WASTELAND FIREBIRD'S BIG LIST OF THE BEST THINGS ON ROUTE 66

A curious guide to Route 66 and the American Dream, updated 2026 Aug 05

This Book is available now! Click here to buy!

Wasteland Firebird's Big List of the Best Things On Route 66 is like no other Route 66 guide. It's not a map. It's a carefully curated list of addresses, updated twice yearly. It's all the best things, and nothing more. Each page has a QR code that opens up Google Maps directions to your next destination. If you stop at every address, you'll be on Route 66. No app needed! Many pages contain descriptions, reviews, recommendations, memories of previous journeys, or musings about the American Dream.

Wasteland Firebird has traveled the Route five times, adding and subtracting items from this list along the way. None of the businesses in this book paid to appear in it. This book is solely a list of places that are beautiful, old, quirky, luxurious, or delicious. Every place in this book is worth at least a brief stop. Some of the entries are new discoveries that have never before been seen in connection with Route 66, such as "Room Attack" and "Toynbee Tiles."

The previous edition of this book served as the guide for The Great Route 66 Centennial Convergence, held in April 2026. So many people asked for the book that we quickly ran out of our free copies. As soon as the trip was complete, we released this new updated edition for sale.

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Chicago to LA · LA to Chicago

  1. Cloud Gate mirrored bean sculpture
  2. Chicago Athletic Association
  3. Art Institute of Chicago
  4. Berghoff Restaurant
  5. Steak 'n Egger
  6. Henry's Drive-In
  7. Cigars & Stripes BBQ Lounge
  8. Berwyn's Toy & Trains
  9. Dell Rhea's Chicken Basket
  10. White Fence Farm Restaurant
  11. Old Joliet Prison
  12. First Dairy Queen
  13. Rialto Square Theatre
  14. Blues Brothers Copmobile
  15. Polk-A-Dot Drive In
  16. Shop on Route 66
  17. Gothic Church Dwight Townhall
  18. Dwight Coin Laundry
  19. Ambler's Texaco Gas Station
  20. Standard Oil Gas Station
  21. Old Log Cabin restaurant
  22. Route 66 Association of Illinois
  23. Pontiac Oakland Auto Museum
  24. Route 66 of Chenoa Roadside Attraction Tourist Info
  25. Lexington Route 66 Memory Lane
  26. Sprague's Super Service Station
  27. Carl's Ice Cream Factory
  28. Funks Grove Pure Maple Sirup Farm
  29. Arcadia America's Playable Arcade Museum
  30. Country-Aire Restaurant
  31. American Giants Museum
  32. Hot Dog Muffler Man
  33. Outkast Tattoo Studio
  34. Illinois State Fair Route 66 Experience
  35. Shea's Filling Station
  36. Mel-O-Cream Donuts
  37. Charlie Parker's Diner
  38. Lauterbach Muffler Man
  39. Route 66 Motorheads Bar and Grill
  40. Chatham Railroad Museum
  41. Illinois Brick Road
  42. Doc's Just Off 66
  43. Soulsby Service Station
  44. Pink Elephant Antique Mall
  45. Route 66 Creamery
  46. West End Service Station
  47. O'Brien Tire & Auto Care
  48. Mr. Twist Ice Cream
  49. Conductor Muffler Man
  50. Fireman Muffler Man
  51. It's Electric Neon Sign Park
  52. Crown Candy Kitchen
  53. Auto Seat Covers sign
  54. Ted Drewes Frozen Custard
  55. Red Cedar Inn Museum and Visitor Center
  56. Hoffman's Drive-In
  57. Gardenway Motel sign
  58. International Shoe Company Building
