Best Used Three-Row SUVs for Thanksgiving Road Trips

Thanksgiving week puts more cars on Indiana highways than almost any other stretch of the year. From where we stand on a used-car lot that handles vehicles at every size and price point, the pick that settles family arguments before they start tends to be a three-row SUV. Brochure copy has nothing to do with it. The reason is physical, because 41.5 cubic feet behind the third row loads nothing like 19.1, and you feel that gap the morning you’re wedging suitcases, a portable high chair, and a casserole dish into the back at 6 a.m. on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

The 2022 GMC Yukon XL Denali on our lot is the biggest of the three vehicles anchoring this plan. The 2022 Kia Telluride and the 2023 Chevrolet Traverse fill out the lineup. They’re pre-owned, parked here right now, and genuinely ready for a Thanksgiving run. None of them fits the same run, though, and sorting that out is where we’ll spend the rest of this.

What’s the Route?

You’ve got three routes here, and all of them are verified, drivable from Fishers, and reachable without touching an airport, though each one trades distance against payoff in its own way, so pick the one that matches your headcount and your tolerance for highway miles.

Drive times are realistic highway estimates, and they don’t factor in holiday congestion. Plan accordingly.

The Stops, Matched to the Right Three-Row SUV

Stop 1: Brown County State Park, the One-Hour Option for the Big Family

Brown County works as a one-day run for a big family, roughly an hour and fifteen minutes south of Fishers down SR-37, a route that eases into a gentle two-lane past Martinsville and hands you real fall scenery without eating a whole weekend. The trip suits any family that’s got a hard stop somewhere. Back by Sunday, kids in school Monday, or just a day run on Thanksgiving itself, when highway traffic runs lighter than the Wednesday before.

For this leg, the 2023 Chevrolet Traverse RS is the one we’d point a group of six or seven toward. The Traverse carries 23 cubic feet of cargo behind the third row, a touch more than the Telluride’s 21, and it folds out to 98.2 cubic feet at maximum. You’ll want that room when six people each bring a bag plus the holiday food contribution. Third-row legroom comes in at 33.5 inches, which works fine for teenagers but will earn a complaint from a six-foot adult on anything longer than a day run.

One tradeoff is worth naming up front. The Traverse is a car-based crossover rather than a truck-based rig. The ride stays comfortable and fuel economy holds up for the class (the EPA rates the 2023 Traverse at 21 mpg combined). Where it gives ground is cabin presence and towing. For a loaded day run to Brown County, you won’t miss either. A crew that also wants to tow a small trailer of camping gear should read the next stop.

Stop 2: Indiana Dunes National Park, the Full-Weekend Trip

Indiana Dunes rewards a full-weekend trip, sitting roughly two and a half hours north of Fishers up I-65, where the late-November shoreline on Lake Michigan turns stark and wide-open, the kind of quiet summer crowds rarely allow. You’ll trade a longer haul for genuine space. The park stays open through Thanksgiving week, so bring windproof layers and you’ll be fine.

The 2022 Kia Telluride earns its place on a run like this. Seven or eight passengers spread across three rows, including two adults who genuinely fit in the back. Third-row legroom measures 32.1 inches, not cavernous but serviceable for adults on a two-hour interstate stretch, and the cargo space behind that row runs 21 cubic feet. Pack smart, meaning one rolling bag per adult and nothing oversize. What the Telluride offers that the bigger rigs can’t is a cabin that feels thoughtfully laid out rather than just vast. Second-row legroom is generous at 42.4 inches.

The Telluride runs out of room on a full long-weekend haul with eight people and their gear. No getting around it.

If that describes your group, step up to the Yukon XL at Stop 3. For two parents, three kids, and an older relative hitting the dunes for the weekend, though, the Telluride is exactly right.

Explore Financing Options

Stop 3: Louisville, KY, the Overnight Run for the Crew That Needs Everything

Louisville makes the strongest overnight case of the three, sitting just under two hours south on I-65, with the Louisville Slugger Museum open, select Bourbon Trail distilleries pouring through the holiday, and a waterfront that’ll stay walkable even in late November.

Load overnight bags for six to nine people and the 2022 GMC Yukon XL Denali stops being “impressively large” and starts being the tool you’ll actually reach for. The Yukon XL puts 41.5 cubic feet behind the third row with all three rows occupied, which doubles the Palisade and nearly doubles the Telluride. Fold the third row and that figure climbs to 93.8 cubic feet. Third-row legroom runs 36.7 inches, the longest in this group by a solid margin. Adults ride back there without a meaningful complaint.

The tradeoff is genuine, and it feels like one from the driver’s seat, because the Yukon XL rides on a full-size truck-based platform. Parking in Louisville’s older downtown grid takes patience. It burns more fuel per mile than either the Traverse or the Telluride. The turning radius on tight urban streets is something you’ll notice every time. On an interstate run with nine people and a full weekend of luggage, though, nothing else we carry competes.

The 2022 Yukon XL Denali is also rated to tow up to 8,400 pounds when properly equipped. Worth flagging, though you won’t tow a thing on the Louisville drive. What makes it worth mentioning is that it’s the one vehicle here that doubles as a utility rig the rest of the year, which is the pre-owned value argument in a single spec.

Print-and-Go Checklist Before You Leave

Run this list before every trip, no matter the vehicle or the destination, because condition varies by unit on any pre-owned vehicle, and you’ll only trust it once you inspect in person before the drive.

• [ ] Tire pressure set to door-jamb spec (cold check the morning you leave)
• [ ] Tread depth verified (more than 4/32 of an inch is the comfortable threshold for wet November roads)
• [ ] Wiper blades cleared. November in Indiana means freezing rain, not just drizzle
• [ ] All fluids topped: engine oil, coolant, washer fluid rated for below freezing
• [ ] Cargo loaded low and forward (third-row passengers shouldn’t ride next to unsecured bags)
• [ ] Navigation programmed before you pull out of the driveway, not at the I-65 on-ramp
• [ ] Snacks, water, and a phone charger in the second row
• [ ] Weather along the full route checked, not just Fishers, and not just at departure

Tweak It to Your Crew

None of this is a fixed prescription, and the smart move is matching the vehicle to the crew you’ve actually got, because the right pick shifts the moment your headcount changes. A party of four with no cargo worries rides fine in a Telluride to Louisville. A party of nine going to Brown County for the day might still want the Yukon XL purely for the breathing room. The full pre-owned inventory at Alderman Automotive carries all three of these vehicles and more, so browse it to see current trims and configurations before you decide.

The broader principle is simple enough. Match the spec to the crew you’ve actually got. If five people are going, a three-row SUV still hands you the cargo floor. If nine are going, the third-row legroom number outweighs the brand badge. We’d rather you know the straight numbers before you load the car than find out on I-65 that the third row isn’t what the brochure implied.

Got a vehicle on the lot you’d like inspected or serviced before the drive? Our team can help.