Historic Route 66
Nov 19th, 2008, 07:57 PM
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Historic Route 66
We will be traveling from Illinois to Arizona this coming April. We've decided to make it a road trip and drive the historic Route 66.
Anyone have suggestions, must see sites, restaurants or places to stay?
Anyone have suggestions, must see sites, restaurants or places to stay?
Nov 19th, 2008, 08:21 PM
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My in-laws just did this trip (St. Louis to California) a couple months ago and said guidebooks were very useful. I can get the names of the books they used and get back to you. They had a great time.
Nov 19th, 2008, 11:15 PM
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My favorite part of the old route 66 is between Kingma, AZ and Oatman, AZ. You really get a feel for what the road was like and Oatman is a kick. The have burros that roam the streets. When we were there a few years ago they had a gunfight right on the road. I don't know if they still do that. Oatman is a real tourist trap, but we liked it.
Kingman, AZ has a very nice Route 66 museum.
Utahtea
Kingman, AZ has a very nice Route 66 museum.
Utahtea
Nov 20th, 2008, 12:30 AM
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Yes, you can drop by at Twisters 50's Soda Fountain. They feature great coca cola drink such as Vanilla, Chocolate, Cherry, and any other flavored Coke you can think of. And try their fantastic Dreyers Ice cream comes in such treats as Old Fashioned Ice Cream Sodas, Banana Splits, Sundaes, their great "TWISTERS" special sundae and of course, the "Route 66 Beer Float."
http://www.route66place.com
http://www.route66place.com
Nov 20th, 2008, 06:33 AM
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Although Kansas only has 16 miles of the route, there is a lot packed into those miles and you can fill a day here.
http://www.kansastravel.org/route66.htm
If you have less time, be sure to at least visit 4 Women on the Route (where you can see the orginal "Tow Mater," Eisler Brothers Store and Cafe on the Route.
I envy you and hope you do a trip report or blog. If I was going to do your trip, I would prepare something in advance to give to the people I met. Perhaps a photo of your party and vehicle.
Keith
http://www.kansastravel.org/route66.htm
If you have less time, be sure to at least visit 4 Women on the Route (where you can see the orginal "Tow Mater," Eisler Brothers Store and Cafe on the Route.
I envy you and hope you do a trip report or blog. If I was going to do your trip, I would prepare something in advance to give to the people I met. Perhaps a photo of your party and vehicle.
Keith
Nov 20th, 2008, 06:54 AM
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Thanks for your ideas so far. They're just what we're looking for - keep 'em coming!
I did order "Route 66: The Mother Road" by Michael Wallis. It turned out to be more of a human interest and reminiscent-type book than I anticipated, however, is interesting none the less. I also ordered the "Here It Is! Route 66" set of maps by Jerry McClanahan and Jim Ross. They look like they'll be helpful.
Keith, your idea of bringing something to give to people is a good one! And yes, I'm a blogger (http://www.mushroomfactor.com) so will certainly be doing something on that order.
I did order "Route 66: The Mother Road" by Michael Wallis. It turned out to be more of a human interest and reminiscent-type book than I anticipated, however, is interesting none the less. I also ordered the "Here It Is! Route 66" set of maps by Jerry McClanahan and Jim Ross. They look like they'll be helpful.
Keith, your idea of bringing something to give to people is a good one! And yes, I'm a blogger (http://www.mushroomfactor.com) so will certainly be doing something on that order.
Nov 20th, 2008, 01:32 PM
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I live in Oklahoma and our state publishes a great free guide called "Oklahoma Route 66 The Ultimate Road Trip." You can order it at travelok.com
My DH and I drove a portion of it on our way to OKC and enjoyed it very much. We stopped at a place called Pops in Arcadia and had lunch. They have hundreds of different types of bottled soft drinks to choose from. The place was packed for lunch.
I'm looking forward to your trip report.
My DH and I drove a portion of it on our way to OKC and enjoyed it very much. We stopped at a place called Pops in Arcadia and had lunch. They have hundreds of different types of bottled soft drinks to choose from. The place was packed for lunch.
I'm looking forward to your trip report.