  59. Creative Chainsaw Carvings
  60. Meramec Caverns
  61. Shamrock Court Motel
  62. Old Bourbon Hotel
  63. Missouri Hick Barbeque
  64. Wagon Wheel Motel
  65. Weir on 66 Rich's Famous Burgers
  66. Fanning Outpost Rocking Chair
  67. St James SLSF Railroad Depot
  68. Phelps County Historical Society
  69. Totem Pole Antiques sign
  70. Devil's Elbow Bridge
  71. Uranus Fudge Factory
  72. Route 66 Neon Sign Park
  73. Old Stagecoach Stop
  74. Route 66 Gasconade Bridge
  75. Munger Moss Motel
  76. Smokin' Jones BBQ Wrink's Market
  77. Boswell Park Rt 66 Murals
  78. Redmon's Candy Factory
  79. 1920s Ford dealership
  80. Rt 66 Old Cabins Historic Site
  81. Joe's Route 66 Diner
  82. Andy's Frozen Custard
  83. Glenstone Court Motel
  84. Best Western Route 66 Rail Haven
  85. College Street Cafe
  86. Route 66 Car Museum
  87. Rockwood Motor Court
  88. Route 66 KOA Holiday
  89. Gary's Gay Parita Sinclair
  90. Campbell 66 Express
  91. Royale Cinema Lounge
  92. Wilder's Steakhouse
  93. Cars on the Route Kan-O-Tex Service Station
  94. Gearhead Curios
  95. Galena Mining & Historical Museum
  96. Old Riverton Store
  97. Baxter Springs Heritage Center & Museum
  98. Route 66 Visitors Center
  99. Dallas' Dairyette
  100. Waylan's Ku-Ku
  101. Coleman Theater
  102. Route 66 Sidewalk Hwy
  103. Crosstar Flag and Tag Museum
  104. Hi-Way Cafe Western Motel
  105. Pryor Creek Bridge
  106. Ed Galloway's Totem Pole Park
  107. JM Davis Arms Historical Museum
  108. Blue Whale of Catoosa
  109. Desert Hills Motel
  110. Tally's Good Food Cafe
  111. Coney I-Lander
  112. Campbell Hotel
  113. Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios on 66
  114. Buck's Vintage
  115. Meadow Gold Mack
  116. Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza
  117. Route 66 Neon Sign Park
  118. Route 66 Historical Village
  119. Gasoline Alley Classics
  120. Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum
  121. Rock Creek Bridge
  122. J's Country Kitchen
  123. Chrysler Plymouth Sign
  124. Bristow Train Depot Museum
  125. Hicks Filling Station
  126. Skyliner Motel
  127. Farmers Bank Building
  128. Route 66 Interpretive Center
  129. McJerry's Route 66 Gallery
  130. Westfall Phillips 66 Station
  131. Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum
  132. Threatt Filling Station
  133. John's Place Museum
  134. Chicken Shack
  135. Arcadia Round Barn
  136. 1889 Territorial School
  137. Lake Overholser Bridge
  138. Yukon Mill Grain Co
  139. Indian Trading Post
  140. Bridgeport Bridge
  141. Hinton Junctions Courts and Cafe
  142. Lucille's Historic Highway Gas Station
  143. Major Tom Astronaut
  144. Oklahoma Route 66 Museum
  145. Cotton Boll Motel sign
  146. United Supermarkets
  147. National Route 66 & Transportation Museum
  148. Western Motel
  149. Scary pedestrian underpass
  150. Sandhill Curiosity Shop
  151. U-Drop Inn Cafe
  152. Restored 1929 Route 66 Gas Station
  153. Red River Steakhouse
  154. Alanreed
  155. Leaning Tower of Texas
  156. Big Texan Steak Ranch
  157. Texas Route 66 Visitor Center
  158. Elmo's Drive Inn
  159. Lile Art Gallery
  160. GoldenLight Cafe & Cantina
  161. Texas Ivy Antiques
  162. Handle Bar and Grill
  163. 2nd Amendment Cowboy Muffler Man
  164. Mama Jo's Pies
