Route 66 is the iconic American road trip, the mother of all road trips in a country where road-tripping is almost an art form.
The 2,400-mile (3,800+ km) highway from Chicago to Santa Monica is a journey through American history, art, and culture — not all of it pretty, as we found when we did a big portion of it in 2016, but an amazing, interesting and fun experience nevertheless. Maurie’s story about that journey can be found here.
We’ve done numerous road trips in the USA over the years, and in Chicago a few years ago we were surprised to see how unremarkable the start of Route 66 is.
It’s marked by a small sign on the intersection where East Adams Street intersects with South Michigan Avenue, across the road from the fabulous Art Institute of Chicago, passed by hundreds of downtown employees every day who don’t give it so much as a backwards glance.
Once you can tear yourself away from the bright lights of Chicago and hit the road, you’ll find a ton of references to Route 66, starting with the memorabilia-packed Route 66 Association Hall of Fame and Museum in Pontiac, Illinois.
Continuing on through eight American states, you’ll encounter retro motels, vintage diners, lots of neon signs and quirky roadside attractions, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, fascinating museums, wonderful landscapes and national parks.
Eventually you’ll end up at the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles County — or perhaps you might be starting here and doing the journey in the other direction. (You’ll find a lot more hoo-ha at the end sign on Santa Monica Pier than there is in Chicago.)
Regardless of the direction chosen, you’ll soon appreciate why Route 66 has entered the lexicon as one of the world’s great road trips, and why it has been inspiring songs and stories ever since it was established in 1926.
To help you on your journey, there’s one book that you absolutely must pop into the glovebox. Lonely Planet’s Journey Route 66 is part of a new Lonely Planet guidebook series called “Journeys”. Others in the collection include North Coast 500 and Camino De Santiago.
The Route 66 book packs a surprising amount of information into a very manageable volume. There are maps, photographic essays, and local intel on places to stay and eat, and things to see and do. And there are some great little yarns from characters met along the way, offering further tips on how to tackle it.
Armchair travellers will enjoy the book too, if only to dream about a time when Route 66 will be on their agenda too.
Lonely Planet: Journey Route 66 is available from bookshops or online at shop.lonelyplanet.com ($36.99; AUS & NZ).
Route 66 Chicago photo © FoodWineTravel
All other photos ©Shutterstock supplied by Lonely Planet and reproduced with permission.
