kansas02gt said:
Ill probably road warrior it out of Texas the first day. Go on the North Route there, south route back.
Northern route, Albuquerque westward:
Not much to say about I-40 from Albuq. to the AZ border. Anything worthy of seeing is well off the highway. There is a casino west of Albuq., but I haven't been in it other than to eat lunch at the crummy Dairy Queen there. I can recommend eating at the Fire Rock casino on the eastern side of Gallup. It is pretty much now the only place we eat in Gallup. Never had a good meal anywhere else. Downtown Gallup isn't much to see either, unless you are looking for Native American artwork. They have that in spades. On the main road that sits between downtown and the interstate is the historic El Rancho Hotel. Worth a few minutes to wander through if you happen to be in the area getting gas or fast food.
In AZ, a great place to see is Petrified Forest National Park, the northern entrance of which sits right on I-40. Even if you only have a few extra hours, it is still worth it to drive through. Enter at the I-40 entrance, then drive to the south exit. Stop where you can, definitely recommend the Blue Mesa area. The facilities at the south entrance are a bit better than the ones at the I-40 entrance. Once you exit the south gate, go right back up to Holbrook and the highway.
If you decide to stay on I-40, don't stop at the Hopi Travel Plaza east of Holbrook if you don't have to. That place is a dump. The Navajo travel stop a bit further east on the south side of the interstate isn't much better either.
A great place to eat in Holbrook (the only great place) is Bienvenidos Family Restaurant on the main drag north of the highway. I think it is next to a Quality Inn. Sounds like a Mexican food place, but they have all kinds of food. Not a fancy place, but it is clean, and the food and service is great. It is the only place we will eat when in Holbrook.
Further west is Winslow. The downtown area has some restaurants, most of which are not that great. However, the one at the historical train station and hotel called the Turquoise Room is wonderful. Great food and service, in a historical setting. If you stop, explore the entire train station/hotel. It is a great place to stop for a short time and get a meal and stretch your legs.
Meteor Crater is between Winslow and Flagstaff. Not much anything else to see along this otherwise boring stretch of highway.
Flagstaff is big enough to have all the chain restaurants and hotels just off the highway. The downtown area is small so easily manageable, but still has some very interesting stores. Great place to explore if you have the time.
The road between Flag and Sedona goes through a winding and deep canyon. Extremely beautiful, but really fills up with traffic on weekends and holidays. I have read that it can sometimes take over two hours to make the 30 mile trip.
In Sedona, try to catch a sunset up at the airport. The airport and surrounding hotel/restaurants sit up on a mesa that overlooks the entire area. Can be crowded on the weekends. Actually, the entire area can be hugely crowded on the weekends and holidays. Plan accordingly.
I'll cover southern route later.
C
