Day One

Day Two

Day Three

2019

SHANNONS ROUTE 66 TOUR

July 26th to August 14th 2019

This exclusive tour is limited to 20 vehicles, please ensure you book early to avoid disappointment. The Shannons Club Route 66 Tour will be an unforgettable experience shared with a group of Shannons Club motoring enthusiasts from Australia. If you love touring and Route 66 is on your bucket list, this is an outstanding opportunity to join us for one of our most popular events.

TOUR INTINERARY

Friday July 26th - Chicago

Arrive into Chicago and transfer to the Springhill Suites in Downtown Chicago. Check in time is 4:00pm and as it’s been long day no events have been scheduled for today. A Shannons Welcome Pack will be waiting for you at Reception and once you're settled in, meet your tour guides in Holloway’s Bar for a welcome drink.

Saturday July 27th - Chicago

Today starts with a breakfast briefing in the hotel followed by a 5 minute walk to collect our cars. Once everyone is familiar with their car, we'll drive 30 minutes out of Downtown to the Klairmont Kollection, a private collection of over 30o cars. Lunch is available at the on-site cafe and we return to the hotel mid afternoon to prepare for our Welcome Dinner in a private room atHarry Caray's Italian Steakhouse which is within easy walking distance of the Hotel.

Sunday July 28th - Chicago to Springfield Illinois

We leave Chicago this morning and attractions on the way today include the Route 66 Welcome Centre at Joliet, The World’s Largest Coke Bottle, Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, The Polk-a-Dot Drive In, Route 66 Hall of Fame Museum, Shea’s Gas Station (evidently the oldest on Route 66) and the Cozy Dog Drive-In the birthplace of the corn dog. Two Cozy Dogs, a cold drink and a big basket of fries is about $9.00 with free cholesterol. Our lunch stop is at the Edinger’s Filling Station in Pontiac and we overnight at the Route 66 Hotel in Springfield Illinois. We catch up every evening for a review of the day and the following day’s plans. Dinner tonight is your choice and the Mother Road Diner is a good place option.

Day Four

Monday July 29th - Springfield Illinois to St Louis Missouri

Back on the road today and further south towards St Louis. Stops today include Becky’s Barn, the 1929 Chain of Rocks Bridge, the 1924 Coliseum Ballroom Antique Mall, Henry’s Rabbit Ranch & Country Classic Cars. This afternoon, in St Louis we’ll tour the iconic Gateway Arch where the unique tram will lift us 630 feet up to the top of the tallest man-made monument in the United States. Our hotel tonight is the St Louis Union Station Hotel and we start with the Grandhall Experience and follow with dinner in the Station Grill.

Day Five

Tuesday July 30th - St Louis to Lebanon Missouri

Just an hour’s drive west of St Louis our first stop for the day is the Meremec Caverns, a set of limestone caves that opened as a tourist attraction in 1935. Back on the mother road for a little more adventure, highlights today include the Jesse James Wax Museum, Circle Inn Malt Shop, the 1934 Wagon Wheel Motel, Totem Pole Trading Post & the 1923 Devils Elbow Bridge just to name a few. If you’re up for another Route 66 Museum, the one in Lebanon is highly rated. We overnight downtown and tonight we BBQ at a Route 66 classic a few miles from the hotel.

Day Six

Wednesday July 31st - Lebanon to Carthage Missouri

Just out of Lebanon is the historic Gay Parita’s Gas Station and if you are looking for souveniers, today’s your big chance as a little further on is the “Worlds Largest Gift Store” right next door to Redmon’s Candy Factory in case you haven’t taken enough calories onboard. Continuing to avoid the Interstate & enjoy the old road, on the way into Carthage we pas the historic Boots Motel that is in the process of being renovated by local Route 66 enthusiasts and our overnight is the Quality Inn & Suites. Dinner tonight is your choice.

Day Seven

Thursday August 1st - Carthage to Tulsa Oklahoma

An easy day today as we head into Oklahoma which boasts more Route 66 miles than any other state and on the way we cover the 13 miles of Route 66 in Kansas. The famous Old Riverton Store is about an hour from Carthage and a good stop for coffee and some nostalgia. Famous for its murals, Quapaw is the first town we reach in Oklahoma and shortly after we’ll detour onto the “Sidewalk Highway” a very narrow stretch of Route 66 parallel to US 69. Our lunch stop is Clanton’s Cafe in Vinita, famous for it’s chicken fried beefsteak. Optional stops this afternoon could include the J.M Davis Arms Museum with over 14,000 firearms, and the Blue Whale at Catoosa just before we reach Tulsa. Our hotel tonight is the Doubletree Downtown and there’s hot food and cold beer tonight at El Rancho Grande famous for Mexican food on Route 66 since the 1950’s.

