Historic Route 66
From $1999 (was $2249)
Per person, double occupancy, excludes roundtrip airfare
14 Days
View Dates and PricesThis program is currently sold out but new dates are coming soon! Call 877-332-6185 for more details.
Introduction
Get your kicks on a tour of the Mother Road, historic Route 66. America’s most famous road connected the country using miles of concrete, unique attractions, and an identity built on the ideals of freedom and individuality.
Trip Includes
Sightseeing- Chicago
- St. Louis
- Branson
- Oklahoma City
- Amarillo
- Albuquerque
- Flagstaff
- Las Vegas
- Laughlin
- Los Angeles
- Santa Monica
- 13 Nights
- Moderate hotels based on twin/double occupancy
- 13 Breakfasts, 1 Lunch, and 2 Dinners
- A professionally trained local tour director who is knowledgeable of the area and will provide you with a wealth of information. Their friendly service will make your trip a memorable experience.
- To and from your hotel room throughout your land tour for one piece of Checked Baggage per person.
Activity Level
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Trip Highlights
- Stand at the official start and end points of Route 66 in Chicago and Santa Monica
- Visit the 8 states that comprised historic Route 66
- Photo ops at roadside oddities including Cadillac Ranch, Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch, and “the world’s largest catsup bottle.”
- See the Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, and Grand Canyon
- Travel to the top of St. Louis’ Gateway Arch
- Enjoy an architecture tour on the Chicago River
*Web prices reflect Instant Rebate pricing. Offers valid for new bookings only and subject to availability. Offer may be cancelled at any time.
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| Depart | Base Price | Taxes & Fees | Single Supplement | Triple Reduction | Quad Reduction | Airfare to Tour | Total Price per person | ||||||
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(Click the map to enlarge)
Historic Route 66
Historic Route 66
Tours Starts: Chicago, IL
Tours Ends: Los Angeles, CA
Day 1
Arrive in Chicago
The intersection of E. Adams and S. Michigan in Downtown Chicago is the official starting point of Route 66—look for signs during your stop at the place where millions of people have set off down the Mother Road since 1926. Take a seat and enjoy an included pizza welcome feast. Connect with your new travel companions over big slices of Chicago’s famous deep-dish pizza at one of the Windy City’s most popular pizza parlors. (D)
Hampton Inn Magnificent Mile or similar
Day 2
Chicago
Enjoy an educational morning architecture tour on the Chicago River where you will learn about Chicago’s colorful past from a unique vantage point. Expert docents will explain the history of more than 50 buildings, and how they played a part in Chicago’s thrilling story. Spend the afternoon at leisure. (B)
Hampton Inn Magnificent Mile or similar
Day 3
Chicago to St. Louis via Pontiac
Grab your sunglasses and your favorite snacks—today you hit the open road. Travel west to Pontiac, home of the Route 66 Hall of Fame & Museum. Enjoy the nostalgic exhibits, then have lunch on your own. Fans of condiments and quirky roadside attractions alike will enjoy the quick stop in Collinsville, home of the Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower. Pull into St. Louis late in this afternoon, where you will ride a tram 630 feet up to the top of the Gateway Arch. (B)
Drury Inn & Suites Convention Center or similar
Day 4
St. Louis to Branson
Enjoy a leisurely morning in St. Louis, then set off for Branson, the “Live Music Capital of the Universe.” Relax on your own this evening, and be sure to seek out a live show! (B)
Fairfield Inn & Suites or similar
Day 5
Branson to Oklahoma City
Travel from Branson to Oklahoma City by way of Galena, Kansas. Route 66 goes right through Galena’s historic district. Oklahoma City, known locally as OKC, is renowned for its cowboy culture and excellent barbecue. (B)
Wyndham Garden Hotel Oklahoma City Airport or similar
Day 6
Oklahoma City to Amarillo
Continue to Elk City, where you will see the National Route 66 & Transportation Museum, famous for its murals and vignettes. Enjoy lunch on your own in the charming town, then pull into Amarillo, TX for dinner at The Big Texan Steak Ranch, a technicolor roadside attraction that’s served Texas-sized portions since 1960. Look for a giant steer, and a bright blue sign on the restaurant’s signature yellow building. You can’t miss it, we promise. (B, D)
