Best places to visit on a Route 66 road trip

Route 66 is probably the most talked about road in America and people are always saying they want to see it saved, but not many are doing anything about it. With the 100-year anniversary coming in 2026, there are companies doing their part to help save this piece of American history. One example of a business invested in saving Route 66 is Mobil 1. The motor oil brand is trying to preserve and protect the Mother Road by running a campaign “Keep Route 66 Kickin”. This campaign aims to help small businesses along historic Route 66 by advocating to make it a National Historic Trail. This act would help generate more dollars for the preservation of the road and all the small business along it. Also included in the campaign are Guinness Book of World Record setting events planned along Route 66 and creating a guide to Route 66’s small businesses. You can support the effort by visiting keep66kickin.com.

With Mobil 1 coming up with a way to try preserve this piece of automotive history, it got us thinking about encouraging a great American road trip. What better place to take a road trip than historic Route 66. For most people, Route 66 is thought of as these nostalgic images or even pictured through the lens of the Pixar movie Cars. There is a lot of American culture and history that can only be seen by driving this decommissioned highway. If you’re thinking about taking a drive on Route 66, Hagerty employees shared 18 of their favorite spots to visit along the route below. But first, what is Route 66?

History

Opened in 1926, Route 66 is 2,448 miles long from downtown Chicago to the Santa Monica Pier near Los Angeles. Some of it is actually older than that as a portion began as a government-funded wagon road built by the US Army in 1857. Although it was signed into law in 1927 as one of the original US Highways, it wasn’t fully paved until 1938 (with numerous route changes and adjustments over the years, there are still parts that are unpaved you would drive down today). A combination of the Dust Bowl of the 1930s and the Great Depression caused many families to use the road to travel west in search of jobs.

Along with the rise of the automobile offering freedom for motorists who wanted to explore the country this became quite the well-traveled route. Mom-and-pop businesses like gas stations, restaurants, and motels were popping up everywhere. During the 1940s it was war-related industries in California bringing more traffic to the route. Then, in the 1950s, vacationers heading to see the west coast were a lot of the people traveling the road. This is when most of the wacky tourist locations started appearing. Everything from teepee-shaped motels and reptile farms, to displaying giant “Muffler Men”. Not to mention the birth of the fast-food industry occurred along Route 66 during that time. The road was so busy that there are sections, especially in Oklahoma and Illinois, that have underground walkways just so people could safely get to the other side of the street.

Eventually a decline in travel came with the signing of the Interstate Highway Act by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. New highways were added, many times running parallel to Route 66, that made travel much faster and were used to bypass cities and small towns. The loss of traffic meant the loss of businesses and eventually whole towns along the route. Ultimately all parts of Route 66 were replaced by different highways, and it was officially removed from the US Highway System in 1985. The road isn’t gone though, and is still a popular drive for people looking for a bit of adventure and nostalgia.

Planning a road trip

Driving the original Route 66 and alternate alignments is doable, but can be a challenge. Some parts are still their original width of 9-foot-wide “sidewalk highway” form, never having been resurfaced to make them into full-width highways. These old sections have a single paved lane with gravel shoulders for passing. A lot of Route 66 is bypassed, unmarked, or slowly deteriorating back into the earth. Staying on it demands constant vigilance as it frequently crosses interstates.

If you’re trying to stay exclusively on Route 66, be prepared for the frustration of rolling at 45 mph parallel to an interstate where you could travel nearly double that. Hagerty’s Senior Vice President of Content Larry Webster drove it with his 2 sons and mother and his best advice was the “keep-it-loose strategy” when it comes to planning everything out. He says a trip down Route 66 is always an unpredictable journey. They took a 1969 Chevelle instead of renting a newer car which allowed them to meet many people that would not have otherwise. We definitely think if it is possible, taking a classic car for the drive is the best way to experience it.

Even if you can’t make it all the way from Chicago to LA, driving just a portion of it will still be memorable. There is so much history and heritage of the route to learn about. A road trip like this gives you an appreciation for the way life was not so long ago. As you drive you will hopefully see a revival of Route 66 happening with old motels, diners, and gas stations being restored now.

18 locations along Route 66 Hagerty staff think are worth visiting

Illinois

Cruisin’ with Lincoln on 66
Bloomington, IL
A Route 66 and Abraham Lincoln themed museum, gift shop, and visitor center to pick up your Route 66 Passport and start your journey.

