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Decatur · 02-19-2020, 09:40 AM

My wife and I will be traveling from Chicago to Santa Monica this June and July on route 66, or what is remaining to drive on plus highways. We have maps and guide books bit no firsthand knowledge of the trip. Can anyone share experiences driving the entire 2000 plus miles?

We have taken several long trips with the Airstream so know how to get her ready for a month on the road. Any additional beyond normal prep suggested?

We plan to drive Chicago to Santa Monica in 3 weeks and give one week to return via all interstates.
Is 3 weeks enough time to enjoy the experience?

We plan to drive up to 300 miles in a jump, camp, stay a few days in a location then travel back and forward without the trailer on 66 to see the sites. At this point looks like 10 camp sites on the way out. Does this sound reasonable or for those who drove the entire way how did you break up the driving and site seeing?

I am making camp ground reservations now, anyone try it without reserving camp sites in advance. The reservations guarantee a place to stay but can be a bit restrictive if we want to vary our plans along the way.

Some stretches of the old road are passable with a 28 foot AS trailer but some appear a bit rough. Any suggestions or sections to avoid?

I did see a few threads in AS forem about RT 66 but would like some fresh opinions.

Thank you for any and all insight.

Lily&Me · 02-19-2020, 12:54 PM

Tommie Lauer (Msmoto) did all or much of this a few years back.

Might pm her for some input.

Maggie

OTRA15 · 02-19-2020, 02:25 PM

At the risk of raining on your parade . . . we did a 7-week NY/San Diego/Napa/NY winter 7,000 mile round trip back in the 90's -- so using a very broad brush from that trip -- your timing may tight, especially with the roads in worse shape, and more crowded in 2020 IMO. Also, you will be traveling during the most crowded season of the year, spanning the Fourth of July +/-.

Can it be done? Sure, but the timing will be tight. Will you have two drivers who can switch off? That will help a lot IMO.

Personally, if you have to get as far west as Santa Monica, I would recommend getting there as quickly as you can, and then taking your time coming back. This way you can gauge your progress going west, and adjust things as needed. With your plan, if you are "late" arriving in Santa Monica, the whole trip may take on an overtone of rushed scheduling, and long [dangerous] legs of Interstate driving coming home.

Have fun!

Peter

PS -- The one "sight" I would recommend would be Carlsbad Caverns. Be sure to take the side tour into the smaller caves, where they turn off all the lights, and have everyone remain very silent.

ROBERT CROSS · 02-19-2020, 10:27 PM

Best scenery....Oatman Highway thru the Black Hills of Arizona.👍

Longest original Tourist Stretch

Otherwise just jump off 40 when you see the signs.

Then there is the Bagdad Cafe in Newberry Springs.

Bob
🇺🇸

'99-2000

GeocamperAS · 02-20-2020, 06:09 AM

We did Route 66 from Illinois to Albuquerque when we attended the balloon fiesta.
Route 66, back in the day, was all about having a gimmick to attract the traveler to their diner, motel, gas station, etc.
Things like a giant statue of Paul Bunyan holding a hot dog, worlds largest rocking chair, the Sinclair dinosaur, etc
Also the Disney/Pixar movie 'Cars' writer was inspired by a road trip of what was left of route 66. A rusty tow truck sitting out side an old gas station now turned diner in Galena KS was the inspiration for 'Tow Mater'. A Conoco gas station in TX was the inspiration for 'Ramon's Body Shop'.
We also watched many episodes of Diners Drive ins and Dives to chose some places to stop for diner.
There are also newer places that have popped up like the Vacuum Museum. I thought it was going be boring but turned out very fun. Or the Devil's Rope Museum (barbed wire) was well worth the stop.
We left Milwaukee and made it to Albuquerque on the 4th day with a lot of photo op's on the way. We had no problems stoping at any of them with our 28 foot.
If you would like our itinerary for ideas PM me.

StreaminGeo · 02-20-2020, 08:14 AM

There's a long stretch of the original Route 66 going west out of Seligman, AZ to Kingman if you want to get a feel for what it was like to drive it before it became I-40.

Caffeinated · 02-20-2020, 08:28 AM

I’m pretty sure there is no place to camp in Santa Monica.

Mike

PCJ · 02-20-2020, 10:00 AM

We spent 17 days on route 66 just going through OK portion. But we're full time and perhaps have more time to do that in.

greenflag · 02-20-2020, 10:02 AM

Find someplace to stay just outside of Los Angeles. Day trip the last little section with your tow vehicle.

greenflag · 02-20-2020, 10:09 AM

Another thought. I would not tow my Airstream on 66 leading to Oatman Arizona. The road is very narrow and twisty. I did see a Banbi towed through town though. Oatman is worth seeing. Another good day trip.