  165. Milburn-Price Culture Museum
  166. Roadrunner Drive-in sign
  167. Dream Maker Station
  168. Glenrio TX Ghost Town
  169. World's Largest Flip Flop
  170. Cedar Hill Grocery Store
  171. Del's Restaurant
  172. Roadrunner Lodge Motel
  173. Blue Swallow Motel
  174. Tucumcari Historical Museum
  175. Blake's Lotaburger
  176. Richardson Store
  177. Cuervo Ghost Town
  178. Old Rio Pecos Ranch Truck Terminal
  179. Sun & Sand Restaurant
  180. Blue Hole
  181. Bowlin's Flying C Ranch
  182. Clines Corners Travel Center
  183. Sal & Inez's Service Station
  184. Country Friends Antiques
  185. Midway Trading Post
  186. Loma Verde Motel sign
  187. Western View Steak Diner & House
  188. Route 66 lowrider-style sign
  189. Route 66 Visitor Center
  190. St Joseph Church
  191. Budville Trading Post
  192. Villa de Cubero Trading Post
  193. Ruins of Whiting Brothers Gas Station
  194. Santa Maria Mission
  195. New Mexico Mining Museum
  196. Charlie's Service
  197. Old Bluewater Motel
  198. Bowlin's Bluewater Outpost
  199. Herman's Garage
  200. Indian Village Gift Shop
  201. Fort Wingate Army Depot
  202. Blue Spruce Lodge
  203. Historic El Rancho Hotel
  204. John's Used Cars
  205. Yellowhorse Trading Post
  206. Fort Courage
  207. Dotch Windsor's Painted Desert Trading Post
  208. Petrified Forest National Park
  209. Stewart's Petrified Wood Shop
  210. El Rancho Restaurant & Motel
  211. Pow Wow Trading Post
  212. Geronimo Trading Post
  213. Here It Is Jack Rabbit Trading Post
  214. La Posada Hotel
  215. Meteor City Trading Post
  216. Two Guns
  217. Twin Arrows Trading Post Ruins
  218. Americana Motor Hotel
  219. Route 66 Dog Haus
  220. Flagstaff Visitor Center
  221. Weatherford Hotel
  222. J Lawrence Walkup Skydome
  223. Old Route 66 Parks Store
  224. Bearizona Wildlife Park
  225. Historic Grand Canyon Hotel
  226. Williams Visitor Center
  227. Arizona 9 Motor Hotel
  228. Ash Fork Route 66 Museum
  229. Crookton Overpass
  230. Aztec Motel & Creative Space
  231. Delgadillo's Snow Cap
  232. Delgadillo's Gift Shop
  233. Westside Lilo's Cafe
  234. Grand Canyon Caverns
  235. Hackberry General Store
  236. Kingman Railroad Museum
  237. Mr. D'z Route 66 Diner
  238. Cool Springs Station
  239. Oatman
  240. Silver Dollar Chuck Wagon
  241. Claypool & Co building
  242. El Garces Hotel
  243. Wagon Wheel Restaurant
  244. Rio Del Sol Inn
  245. Goffs Schoolhouse
  246. Chakwala Wash
  247. Guardian Lion East
  248. Road Runner's Retreat
  249. Guardian Lion West
  250. Former Whiting Brothers Gas Station
  251. Peggy Sue's 50's Diner
  252. Liberty Sculpture Park
  253. Thrift & More
  254. Original Del Taco Location
  255. Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch
  256. Emma Jean's Holland Burger Cafe
  257. California Route 66 Museum
  258. Santa Fe Trading Company
  259. First Original McDonald's Museum
  260. Cucamonga Service Station
  261. Magic Lamp Inn Restaurant
  262. Azusa Foothill Drive In Theater sign
  263. Fair Oaks Pharmacy & Soda Fountain
  264. La Fuente Restaurant
  265. Grand Central Market
  266. Clifton's building
  267. United Theater on Broadway
  268. Petersen Automotive Museum
  269. Johnie's Coffee Shop
  270. Edelweiss Chocolates
  271. Goodwill Donation Center
  272. Santa Monica Pier