Abraham Lincoln’s Tomb – Oakridge Cemetery
Springfield, IL
The 16^th president’s tomb is the 2^nd most visited grave in the country. Along with the 117-foot-tall obelisk over his grave, there are many statues and war memorials worth seeing. Be sure to rub the nose on the bronze bust of Lincoln for good luck.

Missouri

66 Drive-In
Carthage, MO
Opened in 1949 this historic drive-in appears in the epilogue of the movie Cars. It’s a family friendly stop with playgrounds to keep the kids entertained during intermission.

Kansas

Kan-O-Tex Service Station
Galena, KS
Only about 13 miles of Route 66 are in Kansas, but there’s some cool old building to see on their small stretch. Parked outside this service station is the tow truck that inspired “Tow Mater” for Cars. The town has since added a “Sheriff” car from the movie mounted on a pole, a “Red” firetruck, and a replica of “Luigi” as well. You can even find a small stretch of yellow brick road in town.  

Oklahoma

Cultural District
Miami, OK
Driving through the town you will see many murals commissioned in the last 30 years with more added each April, making this a highlight of public art.

Texas

U-Drop-Inn Conoco Station
Shamrock, TX
The historical station is fully restored now and serves as a visitors’ center. It was also the building that inspired Ramon’s House of Body Art in Cars.

Cadillac Ranch
Amarillo, TX
Yes, it’s a total tourist trap, but isn’t most of this stuff anyway? Grab a can of spray paint (sold in front of the cars actually) and add your name to these 10 tail fin Caddies in the ground. You have a choice of models to paint from 1949-1963.

New Mexico

The Motel Safari
Tucumcari, NM
An unbelievable motel that feels like going back in time… except squeaky clean.

Blue Hole
Santa Rosa, NM
In the midst of the desert, there is a beautiful clear blue water lake that attracts scuba divers from around the world. This 100-foot-deep water stays clear by renewing itself every six hours. It’s free to stop by for a quick swim, but be warned, the water is very cold.

Musical Highway
Albuquerque, NM
Align your tires on the rumble strips and drive exactly 45mph and you will hear America the Beautiful. Sometimes the governments’ ways of getting cars to slow down can be annoying, however this one is neat and really works (only on the eastbound lane).

Arizona

Wigwam Hotel
Holbrook, AZ
These used to be a chain of seven locations around the US but are down to just three (with another one being on Route 66 in San Bernardino, CA). Cozy Cone Motel anyone? What’s not to like about hotel rooms in simulated Teepees, plus it’s on the National Register of Historic Places.

Angel & Vilma Delgadillo’s Original Route 66 Gift Shop
Seligman, AZ
This is the town Radiator Springs from Cars was based on. If you’re lucky you can stop by Angel’s barber shop and talk to Angel Delgadillo who is considered the “Guardian of Route 66”. Every type of Route 66 knickknack you can think of is available to purchase here, plus there’s lots of cool stuff to see in this small town.

Meteor Crater Natural Landmark
Winslow, AZ
The world’s best-preserved meteor impact site. Enough said.

Wild Burros
Oatman, AZ
The roads around the old western town of Oatman are beautiful and scary at the same time. A lot of no guardrail hairpin turn steep drop-off white knuckle driving to get there (definitely not something for an RV). Once there you will have the unique experience of seeing wild donkeys walking the streets and sometimes even into the bars. The donkeys were left by gold miners 100 years ago and like to be fed by tourists.

Walnut Canyon National Monument – Ancient Cliff Dwellings
Flagstaff, AZ
The 600-foot-deep canyon with ancient cliff dwellings are spectacular to see and well worth a stop.

Petrified Forest National Park
Petrified Forest, AZ
Although Route 66 no longer goes right through the park, it still takes you to the entrance. This is a park you can drive through and park at many well maintained easy to walk paved trails with stunning views.

California

Route 66 Museum
Victorville, CA
This is a free museum with great handouts and a gift shop where the workers will share entertaining historical stories with you.

Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch
Oro Grande, CA
A totally unique free folk-art environment to explore.

Those are some of the Hagerty staff’s favorite stops, what are yours? Comment below and let us know what we missed.

If you’re trying to find some independent businesses to visit along the route, Mobil 1 put together a whole list of them all in one place.

There are over 4 million miles of road in the US, but no road is home to more incredible memories than Route 66. For the love of driving, let’s keep Route 66 kicking.