PacificNW09 · 02-20-2020, 10:19 AM

About 5 years ago my wife and I drove the southern route from Portland, Oregon to N. Carolina with our 16' Bambi. Route 66 from Flagstaff to Oklahoma City was fun for us.
The Petrified Forest east of Flagstaff was super interesting. Being retired Army National Guard, we stay on military bases on all of our trips. Sort of gated communities, lol. Enjoy your trip!

ktgsmokey · 02-20-2020, 10:33 AM

Here are a couple of stops not to be missed along Rt 66:

- Missouri Hicks Bar-b-Que on Rt 66 in Cuba, MO west of St. Louis; great food but also right next door to an absolutely classic Rt 66 auto-motel and service station well maintained/restored
- Winslow, AZ: classic Rt 66 town with still active railroad and with split one-way main streets; check out the monument to the Eagles song "standing on a corner", and definitely visit and eat at the La Posada recently renovated (http://laposada.org); excellent food especially their signature soup; this was one of the famous Fred Harvey railroad hotels designed by the female architect Mary Coulter (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Colter) who also designed many of the buildings at the Grand Canyon National Park and the interiors at the La Fonda hotel in the heart of Santa Fe
- Homolovi State Park is just a few miles east of Winslow and a very nice open desert RV campground with nearby ruins and pictographs

BDowse · 02-20-2020, 10:35 AM

You should plan a stop in Amarillo, TX and visit the Jack Sizemore RV dealership and museum. You will be glad you did. Vintage Wally Bynum trailer and other RV artifacts unlike you’ll ever see anywhere else. Oasis campground west of town on I40 is a class act but several other good ones including KOA. Pala Duro Canyon south of town is a popular attraction. The Blue Hole in Santa Rosa, NM is often overlooked and close to the highway. Have fun! Be safe..7

Atwebs · 02-20-2020, 03:03 PM

We did that last year coming back to California from Nashville in October trying to avoid snowstorms. Route 40 sort of comes in and out of the old route 66. There was some construction, but nothing terrible and for the most part it was a pretty straight road. We did see a couple of really nasty truck accidents and they closed the road for 8-10 hours at a time though. Those seemed to happen in the middle of the night...just check your traffic before you get on the road.

Take time to stop. I hightly recommend Petrified Forest and Painted Canyon -we saw some of that area, but hadn't planned an entire day -our loss. There are still some tourist attractions and trading posts, we accidentally discovered Mater after a nice lunch and almost drove right past Cadillac Ranch -but quick thinking and we got to see it. There are online lists of Route 66 attractions online, pick some!

Seems there were plenty of places to KOA style (Kamping on Asphalt) camp, several had "route 66" themes and we were able to find a spot even without any reservations. Quite a bit of the roadway is sort of empty and sad, a long abandoned corridor so it was a bit boring in spots but you can battle the boredom with stops and an explorer's heart.

PatLee · 02-20-2020, 03:33 PM

I met a wonderful lady at the Airstream Int'l Rally in Salem 2 years ago who owned, with her husband, a vintage trailer. She told me they had done Route 66 with the help of a Route 66 travel guide; and spent 6 weeks exploring the route. She said it was one of the best vacations they ever took. Just going through my Rt 66 guide, it looks like there's a LOT to see and do. How about doing half of it in a leisurely fashion and then return next year to do the other half? OR just go as far as you can this year ('leisurely fashion' always being the key phrase) - and then pick it up the following? Otherwise, I'm afraid that OTRA15's admonition that you'll get yourselves into a 'rushed scheduling' tailspin that will dampen your enjoyment of the trip.
Take care and good luck.

Sharon_Jon · 02-20-2020, 06:30 PM

One more suggestion is Meteor Crater RV park just outside Winslow. Maybe nine or 10 miles. The park is adequate clean and well run. Largest meteor crater on earth or in the United States at least has an interesting museum and the viewing area. It’s a bit commercializedBut well worth a visit A nice new park is route 66 RV Resorts a little west of Albuquerque. Lots of amenities.

Decatur · 02-21-2020, 08:20 AM

Thank you to everyone who sent in comments. This all helps quite a lot. Looks like we will be altering out trip a bit from Chicago to Oklahoma to give more time in the mid west and west. Thank you all again.

drmox · 02-21-2020, 10:33 PM

I have it on good authority that the Mother Road through Radiator Springs was repaved fairly recently, and is in pristine condition.

GeocamperAS · 02-22-2020, 03:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drmox

I have it on good authority that the Mother Road through Radiator Springs was repaved fairly recently, and is in pristine condition.

Ka-Chow

Julie-Bob · 02-22-2020, 07:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Decatur

My wife and I will be traveling from Chicago to Santa Monica this June and July on route 66, or what is remaining to drive on plus highways. We have maps and guide books bit no firsthand knowledge of the trip. Can anyone share experiences driving the entire 2000 plus miles?

We have taken several long trips with the Airstream so know how to get her ready for a month on the road. Any additional beyond normal prep suggested?

We plan to drive Chicago to Santa Monica in 3 weeks and give one week to return via all interstates.

Is 3 weeks enough time to enjoy the experience?

We plan to drive up to 300 miles in a jump, camp, stay a few days in a location then travel back and forward without the trailer on 66 to see the sites. At this point looks like 10 camp sites on the way out. Does this sound reasonable or for those who drove the entire way how did you break up the driving and site seeing?

I am making camp ground reservations now, anyone try it without reserving camp sites in advance. The reservations guarantee a place to stay but can be a bit restrictive if we want to vary our plans along the way.

Some stretches of the old road are passable with a 28 foot AS trailer but some appear a bit rough. Any suggestions or sections to avoid?

I did see a few threads in AS forem about RT 66 but would like some fresh opinions.

Thank you for any and all insight.

In Ok stop in at Pops in Arcadia OK see how many different soda pops are in the world. Great rest area.

In TX on I 40 stop in Adrian TX. Half way point of Rout 66 eat in the Midway Cafe the pies are great Sign out side says 1136 miles back to Chicago 1139 to LA.