More Route 66 adventures - the first 2013 trip
Discussion
bad company said:
Got drinking with some real cowboys last night so sore head this morning, they are here for a rodeo. Off to watch that now.
Amazing holidays!
If you're still in Gallup drop by Rishardsons trading post on old 66. Amazing place. Amazing holidays!
Edited by bad company on Saturday 1st June 16:18
OK so since Gallup we have been to Sedona, Taos,Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon - all off of 66 but all brilliant. Now back on 'the road' and driven thru Oatman and past the 'Bottle Tree Ranch' (waste of time IMO). We stayed at a former brothel in Williams -https://redgarter.com/the_red_garter_bed_and_bakery.html , which is highly recommended. Now off of '66' again for a day or 2 in Indian Wells but will complete the route on Friday - all as far as possible on old 66.
This drive is every petrolheads right of passage IMO.
This drive is every petrolheads right of passage IMO.
A friend is off to do 66 in a few weeks and asked me for some notes on where to stay etc. I thought I would add the notes here in case they are useful to other '66ers'.
Chicago3 nights – stayed at the Hilton Palmer House which was ok and nice and central.
Bloomington 1 night – Hilton Doubletree which was ok but only a TGI Friday restaurant which we didn’t like much. A better place to stay would be Springfield, Illinois where we spent some time the following day.
St Louis – The Hilton Ballpark is a must. We stayed there 2 nights and really enjoyed watching the baseball from the rooftop bar. It may be worth checking for ‘Cardinals’ home games. The arch is also a must.
Springfield, Missouri, Doubletree – Stayed 1 night which was fine.
Tulsa Doubletree – As above
Oklahoma – The Hilton Skirvin is centrally placed and very nice in a traditional \ old fashioned sort of way. We stayed 2 nights and watched some amateur baseball here with somebody trying to explain the rules!
Elk City – 1 night stay at the Hampton Inn
Amarillo – 2 nights at the Hilton Garden Inn. We visited Palo Duro canyon which was well worth the trip. We managed some walking exercise but it was very very hot! You can also try to eat a 72oz steak in an hour at the Big Texan and get it for free in Amarillo. We settled for a steakhouse a short walk from the hotel. At the bar we met a judge who only heard serious crimes such as murder etc., he also had a 10,000 acre farm – about the size of an English county!
Santa Fe – We had 2 nights at the Hilton which is a very nice hotel and Santa Fe is a great town. We could easily have stayed an extra night here. We were there over a weekend and some of the restaurants got booked so you may want to book ahead.
Taos – We had heard that this was a nice town but in all honesty we wouldn’t return. If you go don’t stay at the El Pueblo Lodge – it was a bit rough.
Gallup –What an odd but interesting place. We booked El Rancho – (do look it up)which was fun for 1 night but a bit rough round the edges so we moved to the Hampton Inn for the 2nd night. This was where we were drinking with some serious cowboys and went to the rodeo. I would look ahead and try to coincide your trip with a rodeo. By the way if you do stay at El Rancho I should eat there as the other restaurants were not great.
Winslow – Stayed at the Best Western and really wish we hadn’t bothered. Breakfast stops at 9am and wasn’t up to much anyway. Nearby we went to the painted desert which was fantastic. We also drove to the crater but were too mean to pay the entrance fee.
Sedona – This is a very pretty town with some wonderful rock formations to see. We treated ourselves to 3 nights at L’Auberge De Sedona which is the best hotel there.
Monument Valley – 2 nights at Gouldings Lodge. This is not really on 66 but the valley is spectacular and well worth the diversion. It’s also well worth driving around here – particularly the Moki Dugway. BEWARE it is very hard to get a drink in this area so you may want to take some ‘supplies’.
Grand Canyon – We stayed 2 nights at the North Rim. Really nice but possibly worth another holiday all on its own. The South Rim is a bit more commercial.
Lake Havasu – We stayed one night at the Hampton Inn to re visit London Bridge. It was fun but there’s not a lot more there so only really worth 1 night.
Williams – Stayed at the Red Garter b&b which used to be the brothel! The accommodation was ok and the town was a lot of fun with lots of bars\restaurants with the 66 theme.