La Quinta Inn MidCity or similar
Day 7
Amarillo to Albuquerque
Stop by Cadillac Ranch on your way out of town. One of Route 66’s stranger art exhibits, Cadillac Ranch consists of ten graffiti-covered Cadillacs buried nose-deep in the hard dirt. After a short pit stop in Adrian, Route 66’s halfway point, walk through the Tucumcari Historical Museum. Enjoy lunch on your own in town before heading to Albuquerque. (B)
Howard Johnson Albuquerque Midtown or similar
Day 8
Albuquerque to Flagstaff
Enjoy lunch in Gallup, home to the flamboyant Hotel El Rancho that hosted countless Golden Age movie stars while they shot classic westerns in the surrounding desert. Continue to the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park, which is full of colorful petrified wood in a wide array of shocking hues. The dramatic landscape is full of windswept buttes, barren mesas, and breathtaking vistas. (B)
Days Hotel or similar
Day 9
Grand Canyon National Park
Widely considered the most beautiful National Park in the country, the Grand Canyon is the complex and breathtaking result of billions of years of geographic tumult. It is a dramatic, dynamic display of earth’s power. Spend most of the day exploring the Grand Canyon on your own. Return to Flagstaff in the evening. (B)
Days Hotel or similar
Day 10
Flagstaff to Las Vegas
Your first stop today is Seligman, the “historic birthplace of Route 66,” and a perfect example of the quaint, charming, Americana aesthetic that the Mother Road is so famous for. Radiator Springs, the town in Cars, was originally inspired by the quiet streets of Seligman. Kingman, Arizona, is full of murals dedicated to Route 66, and is a great place to grab lunch en route to Las Vegas. Arrive in Sin City this afternoon, and enjoy a photo op at the Las Vegas sign followed by a tour of the Las Vegas Strip. Enjoy an optional tour tonight, or spend the evening at your leisure. (B)
Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino or similar
Day 11
Las Vegas to Laughlin
Start the morning in Las Vegas before continuing to Laughlin for the afternoon and evening. A darling city on the border of Nevada, Arizona, and California, Laughlin is comparable to Las Vegas in every way but the crowds. (B)
The New Pioneer Hotel Casino or similar
Day 12
Laughlin to Los Angeles
After lunch in Barstow, visit Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch—one of Route 66’s quirkiest roadside attractions. This pitstop is home to a manmade forest of discarded pipes and bottles. Elmer Long created over 200 trees and cacti—artful, eye-catching, and exquisite when illuminated by the hot desert sun. Your day ends with leisure time at your hotel in Los Angeles. (B)
Holiday Inn LAX or similar
Day 13
Santa Monica
Today we take a guided tour of Los Angeles and Hollywood, seeing many of the highlights of the City of Angels, including the Sunset Strip and Hollywood and Highland. Enjoy an included farewell lunch on the Santa Monica Pier, the end point of Route 66. Celebrate the miles you’ve traveled and the sights you’ve seen by looking out at the ocean and up to the sign marked, “End of the Trail.” (B, L)
Holiday Inn LAX or similar
Day 14
Depart for Home (B)
Please note that this is a proposed itinerary; the actual itinerary may vary due to season, special events, or weather. Because our tour arrangements are often made a year or more in advance, YMT Vacations reserves the right to alter the itinerary. Itinerary changes are made to improve your vacation experience, as well as respond to any unforeseen circumstances that mandate alterations. By their nature, all tours vacations involve a certain level of physical activity. While YMT tours have been designed with our guests in mind and are not physically demanding, this tour does include walking and periods of standing during the sightseeing visits. You will also encounter steps and some uneven ground along the way, particularly at older, historical sights.
YMT Vacations itineraries may contain suggestions for activities for your leisure time; these suggestions do not constitute a recommendation nor an endorsement of any specific service provider and the decision to participate in any such activities should be made independently.
