The Journey along Route 66 is indicative of the American culture that celebrates the new and the now, showing its restlessness in the tales and ballads of the open road, cheap diners, and faded neon signs. The trip along its 2,500 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles is best done with overnight stays along the way. The best themed motels along the way each have a unique character that will stand in stark contrast to the personality-less hotels that you will find at both ends.
The term motel is derived from the words "motor hotel." Each motel provides privacy to the road trip traveler with a room and parking space just outside the door. It is important to note that American style motels should not be confused with the business style hotels in China that are marketed as motels or the romance style motels that you will find in Japan and Taiwan.
Because Route 66 was first proposed in 1926 in Springfield Missouri, that city is deserving of an early stop. The Best Western Route 66 Rail Haven, located next to the historic alignment, retains the charm of the mid-century roadside stops that most larger hotel chains have lost. Legend has it that Elvis Presley stayed there during the height of the road's popularity. The property embraces the 1950's vibe and features of old roadside service stations with restored vintage cars. What you see is not polished nostalgia, and that is why it works so well.
Since 1950, Wigwam Village Motel No. 6 has captured the American roadside motel experience in a unique way. Each room is constructed from concrete, has a tipper design, and is surrounded by vintage cars and desert gravel. If you have ever wanted to sleep in a wigwam, this motel offers that chance. This family-owned motel has a rich history, being the 6th of 7 motels built in the United States. Rooms are designed to be compact, but the experience is meant to be much larger than the space provided.
For the Cheshire Hotel in St. Louis, a good themed hotel brings a certain cultural value that should not be taken lightly. With a British theme, there is more than just a few paintings of the Queen in the lobby and some solid wood key chains. They also provide literary room assignments. This means that if you have a room that is associated with a certain writer, you are expected to read along with the decor. For example, if you are staying in the Virginia Woolf room, you should have an afternoon with the books “Mrs. Dalloway” and “To the Lighthouse,” in order to make your stay memorable and not just another bland hotel room.
New Mexico's Gallup shows the original connection between Route 66 and the West's cinematic imagination. It featured films like Billy the Kid, Pursued, The Sea of Grass, The Brave Bulls, Ace in the Hole, and The Hallelujah Trail. The El Rancho Hotel was built in 1937 by director D.W. Griffith and his brother, and it became a popular place for movie stars to stay while working in the area. The hotel was made to look like a Western film set with Hollywood-style decor, such as timber beams, antlers, Native American rugs, and stone fireplaces, with an impressive staircase and framed black and white portraits. With the decline of Westerns, the hotel's association with Hollywood also diminished, but Gallup still featured in 1994's Natural Born Killers. El Rancho is not a museum and is a convincing survivor as a hotel.
New Mexico has many unique places to stay because of its history. In Taos, Casa Benavides Historic Inn is a beautiful adobe inn on Kit Carson Road. Situated near an ancient Indigenous village that is over a thousand years old, the earth toned architecture of the inn makes it blend in beautifully with the surroundings. The owner is a descendant of Spanish immigrants and the ochre walls and bright blue doors are characteristic of northern New Mexico. Staying here for a longer time is recommended. Breakfasts, afternoon snacks, and conversations with the local hosts make it feel like more than just a stopover. It invites you into Taos.
Albuquerque also has a more unusual place to stay. The Railroad Inn is an inn located in a railway building built in 1902. The owners, Jerry and his wife, have restored several of the older buildings in the city. This inn is no more than 2 stories with 6 rooms, has a very community feel with a kitchen and gathering area, and is very different from your typical hotel. There is no shower for example. Not having a shower may not be advice you would commonly give to fellow travelers, but it is a reminder that staying in a historic building is going to require a sense of humor and the willingness to give up some modern conveniences for character.
Located near Santa Fe is a yurt stay located on a small farm that offers a more intentional break from standard tourism. Its owner, Bill, built the tent over a year's time and operates it with strict water conservation guidelines. Showers and low-impact facilities are part of the point rather than an inconvenience to conceal. Instead of a conventional bed, seating can be transformed into a sleeping surface. Llamas, who can be paid to walk with guests, roam the desert as well. It's an argument for adapting to the desert instead of carelessly consuming it.
Along the drive, Western Santa Monica holds a final contrast to the classic Route 66 motels—private homes. One seaside guesthouse in Los Angeles belonged to a couple who had three cats, and the host, who had grown up in Hollywood, directed a WW2 film. The adapted rooms were from the family home, and there was a wall of books on the subject of filmmaking that separated the living area from the bedrooms. These stays can be unpredictable, personal, and sometimes awkward. They are, however, a welcome change from chain hotels and provide a human connection that many motels design to eliminate.
Route 66 teaches us that the stories of the road do not begin and end with roadside attractions and official historic landmarks. The tales of the road live on in the motor courts where old cars sit beneath the glow of neon lights. They live in the adobe inns where the hosts serve you breakfast. They live in old train depot buildings with less than perfect plumbing and in desert yurts where water is cherished. The Road 66 experience is about choosing places with a perspective. On Route 66, a room is never just a room;
it is a part of the experience.
