Blue Swallow Motel named a top 25 U.S. hotel by TripAdvisor

The Blue Swallow Motel of Tucumcari, New Mexico, recently was named one of the top 25 in the "Hotels with Exceptional Service -- United States" category in 2014 by TripAdvisor.com. The Blue Swallow was ranked No. 18 on the list and was the only Route 66 motel listed in that category. Of 822 ratings by … Continue reading Blue Swallow Motel named a top 25 U.S. hotel by TripAdvisor

Prominent National Geographic writer will travel Route 66

Andrew Evans, a prominent writer for National Geographic with his Digital Nomad blog, in a matter of days will travel the full length of Route 66 for Brand USA, a public and private partnership that promotes international travel to the United States. The announcement of the trip, made in Chicago this morning, contained these details: … Continue reading Prominent National Geographic writer will travel Route 66

A hike to Amboy Crater

This new video shows as well as anything what it's like to hike to Amboy Crater, an extinct volcano near the Route 66 hamlet of Amboy, Calif. https://youtu.be/5BtMd-rdjrg The clip comes from the California Through My Lens channel, which is an offshoot of the California Through My Lens blog. The guy also uploaded this video … Continue reading A hike to Amboy Crater

Programming note

If you have noticed Route 66 News acting strangely in the past few days, it's probably because our host is doing long-term maintenance work on its servers. Such work under the hood is necessary, but it occasionally causes odd behavior on the website. In one instance, a longtime contributor's comment inexplicably wound up in the … Continue reading Programming note

Roadie will lead a “Breaking Bad” tour on Saturday

Nick Gerlich, a West Texas A&M marketing professor who is a big fan of Route 66 and the acclaimed "Breaking Bad" television drama, will lead a "Breaking Bad" motor tour of Albuquerque on Saturday. The tour will include more than 30 locations in Albuquerque where "Breaking Bad was filmed, including more than a dozen on … Continue reading Roadie will lead a “Breaking Bad” tour on Saturday

Route 66 already feeling effects of government shutdown

The shutdown of the United States government started only a few hours ago, and the Route 66 corridor is not immune to its effects. --- The office of the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program in Santa Fe, N.M., is closed. As part of the National Park Service, the office cannot offer help on grants and … Continue reading Route 66 already feeling effects of government shutdown

“Genuine Route 66 Life” video series launched

This has been in the works for a while. But on Monday, Denver-based photographer KC Keefer launched his "Genuine Route 66 Life" channel on YouTube. The channel is subtitled "American Stories from the Route," and this is what the series is about: "Genuine Route 66 Life" is a celebration of people from around the world … Continue reading “Genuine Route 66 Life” video series launched

Route 66 NonStop launches fundraising campaign

After hinting at it for months, the fellow behind the "open source" Route 66 NonStop website has launched a fundraising attempt at $50,000 at Indiegogo. Ingar Hagen, founder and CEO of the Norwegian company Mobideal AS, said his proposed website sprang from a childhood wish to travel Route 66. Such an open-source site, he says, … Continue reading Route 66 NonStop launches fundraising campaign

Springfield, Mo., will use crowdsourcing to fund Route 66 park

The City of Springfield, Mo., announced it will use crowdsourcing via CrowdIt.com to fund some of the building of a Route 66-themed roadside park, according to a news release Thursday. Crowdsourcing is a low-risk way to raise money for projects. Crowdsourcing Route 66 projects through Kickstarter.com, for example, has shown erratic response. But the fact CrowdIt.com … Continue reading Springfield, Mo., will use crowdsourcing to fund Route 66 park

First episode of “American Giants”

Some months ago, Joel Baker promised he would produce a series of episodes about Muffler Men in America and post them to YouTube. The first episode, which runs about 15 minutes, was posted this week. https://youtu.be/eHfmus-H2Bo You'll see a couple of Muffler Men on Route 66, including the Gemini Giant in Wilmington, Ill.