Day Eight

Friday August 2nd - Tulsa to Clinton Oklahoma

About 95% of our drive today is along the original old road with just a few miles of interstate. We pass through Chandler, one of the best preserved old towns on the Oklahoma stretch of Route 66 and just west of town is the Seaba Station Motor Cycle Museum. We’ll stop at the Round Barn in Arcadia and Pop’s Cafe fronted by a 66 foot tall soda bottle. Watch for the 1924 Blue Dome Gulf Oil Service Station, Depew Loop & Station, 1933 Texaco Station, the Round Barn, Lucille’s Gas Station, the 1930 Milk Bottle Grocery and there’s lunch and photo options a’plenty. Our hotel tonight is the Holiday Inn and dinner is your choice.

Day Nine

Saturday August 3rd - Clinton to Amarillo Texas.

Welcome to the Indian Territories. Before we leave Clinton we’ll stop at the Oklahoma Route 66 Museum, a true showcase of Mother Road history and culture. We’ll call into Elk City for the Sandhills Curiosity Shop and the Mediocre Music Makers and at McLean for the barbed wire collection at the Devils Rope Museum and the beautifully restored Phillips Gas Station. Dinner tonight is your choice but you will probably only need a light lunch as our hotel tonight in Amarillo is close to the Big Texan Steak Ranch so you can try for the free 72 oz steak. You just have to eat it to get it free.

Day Ten

Sunday August 4th - Amarillo to Santa Rosa New Mexico

First stop today is the Cadillac Ranch, a classic landmark beside the road consisting of ten Cadillac cars which are half buried nose-down in the ground in a single file. Created in 1974, the cars were buried in their original conditions, with their normal body colour.

But the cars did not remain untouched for long, shortly after 1976, visitors started painting graffiti on them and there was no way to protect the cars. The Cadillacs were repainted over the years, with many different colours and hues. Pink was quite popular, so was red, but the graffiti would return, every time. Continuing west we explore the ghost towns of Glenrio and Endee, take some time for lunch in Tucumacri and end the day at the Santa Rosa Route 66 Museum. Dinner tonight is your choice.

Day Eleven

Monday August 5th - Santa Rosa to Albuquerque New Mexico.

As we will spend the day in Santa Fe tomorrow, we bypass the old alignment for Route 66 to Santa Fe and continue west to Albuquerque and our hotel in Old Town. Albuquerque was founded in 1706 with Old Town's oldest surviving buildings located along the Plaza and today, the historic Old Town district stretches for about 10 picturesque blocks offering an authentic experience of southwest heritage. Our Hotel is in the heart of Old Town and you will have time to explore the village before dinner tonight in the hotel.

Day Twelve

Tuesday August 6th - Santa Fe

Rest today today in Albuquerque if you wish but you’ll miss Santa Fe, one of the highlight cities of Route 66. Santa Fe is just about an hour each way from Albuquerque so there’s ample time to explore this iconic Route 66 city that combines Spanish Colonial and Native American Pueblo culture and history. Arts, crafts, food and amazing outdoor plazas with some historic Route 66 attractions are throughout the old town. Dinner tonight is your choice and there’s plenty of options on old Route 66 (now Central Avenue) that continue the tradition of the old road.

Day Thirteen

Wednesday August 7th - Albuquerque to Gallup New Mexico.

About an hour west of Albuquerque, we turn off Route 66 to Acoma Pueblo and Acoma Sky City. Acoma Pueblo is the the oldest continually inhabited city in the USA and the site of the San Esteban Del Ra Mission built between 1629 and 1640. We’ll take a guided walking tour of the city and lunch at the Yaaka Cafe for a taste of traditional Acoman food before continuing on to our overnight stop at Gallup. Dinner tonight is your choice.

Day Fourteen

Thursday August 8th - Gallup to Winslow Arizona.

Today’s first stop is the Yellowhorse Trading Post for yet more souvenirs and then we detour off Route 66 to the Petrified Forest National Park and the Painted Desert. After a quick stop at the Visitors centre, we’ll drive the 28 mile loop through the park before rejoining Route 66 and head further west to spend the remainder of the day in Holbook. The historic sites in town will fill the day and don’t miss lunch at Jo & Agies Café who have been serving great food since the 1940’s. The Wigwam Motel is just one of the historic motels in town and we overnight at the historic La Posada hotel in Winslow. Dinner tonight is included in the hotel.