Nov 20th, 2008, 02:59 PM
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This was a good thread on same topic. There are also some links in the thread to other similar threads.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...1&tid=35008259
It will take a bit of reading, but lots of good info.
Deb
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...1&tid=35008259
It will take a bit of reading, but lots of good info.
Deb
Nov 21st, 2008, 04:48 PM
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The Dixie Truck Stop in Illinois has some route 66 memorabilia. (I think it may be called a Route 66 museum - but that's stretching it.)
Springfield IL has a restaurant that dates from the early days. Cozy Dog? I'd have to think of the name. It was an early fast food type place. I wasn't all that impressed with the food, but the photos and the like that they had displayed were interesting.
Debbie
Springfield IL has a restaurant that dates from the early days. Cozy Dog? I'd have to think of the name. It was an early fast food type place. I wasn't all that impressed with the food, but the photos and the like that they had displayed were interesting.
Debbie
Nov 21st, 2008, 04:50 PM
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Arizona has the motel where you stay in teepees. We thought about doing that, but decided a drive-through was enough. Oprah stopped there when she did the coast to coast drive with Gayle King. I think she may not have stayed either. As I recall, they showed the insides of the rooms and they looked like the furnishings and linens dated from the 50s too. Maybe someone else can remember it better than I do.
Debbie
Debbie
Nov 21st, 2008, 08:21 PM
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It's an exciting drive! But we got too many kicks on Route 66 a few years ago, en route from Kingman to Oatman. So please be very careful driving - the road is not engineered like modern roads and is very unforgiving. We found ourselves sailing off a ledge after swerving slightly to avoid an animal on the road, landed sort of nose first and then rolled a couple of times, but ended up on four wheels alone in the desert. Wonderful Americans finally came along with a phone and helped us. Our hire car was a write off, but we were OK, just shaken. Could have been a disaster, and I was thankful it was at the end of our six week road trip, and not at the beginning. We were towed back to Kingman, and I still haven't been to Oatman!
Nov 22nd, 2008, 01:16 PM
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La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona, a restored railroad hotel with buildings, interior and gardens designed by Mary Colter. The Turquoise Room Restaurant is highly rated by Arizona Highways Magazine. My husband and I enjoyed both the hotel and restaurant earlier this month. Deborah
Nov 25th, 2008, 08:10 AM
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Here is the list of books and websites that my in-laws found helpful on their trip just a couple months ago.
"The Michael Wallis book, Route 66 The Mother Road, really gave us a good idea of what to expect, plus a lot of history. The Tom Snyder book, Route 66 Traveler's Guide, had more of the same (without photos), plus a good set of maps by the Automobile Club of Southern CA. New books that we purchased included Jerry McCalanahan's book, EZ66 Guide for Travelers. It was the best guide with enough directions to get you where ever you wanted to go. We also bought Route 66 Dining & Lodging Guide, which was golden and showed us rated places with some great restored establishments. The first two books inspire, and the last two are musts for travel out there. I also bought McCalanahan's Route 66 Map Set; it contained some great graphics but was not as much help as his book in guiding you over the route.
"Two links that I used were http://www.historic66.com/ and http://www.national66.org/index.html. In these you'll find access to the latest editions of the books I mentioned, maps and a lot of current detail."
Hope that helps!
"The Michael Wallis book, Route 66 The Mother Road, really gave us a good idea of what to expect, plus a lot of history. The Tom Snyder book, Route 66 Traveler's Guide, had more of the same (without photos), plus a good set of maps by the Automobile Club of Southern CA. New books that we purchased included Jerry McCalanahan's book, EZ66 Guide for Travelers. It was the best guide with enough directions to get you where ever you wanted to go. We also bought Route 66 Dining & Lodging Guide, which was golden and showed us rated places with some great restored establishments. The first two books inspire, and the last two are musts for travel out there. I also bought McCalanahan's Route 66 Map Set; it contained some great graphics but was not as much help as his book in guiding you over the route.
"Two links that I used were http://www.historic66.com/ and http://www.national66.org/index.html. In these you'll find access to the latest editions of the books I mentioned, maps and a lot of current detail."
Hope that helps!
