Our Route 66 journey took us from California to Illinois over 14 days. It was a once in a lifetime trip where we visited eight states and had countless unique experiences. I have a full video series I am making on this drive, but I also wanted to include the daily stops in blog post form as well. Santa Monica is the official endpoint of Route 66 and has a famous sign right out on the pier noting the endpoint. While the route never actually ended here but ended a few blocks away, it is still a great beginning or end to your Route 66 journey.
We just walked along the pier and saw the historic Will Rodgers plaque on the corner of Ocean Ave and Santa Monica before heading on. Here are some links to some of the content I have created on LA and Hollywood. Downtown LA is also full of historic spots to see, but again it depends on how much time you have.
You can see more things to do in Downtown LA here. You will be driving this freeway as you make your way to Pasadena on Route There is a great lookout point at Elysian Park if you want to get a view of the city as you drive away. Getting off of the Freeway at Figueroa Street will connect you with an old alignment of Route 66, and the first stop is the Chicken Boy Statue. This statue was a muffler man that had its hands turned in to hold a bucket of chicken and its head replaced with a chicken head.
It is fun for a couple of photos. Galco Soda Shop is only 5 minutes away, and it is a historic store with over a century in Los Angeles. The store has more than different types of soda and all sorts of fun candy from different decades as well.
The Rialto Theater was built in on Route It is pretty run down from the outside now, but hopefully it will be restored to its former glory one of these days. Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain is probably the best stop on this section of the drive.
