Route 66 turns 100 on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. That’s the day in 1926 when U.S. highway officials adopted the numbering plan that put the Chicago-to-California road on the map as Route 66. The biggest birthday party is a mostly free, all-day celebration in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma, with more events in Illinois, New Mexico and online. Here’s where to celebrate, what’s free and how to plan a trip around the Mother Road’s centennial.

Why Route 66’s birthday is November 11

On November 11, 1926, the American Association of State Highway Officials and the Bureau of Public Roads adopted the uniform numbering system and map for the new U.S. highways, and Route 66 was on it, according to the Route 66 Journal’s centennial guide. The road ran about 2,448 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica through eight states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, as Wikipedia’s history of U.S. Route 66 notes. Signs went up the following year.

The number itself almost didn’t happen. Planners first gave the route the number 60, and after a dispute, backers met in Springfield, Missouri, on April 30, 1926, and wired Washington that they preferred 66. That’s why Springfield calls itself the Birthplace of Route 66 and held the national centennial kickoff this spring, from April 30 to May 2. Tulsa, home of highway booster Cyrus Avery, calls itself the Capital of Route 66, which is why it’s hosting the main party on the actual birthday.

The road’s later history is just as famous. The National Park Service explains that five interstates (I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10) gradually replaced it, and Route 66 was officially decommissioned in 1985. Preservation groups, state agencies and a federal Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program have kept long stretches of it alive for travelers ever since.

Tulsa’s Route 66 Centennial Celebration on November 11

Oklahoma’s statewide celebration combines Route 66’s birthday with Tulsa’s long-running Veterans Day Parade. Here’s the schedule posted on the official Route 66 Centennial Celebration site:

• 7:00 to 8:00 a.m.: Free public Veterans Day breakfast at VFW Post 577, 1109 E. 6th St.
• 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.: Tulsa Veterans Day Parade downtown (free).
• Noon to 7:00 p.m.: Free screenings of the documentary Crossroads of America: Oklahoma’s Route 66 at The Canopy Tulsa.
• 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.: The free Centennial Crawl, with eight stops across downtown and the Tulsa Arts District, including the Woody Guthrie Center, the Bob Dylan Center and Greenwood Rising.
• 3:00 to 6:30 p.m.: A free street party on Main Street between OKPOP and Cain’s Ballroom. Free wristbands are handed out at Centennial Crawl stops.
• 5:00 p.m.: The Centennial Moment, the official 100th birthday recognition on Main Street.
• 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.: VIP party at OKPOP ($66).
• 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.: Free Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys concert at Guthrie Green.
• 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.: Wilderado’s Route 66 Centennial Concert at Cain’s Ballroom, with Ken Pomeroy (sold out).

The parade itself will be bigger than usual. Parade chairman Joshua Starks told TulsaPeople he expects more than 5,000 participants and 10,000 to 15,000 spectators, with a flyover that includes the historic C-49 “Wild Kat” aircraft and a Tulsa Symphony Orchestra performance of the “1812 Overture” at 10:40 a.m. Listings differ slightly on some afternoon start times (TulsaPeople lists the street party from 2:30 p.m.), so check the official site the morning you go.

Other Route 66 birthday events on November 11

El Reno, Oklahoma

West of Oklahoma City, El Reno is holding a free celebration from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Mother Road Plaza, 116 W. Wade St., with live music, lunch from Johnnie’s Grill and a noon raising of nine flags honoring America and the eight Route 66 states, according to the official centennial events calendar.

Springfield, Illinois

The Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway holds its statewide conference at Route 66 Motorheads on November 11 ($75 for members, $125 for non-members), then a centennial concert headlined by Starship featuring Mickey Thomas starting at 6 p.m. Concert tickets are $150, per the Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway.

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Visit Albuquerque’s Route 66 Information Station at 4th and Central, which it calls the only spot where Route 66 crosses itself, hosts a free party from 3 to 6 p.m. The first 100 people get free root beer floats and the first 250 get free T-shirts, according to Visit Albuquerque.

Online, from anywhere

The Society for Commercial Archeology is hosting a free Zoom talk, “The Afterlife of Route 66,” with author Jamie Jensen at 8 p.m. Eastern on November 11. The national Route 66 Centennial Speaker Series webinar runs the day before, and the State Historical Society of Missouri closes its online series on November 12.

More centennial events this month

If you can’t make the birthday itself, the official calendar still has plenty going on in November:

• November 7: Chrome & Neon at 100 in Albuquerque, with classic cars, a time capsule burial, a neon lighting ceremony and a neon cruise along Central Avenue (free). Needles, California, also holds a free community fall festival.
• November 14: Cruizin’ the Century Car Show in Needles, California.
• November 14 to 16: The Route 66 UltraRun, covering 140 miles of the road in Arizona.
• November 20 to 22: The 25th Route 66 Film Festival at the Hoogland Center for the Arts in Springfield, Illinois.
• November 21: The free Great Los Angeles Walk from Echo Park to the Santa Monica Pier, the road’s traditional end point.
• November 28: The Route 66 Race Across Kansas, a half marathon along the state’s short stretch of the road.

How to plan a Route 66 road trip this fall

You don’t need to drive all 2,448 miles to be part of the centennial. Pick one anchor event and build a shorter trip around it. The Route 66 Journal points out that a traveler with two or three weeks could catch Albuquerque on November 7, Tulsa on November 11 and the Los Angeles walk on November 21, but most people will enjoy a few days on one stretch far more. Our guide to planning your ideal scenic drive covers the basics of pacing a route like this.

• Book Tulsa early. A parade morning and a statewide party in one downtown will fill close-in hotels fast.
• Plan for shorter days. Daylight saving time ended on November 1, so it gets dark early. Try to finish each day’s driving before sunset, since many old two-lane alignments have little or no street lighting.
• Watch the weather out West. Higher stretches in northern Arizona and New Mexico can turn cold or snowy in late fall, so check forecasts and road conditions before each leg.
• Enjoy the off-season. Fall means thinner crowds and easier motel bookings, which fits the shift toward off-peak and value travel in 2026.
• Call ahead. Small-town events rely on volunteers and plans can change, so confirm times on the organizer’s page the week you go.

Traveling with kids? Many of the Tulsa events are free and walkable, and our family-friendly road trip ideas can help keep everyone happy between stops.

FAQ

When is Route 66’s 100th birthday?

November 11, 2026. Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926, when highway officials adopted the numbering system for the new U.S. highways.

Where is the biggest Route 66 centennial celebration?

On the birthday itself, it’s in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma, with the Veterans Day Parade, a free Centennial Crawl, a Main Street street party and the official Centennial Moment at 5 p.m.

Are the Tulsa Route 66 events free?

Most are. The parade, Centennial Crawl, street party, documentary screenings and the Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys concert are free. The VIP party is $66, and the Wilderado concert is sold out.

Can you still drive Route 66?

Yes. The highway was decommissioned in 1985, but long stretches of the old road remain drivable and are marked with Historic Route 66 signs.

How long does it take to drive all of Route 66?

The full route is about 2,448 miles. There’s no official time, but most travelers plan at least two weeks so they can stop along the way rather than rush it.

Featured image: Route 66 shield painted on the original alignment in Foyil, Oklahoma, by G. Edward Johnson, licensed under CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.