Legendary Route 66 promises a journey down memory lane.
Commissioned in 1926, the 2,448-mile route from Chicago to Los Angeles rapidly gained notoriety. One of the nation’s original highways, it crossed Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona before ending in California.
In its heyday, businesses and communities along the famous Mother Road catered to travelers. Today, traveling Route 66 is a step back to a time when cars were king and Americans were discovering the joys of the open road. Your group can take in the towns, diners, museums and kitschy photo ops while following Route 66’s path across the country.
Illinois
Few states can boast more Route 66 attractions than Illinois. Depending on your group’s starting point, the Mother Road either begins or ends near the Art Institute of Chicago. Stop for a photo op at the “Begin” or “End” Route 66 street signs. Then head to Lou Mitchell’s, a quintessential American diner that has been serving food since 1923.
En route to Pontiac, sites include the Gemini Giant in Wilmington and the restored Standard Oil gas station in Odell. Pontiac celebrates the Mother Road at the Route 66 Hall of Fame and Museum, located in a restored firehouse. For nearly 40 years, Bob Waldmire created artwork that depicts Route 66, and groups can tour the repurposed school bus that was his home, gallery and transportation. Groups can also visit the Pontiac-Oakland Automobile Museum or board the trolley for the Murals on Main Street Tour.
“Pontiac remains a gem along Route 66,” said Eric Wagner of the Illinois Office of Tourism. “People love to take a photo beside the world’s largest Route 66 shield at the Route 66 Hall of Fame and Museum.”
Historic Atlanta boasts the iconic Muffler Man statue and the Palm’s Café, known for its pie. And in Springfield, visitors love the Cozy Dog Drive-In. Home of the corn dog, it overflows with mementos, plus souvenirs for sale.
Original sections of Route 66 can be seen in the state’s southern leg, including in 1.4 miles of hand-lain-brick road near Auburn. The Litchfield History Museum and the Route 66 Welcome Center showcase local lore, and the Ariston Café has served customers for more than 90 years. Leaving Illinois, the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, one of the world’s longest bicycle and pedestrian bridges, spans the Mississippi.
Missouri
Stretching from St. Louis to Joplin, Route 66 loosely follows today’s Interstate 44. In St. Louis, the Gateway Arch is a can’t-miss attraction, and the Museum of Transportation displays one of the world’s best collections of transportation vehicles. Dining options are wide-ranging and include the historic Eat-Rite Diner, the Crown Candy Kitchen and Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.
An hour’s drive west, Meramec Caverns opened as an attraction in 1935. The state’s largest commercial cave, Meramec Caverns offers year-round tours that explore its extensive underground chambers. Other Meramec attractions include a zip line, riverboat rides and canoe floats.
Dubbed Missouri’s Route 66 mural city, the tiny community of Cuba boasts 14 larger-than-life paintings of historic vignettes. Step-on tours highlight the murals and their stories. Built in 1935, the Wagon Wheel Motel is the oldest continuously operating tourist court along the historic highway.
Pulaski County claims some of the best-preserved pavement from the route’s several alignments: an original 1926 gravel section and Hooker Cut, which highlights the era’s innovative road construction. At the river’s bend in picturesque Devil’s Elbow, visitors can write postcards and mail them at the historic Sheldon Market. Step-on tours showcase Devil’s Elbow and the Waynesville area, where customized walking tours in Waynesville include the Pulaski County Courthouse Museum and Old Stagecoach Stop Museum.
Lebanon claims the vintage Munger Moss Motel. In Springfield, the Spanish Colonial Revival architecture of the 1929 Gillioz Theatre remains an impressive landmark, with performances and behind-the-scenes tours. Also in town, the refurbished Rail Haven boasts eight sandstone cottages built in 1938 and offers Monroe and Elvis suites. In Carthage, the 66 Drive-In dates to 1949 and shows movies from the first weekend of April through mid-September.
“Springfield claims to be the birthplace of Route 66 because the 1926 meeting to determine the highway’s name was held there,” said Lori Simms, interim director for Missouri Division of Tourism.
Oklahoma
Groups can travel almost all the 400 miles of Route 66 in Oklahoma without getting onto the interstate. Near the state’s eastern border, the Coleman Theatre in Miami has dazzled audiences since the 1930s with its Louis XV interior and 1929 “Mighty Wurlitzer” pipe organ.
“Groups can opt for a customized tour and have lunch on our stage,” said Shannon Duhon, managing director at the theater. “If they spend the night in town, their day can end with a plated dinner in the ballroom, a tour and classic movie shown afterward.”
Nearby, the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore pays homage to this larger-than-life actor, American cowboy, humorist, newspaper columnist and social commentator from Oklahoma. References to Route 66 as the Will Rogers Highway surfaced shortly after Roger’s death in 1935.
En route, the 80-foot-long Blue Whale beckons for a photo op as one of the highway’s most recognizable icons. In Tulsa, the Cyrus Avery Memorial Bridge over Route 66, with its plaza sculptures and flags, offers another great spot for a group photo. Avery was known as the Father of Route 66 and helped create the Federal Highway System as Oklahoma’s first highway commissioner.
Chandler’s 1937 National Guard armory houses the Route 66 Interpretive Center. For a fun stop on the outskirts of Oklahoma City, Pops sells more than 600 flavors of specialty bottled sodas. Your group can eat on the back patio overlooking a large lawn planted with 66 redbuds, Oklahoma’s state tree.