Day Fifteen

Friday August 9th - Winslow to Grand Canyon Village Arizona

Time this morning to “Stand on The Corner” before we leave Winslow and head west for the Meteor Crater a few miles off the highway. The crater is the breath-taking result of a collision between an asteroid traveling 26,000 miles per hour and planet Earth approximately 50,000 years ago. It’s nearly one mile across, 2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep. At Winona, we turn north to follow the road around the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and there’s plenty of time in the afternoon to explore. Our hotel tonight is close to the South Rim of the canyon and dinner tonight in the hotel is included.

Day Sixteen

Saturday August 10th - Grand Canyon to Kingman Arizona

An hour south of the canyon is the classic Route 66 town of Williams. Spend some time here and just 30 minutes down the road is Seligman, the home of Route 66 and a great historic district. Stop for a soda at the Snow Cap Drive in and call in to Seligman Sundries for a bit of history. Next stop is the Hackberry General Store for a bit more nostalgia before continuing on to Kingman for our overnight. Dinner tonight is your choice.

Day Seventeen

Sunday August 11th - Kingman to Las Vegas Nevada

Leaving Kingman we take one of the highlight roads of the tour to Oatman an old gold mining town in the Black Mountains where we take time out to walk the town in company with the burros that freely roam the main street. Leaving Oatman we pass through Laughlin and we’ll lunch at Terrible’s Roadhouse in Searchlight before rolling into Las Vegas and the Cosmopolitan Hotel our home for the next three nights. Dinner tonight is your choice.

Day Eightteen

Monday August 12th - Las Vegas

A free day today to explore “The Entertainment Capital of The World”. Las Vegas has something for everyone from the world’s best show’s to some outstanding shopping and don’t miss the light show this evening at Fremont Street where it all started. There’s no formal events planned for today so it’s play on and we all meet again in the morning.

Day Nineteen

Tuesday August 13th - Las Vegas

After breakfast in the hotel, we tour the Carroll Shelby Museum this morning then head out to Boulder to drive across the Hoover Dam before heading back into Las Vegas for our last afternoon in town. As this is our last night together our Farewell Dinner is tonight at a themed restaurant just south of the strip.

Day Twenty

Wednesday August 14th - Los Angeles
A late start this morning as we head west to Los Angeles and our last day on the road. We pass the northern border of the Mojave Desert and stop for lunch at Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner that was established in 1954 and has become a must stop on the way from Los Angles to Las Vegas. In Los Angels we’ll tour the Petersen Museum for one of the USA’s premier car collections then late afternoon head down to the Santa Monica Pier for a final farewell before returning our cars and taking the shuttle to the airport for the flight home.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

STANDARD INCLUSIONS

19 Nights accommodation
19 Days American Muscle Car Hire
7 Dinners including Welcome and Farewell Dinners (Drinks included in Welcome & Farewell Dinners)
Klairmont Kollection in Chicago Route 66 Museum in Pontiac
Meremec Caverns
The Grandhall Experience in St Louis
The Gateway Arch in St Louis
The Oklahoma Route 66 Museum
Heartland of America
Acoma Sky City Tour
Meteor Crater Arizona
Grand Canyon National Park Entry
Hoover Dam
Carroll Shelby Museum Las Vegas
The Petersen Museum Los Angeles
EZ66 Route 66 Guide
Comprehensive Road Book with Daily Route Notes
GPS Navigator with Full Route Planning (Returned at Tour End)
Classic Driving Tours Travel Pack
Special Shannons Route 66 Tour Caps and Polo Shirts

THE CARS

Chevrolet Camaro SS Coupe or Mustang GT Convertible or exotics at additional cost.

FEATURE DINING EXPERIENCES

Welcome Dinner at the Award Winning Harry Caray's Italian Steakhouse
Grandhall Experience and Dinner at the St Louis Union Station Hotel
The Turquoise Room at The Historic Posada Hotel in Winslow
Grand Farewell Dinner at a themed restaurant in Las Vegas

TOUR COST

A$10,595.00

Per Person based on two sharing a room and car hire

A non-refundable deposit of A$1,000 per person is required to be sent with the Booking Form and received by us in clear funds to secure your booking. The balance owing for the Tour is due and payable four months prior to Tour departure, however you may remit payment of the Tour prior to this date. All Tour prices (Tour Prices) are based on the exchange rate for the US Dollar applicable on the 1st of August 2018, include GST, and are subject to change and availability. Price increases may occur by reason of matters outside our control, which include, but are not limited to, adverse currency fluctuations, variations in international shipping and transportation costs, fuel surcharges and other taxes, fees or charges. Please see the Classic Driving Tours Purchase Terms & Conditions for more information.

WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED

• Return airfares to USA and airport transfers

• Cost of meals and drinks and entry to places of interest other than those specifically included in the final itinerary

• Personal expenses

• Fuel and Tolls

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