| The Mother Road Through the Lone Star State McLean to Adrian, Texas Everything else in Texas might be absurdly big, but the state's share of the famous Route 66 is tiny. Nonetheless, visitors will find plenty of kicks on (and near) Old 66, and plenty of diversions, too, of another sort - the old roadbed literally disappears at times, forcing travelers onto its more efficient but far less endearing successor, Interstate 40. Despite having become one of the choppier stretches of the celebrated highway, a few delightful enterprises still manage to eke out a living from passersby, including a Route 66 museum, making for quite a memorable trip down memory lane. Use our route planner to find hotels for your next trip.
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| Devil's Rope Museum/Texas Route 66 Museum 100 Kingsley St McLean, TX 79057 Call (806) 779-2225  |  | These twin institutions occupy a former Sears bra factory. The museum dedicated to barbed wire displays balls and bales of threatening razor wire in its many forms, as well as a machine for making it. On the other side, one of the better museums of Route 66 memorabilia contains such eclectic items as a giant steer from a defunct Route 66 restaurant, an abundance of the famous rhyming Burma Shave signs, a replica of a typical '50s cafe, and more. Nearby, visitors will find a beautifully preserved classic filling station from the 1920s -- a Phillips 66 (the name of which, incidentally, derived originally from the famous road). Museum hours are 10 AM to 4 PM, Tuesday through Saturday, and by appointment at other times. The museum is closed from December 1 to March 1. | | |||||||
| Wonderland Park 2601 Dumas Dr Amarillo, TX 79107 Call (806) 383-3344 |  | In an age when almost all amusement parks are owned by faceless corporations, finding a genuine family-run enterprise like this one feels like a step into a more innocent yesteryear. Through three generations, the Roads family has been running this theme park for more than half a century. Classic rides like the tilt-a-whirl and bumper cars abound, but so do major thrill inducers like the Texas Tornado roller coaster. Best of all, tickets are just $1.50 per ride, meaning that you can get your kicks without going broke. | | |||||||
| Cadillac Ranch Amarillo, TX 79106 | | This hippie-era art installation by the illustrious Ant Farm Collective has become an American icon -- a row of ten half-buried vintage Cadillacs planted nose-first with their flared fannies in the air. The display traces the gradual rise and fall of the trademark Cadillac tail fin from the '40s to the '60s, and several of the cars sacrificed for the effort were once immaculately kept gems that, in today's market, might have fetched a fortune. An interactive art piece, this one welcomes visitors to use it as a canvas for graffiti. You may want to bring a can of spray paint. Located on the south frontage road of I-40, a quarter of a mile east from the Arnot Road exit, it's unstaffed and open to visitors at any time. | | |||||||
| Midpoint Cafe Adrian, TX 79001 Call (806) 538-6379 | | Even the hardiest Route 66 road-tripper needs a place to pull over for a bite. The Midpoint Cafe is more or less halfway between Chicago and Los Angeles (hence its name). | ||||||||
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The Mother Road Through the Lone Star State