some areas that make for better road-tripping than others, offering some epic sights and incredible stops along the way.

However, the Pan-American Highway travels right through one particularly dangerous region; the Darién Gap, which connects Panama to Colombia.

The gap spans about 100 miles, but with its dense jungle, biodiversity and Indigenous communities, the area isn't exactly the best place for a road.

As a result, despite sitting in the middle of the Pan-American Highway, it's actually not possible to drive through the Darién Gap - forcing road-trippers to take a detour.

Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images

While having to divert around the region might make the journey feel less satisfying, it's actually for the best due to the risks it carries.

The region is frequented by armed militias, dangerous gangs and drug trafficking groups, meaning it's not the type of place you'd want to pull over and crack open a bag of Sour Patch Kids.

Still, if you're determined to continue, it is possible to fly over the region, with your vehicle traveling in a shipping container, before buckling in and heading on your way.

In spite of the gap in the road, the Guinness World Records still recognizes the Pan-American Highway as the longest motorable road.