Near the Texas border, Elk City’s National Route 66 and Transportation Museum complex features automobiles and first-person audio accounts from travelers. The museum’s replicated drive-in theater shows clips from movie greats such as “The Blob.”
New Mexico
Prairie landscape gradually gives way to high desert in New Mexico along Route 66. Tucumcari boasts the pink-stucco Blue Swallow Motel, where motor court garages separate the rooms. The Tee-Pee Curios trading post sells kitschy souvenirs. The city’s Route 66 Photo Museum showcases restored cars and memorabilia. Built in 1935, the Art Deco Odeon Theatre still shows first-run movies on its single screen.
Further west, the 80-foot-deep Blue Hole of Santa Rosa became an oasis for travelers because of its constant 62-degree water temperature. Arriving in Albuquerque, Route 66, now renamed Central Avenue, features 18 miles of motel courts, diners, vintage neon signs and attractions. Because of directional alignment changes in 1937, the Mother Road uniquely crosses itself at Central Avenue and Fourth, and travelers can stand on the corner of Route 66 and Route 66. Also on Central, the historic KiMo Theater offers a full schedule of entertainment. Renovated gas stations that have been turned into nostalgic restaurants include the Standard Diner, the ’66 Diner and Kelly’s Brew Pub, which still has the original gas pumps.
“The Best of Albuquerque tour on the ABQ Trolley makes a great introduction to our city’s Route 66 sites,” said Brenna Moore, public relations and communications manager for Visit Albuquerque. “The tour travels down Central Avenue; through Old Town, downtown, the University of New Mexico; and ends in the 100-year-old Nob Hill neighborhood.”
Heading toward Gallup, Route 66 bisects the heart of the 42-square-mile Laguna Pueblo homeland, and the green chili cheeseburgers at Laguna’s 66 Pit Stop are legendary. During its glory days, Gallup’s El Rancho Hotel became a mecca for Hollywood actors. Its 49er Lounge has served tequilas and hand-squeezed margaritas for 75 years, and the hotel’s restaurant accommodates groups. Shoppers won’t want to miss Richardson’s Trading Post, which sells authentic turquoise jewelry and beautiful Native American rugs.
Arizona
Crossing into the northwest corner of Arizona, the Mother Road travels through communities bypassed by the interstate system. Along the way, travelers find fascinating historic and geological sites, including the Petrified Forest National Park, Meteor Crater and the Walnut Canyon National Monument, which showcases 800-year-old cliff dwellings.
“Arizona has the nation’s longest original road at 137 miles from Seligman to Topock,” said Marjorie Magnusson, spokesperson for the Arizona Office of Tourism. “Near the California border, the former mining town of Oatman stages mock gunfights, and wild burros roam the streets.”
Arizona’s La Posada Hotel in Winslow was a favored destination of the Hollywood jet set. Fred Harvey built the showplace in 1929 for the Santa Fe Railway. Rooms feature handmade ponderosa pine beds and handwoven Zapotec rugs. Interior views overlook the lovely gardens, and Route 66 can be seen to the north.
Climbing to 7,000 feet elevation, Flagstaff lies within the world’s largest contiguous ponderosa pine forest. Its charming thoroughfare still uses Route 66 signage. Galleries, boutiques, restaurants and coffee shops have taken up residence in late-1800s buildings. A self-guided Route 66 walking tour starts at the visitors center. Afterward, groups can grab a bite at the Galaxy Diner, which sports a soda fountain and walls covered with black-and-white glamour shots of midcentury movie stars.
Near the California border, Kingman’s wide range of architecture includes adobe and Victorian. Downtown claims 60 buildings that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Route 66 Museum in the Historic Powerhouse depicts the evolution of automobile travel.
California
Crossing into California, the Mother Road spans the southern portion of the state. According to Scott Piotrowski, executive director of Highway Journeys, California has Route 66’s only stretch of unforgiving desert, and on the other extreme, it has metropolitan Los Angeles.
For an off-the-beaten-path experience in the Mojave Desert, visit the Kelso Dunes. Your group can hike the maintained trail that climbs around the cone of Amboy Crater, a dormant volcano. One of the quirkiest stops, Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch, displays a forest of “trees” made from bottles of all shapes, colors and sizes that were abandoned near Route 66. And in Victorville, Emma Jean’s Holland Burger Café has served hearty breakfasts and lunch since 1947.
Leaving the desert via the Cajon Pass and descending to Rancho Cucamonga, baseball fans can catch a game at the home of the Quakes, the Los Angeles Dodgers farm team. Next up, San Bernardino, with its landmark Wigwam Motel, serves as the gateway to Los Angeles. Route 66 originally ended in downtown Los Angeles in the now-restored Broadway Theater District where actors once flocked to make it big. Celebrating the end of this nostalgic journey at the Santa Monica Pier, your group can ride the Ferris wheel, stroll the beach and dine al fresco at sunset.
“In Los Angeles County, nearly 90 landmarks of Route 66 are on the National Register of Historic Places, so the density of historic structures is immense,” said Piotrowski. “Although the pier isn’t part of the road’s history, it’s part of the contemporary view of the road and definitely worth experiencing at the end of the journey.”
