Riding Bicycle Route 66 in Stretches

April 2, 2015

An oasis of neon in Winslow, AZ at Earl's Motor Court (cyclist friendly, too!)

Besides all the nostalgia and scenery encompassed by Bicycle Route 66, another of my favorite features of this route is the multiple entry and exit points. Not all bicycle travelers have the luxury of taking an almost 2,500-mile trip in one stretch, making the locations of airports and train stations of high interest.

Also, breaking the trip up over a few years allows you to more easily take advantage of the perfect weather windows for each stretch.

While the main route beginning and endpoints of Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California are well covered by convenient entry points of, there are many others scattered at reasonable distances all along Bicycle Route 66. 

Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie in Illinois on Bicycle Route 66, Section 1.

To help you break your adventure on Bicycle Route 66 into manageable pieces, I've compiled the logistical information below including the major cities on the route, their airport and/or train station name and approximate distance to next city. (Smaller cities may also have regional airports available.)

Chicago, Illinois (Section 1)

• Airport: O'Hare International
• Amtrak: Union Station
• Next urban center: 330 miles to St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri (Section 2)

• Airport: Lambert-St. Louis
• Amtrak: St. Louis
• Next urban center: 225 miles to Springfield, Illinois

Springfield, Missouri (Section 2)

• Airport: Springfield-Branson National
• Next urban center: 335 miles to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Section 3)

• Airport: Will Rogers World
• Next urban center: 280 miles to Amarillo, Texas

Amarillo, Texas (Section 3)

• Rick Husband Amarillo International
• Next urban center: 255 miles to Santa Fe, New Mexico

Santa Fe, New Mexico (Section 4)

• Airport: Santa Fe Municipal
• Next urban center: 75 miles to Albuquerque

Albuquerque, New Mexico (Section 4)

• Airport: Albuquerque Sunport
• Next urban center: 390 miles to Flagstaff

Flagstaff, Arizona (Section 5)

• Airport: Flagstaff Pulliam Airport
• Connecting urban center: 125 miles (off route) to Phoenix

Phoenix, Arizona (off route)

• Airport: Phoenix Sky Harbor

Los Angeles, California (Section 6)

• Airport: Los Angeles (LAX)
• Amtrak: Union Station
• Previous urban center: 550 miles to Flagstaff

If flying with your bike, you'll want to check out our Guide to Shipping & Bike Cases and tips from the Tours department on Boxing Your Bicycle.

When checking if you can bring your bicycle on board a train with Amtrak you'll want to check that the station has baggage service which usually means a boxed bike is OK. In theory all stations with baggage service will have bike boxes for sale but they are sometimes out of stock. You will want to call the station to confirm availability and if so perhaps request they reserve one for you. You may also box your bike prior to arriving at the station.

Photo 1 by Melissa Thompson | Photo 2 from Oscar Shen's Flickr Photostream

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GEOPOINTS BULLETIN is written by Jennifer 'Jenn' Milyko, Routes & Mapping Assistant Director, and appears weekly, highlighting curious facts, figures, and persons from the Adventure Cycling Route Network with tips and hints for personal route creation thrown in for good measure. She also wants to remind you that map corrections and comments are always welcome via the online Map Correction Form.