Route 66 is an icon of the golden age of automobile travel in America. While US Highway 66 was officially decommissioned in 1985, it’s still easy to travel pieces of this route from Chicago to Los Angeles and revisit a bit of history along the way. While not officially a National Park, Route 66 has been designated a National Scenic Byway, and the NPS is chartered to help preserve the history of this fabled road.
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Our Visit. You don’t really “visit” Route 66, but if you travel the American Midwest and Southwest, you’re bound to run across it. We’ve traveled many parts of Route 66, but in the context of National Park visits, we’ve encountered it most specifically at Petrified Forest NP and Pecos NHP.
Overall Impression. Unlike the long historic trails in the National Park Service (e.g., Santa Fe Trail), Route 66 is a lot easier to find and experience. Because of its iconic status as both a route of escape during the Dust Bowl of the Great Depression and a route of freedom and adventure after WWII, most states and cities are proud of their Route 66 history, and historic portions of the route and many buildings that serviced travelers are well marked. Even if it’s not a destination in an of itself, traveling a bit of Route 66 is a nostalgic experience and worth taking a few scenic detours to explore.
Sign along New Mexico Highway 50 marking the historic route of US Highway 66 through Glorieta Pass in New Mexico
Visiting. Most people who “visit” the 2,400 miles of Route 66 do so by incidentally driving along its historic routes. Parts of Route 66 have become US Interstates (most notably I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10) and host millions of travelers each year. However, to really experience Route 66, you have to get off the interstate and into the small towns that dotted the road. This is easy to do because much of the route that’s not interstate has been converted to state highways, and exits along the interstate that feature historic portions of Route 66 and it’s buildings are usually well marked for travelers to find. Even if you just venture off at an exit and find an older service station and perhaps an historic diner for lunch, you can experience a little piece of history.
It’s fairly easy to mix a visit to a National Park site with a tour of Route 66. A list of some National Park sites right off Route 66 are listed below, but there are easily another dozen within an hour of the main route. Most notably, an abandoned portion of Route 66 passes right through Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona, and a section of the pre-1937 route passes through Pecos National Historic Park in New Mexico–you can also find special “Route 66” NPS Passport Stamps at these sites.
Suggestions. There are plenty of websites and resources online to help you find portions of the route. If you’re traveling anywhere near the historic route (see the map), consider adding a leg to y0ur journey along the old Route 66. Do a little reading first so you can appreciate the part Route 66 played in US history and why it’s so famous–the NPS has a great multi-page article that starts here. Driving the two-lane roads of Route 66 will take a little more time than the interstate, but you’ll get to experience what it was like to travel the US before interstates, and I’m sure you’ll find it to be a driving experience with a bit more soul.
Map of Route 66 and National Park Sites
Nearby Towns Chicago, Springfield (IL), St. Louis, Springfield (MO), Tulsa, Oklahoma City (OK), Amarillo (TX), Albuquerque, Gallup (NM), Flagstaff, Needles (AZ), Barstow, Los Angeles, Santa Monica (CA)
Other Nearby Attractions Gateway NP (MO), Pecos NHP (NM), Petrified Forest NP, Walnut Canyon NM (AZ), Santa Monica Mountains NRA (CA)
Official NPS Website Travel Route 66
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