Lucille’s Roadhouse
Weatherford
Polished chrome and turquoise seating in this Route 66-themed restaurant delivers a 1950s vibe. Lucille’s serves groups authentic diner food. Outside, vintage gas pumps were inspired by the original Lucille’s, a now-closed historic gas station located just down the road.
Honor Heights Park
Muskogee
In spring, eastern Oklahoma’s Honor Heights Park blooms with white, pink, red and purple azaleas that inspire the monthlong Azalea Festival. The gardens also feature more than 200 varieties of masterfully landscaped roses. Visitors can rent a swan-shaped paddleboat and photograph the lake, or walk to the waterfall that cascades down native stone to pools below.
Philbrook Gardens
Tulsa
Philbrook Museum of Art’s magnificent gardens showcase native plants and trees and surround the gorgeous mansion. A formal garden extends from the museum’s back terrace, where a water feature cascades into a reflecting pool. Inspiration might strike at the tempietto, the Romanesque chapel, or when discovering the garden’s wrought-iron niches hedged in by flora and fauna.
Lendonwood Gardens
Grove
American and Asian gardening create a diverse green space on this six-acre expanse. Lush surroundings feature more than 1,200 species of plants, a Japanese pavilion and a rose-covered gazebo. More than 500 varieties of daylilies bloom in late spring, and 75 varieties of Japanese maple trees add rich color.
Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum
Oklahoma City
The haunting Field of Empty Chairs, 168 in all, stand in nine rows at the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, which memorializes the victims of the 1995 bombing of a federal building in the city. The chairs are lit at night and offer a poignant photo opportunity for groups who can return after dark. The dramatic Survivor Tree, an American elm that somehow healed and regrew after the bombing, stands as a tribute to the survivors of the terrorist attack.
Pawnee Bill Ranch Historic Site and Museum
Pawnee
People come to take their photos in front of the 1910 log cabin and the herd of bison and longhorn that roam the exhibition pasture. Constructed of sandstone and red mortar and high on a hillside, Pawnee Bill’s picturesque home and wrap-around porch offer excellent views of the Pawnee Lake and the rolling farmland. In June, Pawnee Bill’s Original Wild West Show affords additional photo ops.
Chisholm Trail Heritage Center
Duncan
Morning shots are ideal when taking photos of the bronze sculpture “On the Chisholm Trail,” according to executive director Stacy Cramer. Designed by Oklahoma artist Paul Moore, it’s the nation’s second-largest monument to the Chisholm Trail. Inside, groups like to take photos in front of the theater screen that captures a still shot of an Oklahoma landscape and is surrounded by a diorama of real-life preserved plants and soil for a 3-D effect.
