5 Of The Best Yamaha Motorcycles For Road Trips & Long Rides

You might know Yamaha for its sport bikes; track-dominating ultra-fast machines like the R1, or its smaller (but discontinued) sibling, the R6. Maybe you've even eyeballed a few of its entry-level bikes, like the R3 or the MT-03 — excellent choices for beginner riders. If you've been interested in motorcycles for long enough, though, you might be thinking about how to best tackle long-distance rides. Experiencing the wide-open spaces on two wheels is an utterly unique experience, and traveling hundreds of miles a day can be a real treat, provided you've got the right bike. With Yamaha, there are a few options for bikes that will do extremely well on a long-distance ride and some that will simply eat up the miles with ease.

I've been riding motorcycles of various shapes and sizes for years, evaluating new motorcycles and riding several of my own bikes over the same period. In that time, I've found some connecting tissue between bikes that were impressive over long distances, like riding position comfort, modern features, fuel economy, and wind protection. Cruisers, big touring bikes, and even softly-sprung sport bikes can be great over long distances, so long as they've got at least a few of these factors going for them. And if you can add in some modern tech like USB charging, cruise control, and a big rider screen that displays your navigation commands — that's even better.

It's not a big, beefy cruiser like some of the flagship bikes from Harley-Davidson or Indian Motorcycles, but the Yamaha Bolt R-Spec is still a pretty classic-looking and classic-feeling cruiser bike. It uses a 942cc (58 cubic-inch) V-Twin engine, which gives it plenty of power for uphill jaunts on your next cross-country trip and the right sort of soundtrack. With a 3.4-gallon fuel tank and an estimated 51 mpg according to Yamaha, the Bolt should be able to cover some long distances without stopping to refuel often.

Along with its classic cruiser looks, the Bolt's seating position is pretty classic too — relaxed and designed with comfort in mind. A low seat height of just 27.2 inches means you can swing your legs over no problem, and flat-footing it while you're taking a break should be easy for most adults. It's missing a windscreen and modern tech features like a TFT screen, but that's part of the classic, pared-down appeal. And even without those features, the Bolt R-Spec should have no trouble with your long Sunday rides.

The MT-09 is the sportiest bike you'll see on this list, and with good reason. A lot like sports cars, sport bikes are designed to be fun, fast, and not particularly fuel efficient. It's rated at 48 mpg by Yamaha, which is a lot by car standards, but with a 3.7-gallon fuel tank, you'll be filling up on a somewhat regular basis. The MT-09 uses the same 890cc three-cylinder engine that powers sport bikes like the R9, but it's got a more upright riding position. This means less weight on your wrists and arms and a more comfortable ride over long distances. The riding position is adjustable too. According to Yamaha, both the handlebars and the foot pegs can be adjusted to two different positions for individual riders. 

An R9 offers a windscreen that will protect you a little bit from the flow of air, but it's not large enough to make a massive difference at highway-legal speeds. The MT-09 also has a bit more suspension travel than the R9; 5.1 inches of travel in the front and 4.6 inches of travel in the rear. It's only a difference of a few tenths of an inch, but it will help soak up bumps on long highway rides. Finally, the MT-09 makes a case for itself as a reasonable long-distance bike with standard features like cruise control, and a USB socket under the seat for charging devices or powering heated riding gear — a feature that the R9 doesn't offer.

The MT-07 is a smaller, less-powerful naked sport bike than the MT-09. It has the same limited-size fuel tank as the MT-09 at just 3.7 gallons, but the smaller MT-07 has a fuel economy estimate of 57 mpg, which is much better for long rides. Otherwise, the MT-09 would've likely squeaked ahead here because of its impressive feature list. Still, the MT-07 is a bike I'd happily take on a long road trip. Like its bigger brother, the MT-07 has a 5-inch TFT rider display that can display navigation commands and once you've connected to your helmet's comm system, you can control music and calls via the MT-07's handlebar controls.

The MT-07 is powered by Yamaha's 689cc CP2 engine, which gives it enough power to accelerate from zero-to-60 mph in 3.6 seconds and hit a top speed of 129 mph. It's not as fast as the MT-09, but the MT-07 is certainly powerful enough for any sort of road trip. Unfortunately, the MT-07 doesn't have any form of USB charging on board, so you'll need to keep an eye on your smartphone's battery life as you travel from state to state. Or, you can unplug, disconnect, and enjoy the ride. 

Refreshed with a number of new features for 2025, the Ténéré is seriously appealing for long-distance rides. It's capable and fun off-road and one of the best bikes in the manufacturer's lineup for distance thanks to its versatility. Focused on adventure, the Ténéré isn't quite a plush long-distance cruiser. Instead, it's probably best if you think of it as a Swiss Army knife with a lot of tools. It has long-travel suspension that can soak up off-road obstacles, but that setup also takes abuse on-road. The windscreen, while small, is large enough to keep some wind off your body and helmet, and the hand guards will keep your fingers a bit warmer in cold weather, and protect your hands from errand off-road pebbles. 

The Ténéré's new 6.3-inch TFT screen is easy to see, and it can connect to your smartphone for navigation via Google Maps. The bike can also connect to your headset via Bluetooth for control of your music on the bike's controls. Yamaha doesn't list fuel economy numbers for the Ténéré, but with a 4.2-gallon tank, there should be enough gas to get you relatively far up your local trail. Finally, the Ténéré offers a new USB-C port for charging your devices on the go. If you like to mix in on- and off-road adventures, the Ténéré is the best Yamaha for the job.

There isn't anything in the Yamaha lineup right now that can match the Tracer 9 for road-trip potential. It's big, has lots of space for storage, and it's got a commanding view of the road. There's a massive adjustable windscreen to protect you from the elements, a standard center-stand for on-the-go maintenance, and all sorts of modern tech to make for an easier riding experience.  Crossing different terrain and different climates on your next cross-country journey, you'll likely take advantage of the adjustable riding modes. There are three pre-set modes, but there are also two custom settings so you can set up your own throttle response parameters. 

Like some of the other bikes on this list, the Tracer 9 uses Yamaha's three-cylinder CP3 engine, which is plenty powerful for even the steepest of mountain roads. With a 5-gallon fuel tank and estimated fuel economy of 48 mpg, long-distance rides should be no problem, provided you're not on an all-out sprint. The Tracer 9 also has a large 7-inch TFT rider display and once you've connected your smartphone to the USB-C port for charging, you can stow it away in the Tracer's storage box. Cruise control is standard, so the miles can melt away without wearing out the grip strength in your right hand. They aren't standard features, but you can also get optional extras like heated grips, a heated top box, and a quickshifter to make the ride even easier.

We ranked the bikes on this list using a combination of factors. First, they have to be motorcycles that Yamaha currently makes. The FJR1300ES might've topped this list with its touring credentials, but 2024 was the last year it was available in the states. From there, we sorted through Yamaha's current lineup, ranking the most capable and best-equipped bikes in the lineup based on features, comfort, and ride-ability. 

Fuel tank size and fuel economy were factors too, because you can't take a bike on an enjoyable road trip if you're stopping for fuel every 50 miles. Features like turn-by-turn navigation, smartphone connectivity and charging capability, and luggage capacity all come into play, too. More than just an enjoyable riding experience, road trips on bikes should be convenient, too. As a long-time rider, I've got experience with a number of Yamaha motorcycles and the engines used in several of these bikes, so that experience informed ranking positions too.