Indian Wells – 3 nights at La Quinta Resort which is a Hilton Waldorf. A big resort with plenty of swimming pools and tennis etc. We liked it here but at the time of year we went it really was too hot.
Beverly Hills – Finished up with 3 nights at the Beverly Hilton. Mrs BC went shopping ………………….
TIP – The EZ66 book and a sat nav would be essential. We also downloaded NavFree on the ipad. You can then download the individual states and follow your route very easily in the car. As long as you have downloaded the maps this app works without WiFi along the way.
Chicago3 nights – stayed at the Hilton Palmer House which was ok and nice and central.
Bloomington 1 night – Hilton Doubletree which was ok but only a TGI Friday restaurant which we didn’t like much. A better place to stay would be Springfield, Illinois where we spent some time the following day.
St Louis – The Hilton Ballpark is a must. We stayed there 2 nights and really enjoyed watching the baseball from the rooftop bar. It may be worth checking for ‘Cardinals’ home games. The arch is also a must.
Springfield, Missouri, Doubletree – Stayed 1 night which was fine.
Tulsa Doubletree – As above
Oklahoma – The Hilton Skirvin is centrally placed and very nice in a traditional \ old fashioned sort of way. We stayed 2 nights and watched some amateur baseball here with somebody trying to explain the rules!
Elk City – 1 night stay at the Hampton Inn
Amarillo – 2 nights at the Hilton Garden Inn. We visited Palo Duro canyon which was well worth the trip. We managed some walking exercise but it was very very hot! You can also try to eat a 72oz steak in an hour at the Big Texan and get it for free in Amarillo. We settled for a steakhouse a short walk from the hotel. At the bar we met a judge who only heard serious crimes such as murder etc., he also had a 10,000 acre farm – about the size of an English county!
Santa Fe – We had 2 nights at the Hilton which is a very nice hotel and Santa Fe is a great town. We could easily have stayed an extra night here. We were there over a weekend and some of the restaurants got booked so you may want to book ahead.
Taos – We had heard that this was a nice town but in all honesty we wouldn’t return. If you go don’t stay at the El Pueblo Lodge – it was a bit rough.
Gallup –What an odd but interesting place. We booked El Rancho – (do look it up)which was fun for 1 night but a bit rough round the edges so we moved to the Hampton Inn for the 2nd night. This was where we were drinking with some serious cowboys and went to the rodeo. I would look ahead and try to coincide your trip with a rodeo. By the way if you do stay at El Rancho I should eat there as the other restaurants were not great.
Winslow – Stayed at the Best Western and really wish we hadn’t bothered. Breakfast stops at 9am and wasn’t up to much anyway. Nearby we went to the painted desert which was fantastic. We also drove to the crater but were too mean to pay the entrance fee.
Sedona – This is a very pretty town with some wonderful rock formations to see. We treated ourselves to 3 nights at L’Auberge De Sedona which is the best hotel there.
Monument Valley – 2 nights at Gouldings Lodge. This is not really on 66 but the valley is spectacular and well worth the diversion. It’s also well worth driving around here – particularly the Moki Dugway. BEWARE it is very hard to get a drink in this area so you may want to take some ‘supplies’.
Grand Canyon – We stayed 2 nights at the North Rim. Really nice but possibly worth another holiday all on its own. The South Rim is a bit more commercial.
Lake Havasu – We stayed one night at the Hampton Inn to re visit London Bridge. It was fun but there’s not a lot more there so only really worth 1 night.
Williams – Stayed at the Red Garter b&b which used to be the brothel! The accommodation was ok and the town was a lot of fun with lots of bars\restaurants with the 66 theme.
Indian Wells – 3 nights at La Quinta Resort which is a Hilton Waldorf. A big resort with plenty of swimming pools and tennis etc. We liked it here but at the time of year we went it really was too hot.
Beverly Hills – Finished up with 3 nights at the Beverly Hilton. Mrs BC went shopping ………………….
TIP – The EZ66 book and a sat nav would be essential. We also downloaded NavFree on the ipad. You can then download the individual states and follow your route very easily in the car. As long as you have downloaded the maps this app works without WiFi along the way.
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