Route 66 Original

Welcome to Chicago! On arrival, take the airport shuttle to our hotel. Once at the hotel you can either relax, visit downtown Chicago, for numerous sightseeing, dining and shopping opportunities (our hotel is  just two blocks from the Rosemont Blue Line CTA station), or visit the nearby entertainment / shopping complex. Just be back in time to meet your tour guides at the hospitality desk, get signed in and enjoy the complimentary welcome dinner this evening.

After breakfast, we load up the support van, pick up our bikes and off we go. Before you know it, we are riding down Historic Route 66 through the corn belt of Illinois as we follow the Pontiac Trail, as Route 66 used to be known here, to the state capital, Springfield.

Welcome to the picturesque scenery of small-town mid-America to the beautiful rolling hills of the Ozarks. This morning we meander through small farming towns and countryside until we reach the border between Illinois and Missouri: the Mississippi river. We stop here to see the Chain of Rocks Bridge which became a part of original Route 66 in 1936. After lunch we stop at the Missouri Route 66 State Park, and then visit Jesse James’ hideout at Meramec Caverns. Finally, we arrive in Rolla for dinner. We’re only 24 hours from Tulsa!

We head into the rolling hills of the Ozarks through (another) Springfield, Joplin and Carthage until we reach Kansas. This was frontier country for much of the 19^th century, and although the mountains aren’t high, the road switches, dips, and climbs providing great views of the steep hillsides of oak, elm, hickory and redbud. Soon it’s time to stop for lunch as the aroma of slow-smoked southern barbecue lures us into one of the many local cafes.  After less than 20 miles of Kansas we move into the beautiful scenery of eastern Oklahoma and our destination, the oil city of Tulsa.

We head towards western Oklahoma and its wide-open spaces this morning. Oklahoma has more miles of Route 66 than any other state, and in better condition! So it’s a real mecca for bikers and old-road fans alike. The majority of the day is spent riding the ‘Old 66’ through pastures and prairie. We stop at the Route 66 Interpretive Center in Chandler, the Round Barn in Arcadia and ride the longest remaining stretch of the original 1928 -1935 alignment of the route.

Further west we ride through El Reno, over the mile-long pony-truss bridge near Hydro and end up at our hotel in the ranching and college town of Weatherford.

We start today at the Route 66 museum in Clinton, where you can learn more about the route and its importance in American history and do some souvenir shopping. Then it’s back on the road, passing through great plains, vast cattle ranches and small farming towns as we enter the Texas panhandle. We stop at the beautiful U-Drop Inn in Shamrock, featured in the film ‘Cars’ as Ramone’s Body Shop. Then we’re off across the plains for a well-deserved steak at the Big Texas Steak Ranch in Amarillo. Are you brave enough to attempt the 72-oz (2 kg) steak dinner challenge tonight?

First stop, the Cadillac Ranch: a crazy farmer planted Cadillacs in his field, hoping to grow new ones – guess what?! Then it’s off to Adrian, home of the Midpoint Café and our halfway point. After stopping for a coffee, we leave the great plains behind and head into the natural splendour of the southwest. Riding through the wide-open spaces and into the Rocky Mountains, we arrive in the beautiful city of Santa Fe where we will spend the next two nights.

Time for some rest and relaxation in one of the oldest (and highest, at over 2250 m) state capitals in the USA. Enjoy Santa Fe’s numerous art galleries, speciality shops and museums, all within easy walking distance of our hotel. Just roam around the beautiful downtown plaza taking in its unique combination of Native American and Spanish colonial architecture. Or if you want a gentle ride, we recommend the short visit to Taos – from a biker’s viewpoint probably the best day of all! Lots of bends to ride as we take the valley road there and the high-country road back. Taos is famous as an artist colony and some beautiful art and Native American crafts awaiting you.

It’s time to get back on the road and out into the deserts of the southwest, to our first stop for lunch in Albuquerque Old Town. Then we head on through the splendour of New Mexico’s natural beauty, ending the day in the old railroad town and Native American stronghold of Gallup and our historic El Rancho hotel.

Today we head into Arizona’s spectacular deserts. Our first stop is the Painted Desert & Petrified Forest National Park, where we take our time riding through the park, stopping to take in its natural beauty. Afterwards we stop in Holbrook to see the Wigwam Motel’s tepee-shaped rooms on our way to lunch. Then it’s time to ‘Take it Easy’ with the Eagles, standing on the corner in Winslow Arizona, before continuing to our hotel in Williams, the last Route 66 Town to be passed by Interstate 40 and gateway to the Grand Canyon.

We have the whole day to visit the Grand Canyon. We ride the 60 miles from Williams to the canyon’s south rim, or you can take the train. Here we have time to explore on our own and see the canyon in our own time. We recommend the prebookable Canyon Spirit helicopter ride for a bird’s eye view of the vastness of the canyon. We meet up later for a sunset ride back to our hotel. This will be a day to remember!

We start the day by riding to the small town of Seligman for breakfast and give ourselves some time for shopping at its many Route 66 shops. Then we‘re off to Hackberry and then Kingman, the self-styled ‘Capital of Route 66’. Next comes what Americans like to call the ‘curviest’ part of the Route, the Oatman Highway, a twisting ride over the Black Mountains. We stop in Oatman to see one of the few remaining old west gold mining towns and its burros, left behind when the miners abandoned the mines.  And then we reach the Colorado River, California and Needles, our next historic Route 66 town.

We start the day by riding over the Spirit Mountains into the dramatic, desolate and hot Mojave Desert, stopping in Amboy, located in the middle of nowhere, to check out iconic Roy’s Motel and Café. We continue to our lunch stop in Barstow and then on to Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch. After a hot day riding through the desert our hotel’s refreshing pool beckons us to take a cool dip and relax.

The big adventure comes to an end today with our ride to Los Angeles. Much of the road has been lost, but the end of the Mother Road, Santa Monica Pier, is worth the wait. Park up the bike and dip your toes in the Pacific Ocean, this really is journey’s end! We take our time going to the end marker plaque, and then have a nice lunch on the pier. Afterwards you’ll have some time to look around. Then it just remains for us to return the motorcycles in the afternoon and enjoy our Farewell Party this evening.

Sadly, it’s time to pack our bags and head home, filled with the experiences and memories. We hope to see you back for another great tour. This is end of the road – for now!