Escape Magazine- Autumn 2025_Spreads

100 YEARS OF ROUTE 66

Sightseeing on Route 66 is one thing, but feasting on its flavours adds another level to the experience. Whether you pick a specially designed tour like our Taste of Route 66 road trip or mix up the menu as you go, you’ll be spoiled for choice between roadside diners and city restaurants serving local delicacies and hearty treats. Eat deep-dish pizza in Chicago, corn dogs in Springfield, ‘concretes’ in St Louis and Ugly Crust Pie at Texas’ Midpoint Café. How you do Route 66 is up to you. Go the full length from downtown Chicago to Santa Monica Pier. Add detours to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon on an epic 16-day Route 66 Self-Drive . Or stick to shorter stretches on regional itineraries like our Route 66 West in Arizona and California. Travel by car, or even in the comfort of a motorhome. However you go, with the centennial on the horizon, there’s never been a better time to ride Route 66.

New and spruced-up landmarks celebrate the milestone in Illinois , Missouri , Kansas , Oklahoma , Texas , New Mexico , Arizona and California . And the classics are keeping their proud places, too. Join a century of travellers in greeting the Gemini Giant , the world’s second-largest rocking chair, the blue whale of Catoosa , Cadillac Ranch , Meteor City , Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch , Chicken Boy and others. Then, kickstart a new era by being among the first to grab snaps at fresh markers like the 12.5-foot Edwardsville shield , the restored Shea’s Gas Station Museum and dozens more.

A road trip is a special thing. The scenery. The soundtrack. The snacks. The freedom to follow your nose on amazing journeys all over the world. There’s South Africa’s Garden Route, Australia’s Great Ocean Road, and Scotland’s North Coast 500. But none are as iconic as the USA’s ‘Mother Road’. Passing through eight states and covering nearly 2,500 miles, Route 66 is history’s most famous highway. And, in 2026, it’ll be 100 years old!

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