Join the Route 66 Centennial Celebration!
America’s most famous highway turns 100 in 2026, and towns from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California, are planning cruises, parades, rallies, museum events, and neon-lit celebrations.
For travelers in larger motorhomes, fifth-wheels, or travel trailers, exploring Route 66 is both a bucket-list dream and a logistical challenge. Much of the “Mother Road” is a two-lane patchwork of state highways, city streets, preserved alignments, and sections that have been absorbed by interstates. Most of it is manageable in a modern RV if you approach it as you would a a big-rig trip, not as a “follow every Historic 66 sign” scavenger hunt.
The safest way to do it: use interstates for the long hauls, drop onto Route 66 only for wide, easy segments, and treat tight towns as park-and-play stops, which means drop the RV elsewhere and explore in your tow vehicle or dinghy.
Why Route 66 is Tricky for Big Rigs
Route 66 isn’t a single standardized highway. It’s a collection of preserved segments, city streets, and former alignments built long before modern RV dimensions were even considered. In 2026, event traffic and temporary street closures will amplify every tight turn and parking rule.
For big rigs, the trouble usually comes from three things:
- Low clearances and hard restrictions (underpasses, older structures, posted length limits)
- Tight geometry (sharp turns, narrow lanes, on-street parking, low trees)
- Event congestion (closures, caravans, pedestrians, limited parking)
Low-Clearance and Hard-Restriction Hotspots
If there’s one hazard that ends RV dreams quickly, it’s committing to a route where your RV cannot physically fit. These areas require your immediate attention.
Needles, California: K Street Underpass
Hazard: Posted 8-foot clearance underpass.
Who should avoid: Every modern motorhome, fifth-wheel, travel trailer, or truck camper. This one’s not even close.
What to do instead: Reroute before entering town. If navigation tries to send you across K Street, override it early and stay on a safe route.
Sitgreaves Pass / Oatman Grade, Arizona
Hazard: Posted 40-foot maximum length between Golden Valley and Oatman, plus tight switchbacks.
Who should avoid: Any rig setup longer than 40 feet in length (motorhome and dinghy or tow vehicle and trailer). It can also be stressful for shorter but tall/heavy rigs.
What to do instead: Use I-40 for the through-route. Unhitch in Kingman or Laughlin and visit Oatman by car.
Chicago, Illinois: Business Street Parking
Hazard: Self-contained motorhomes cannot park on business streets except while actively loading/unloading.
Who should avoid: Anyone expecting to street-park downtown near Route 66 start markers.
What to do instead: Treat Chicago as park-and-play. Camp at an RV park outside the heart of the city and go in by car, train, or rideshare.
St. Louis, Missouri: Chain of Rocks Bridge
Hazard: Bridge is pedestrian and bicycle only. No vehicle traffic.
Who should avoid: Anyone planning to “drive” this historic segment.
What to do instead: Park nearby and walk or bike it. Do not build it into your driving route.
Albuquerque, New Mexico: Street Width Restrictions
Hazard: Vehicles 90 inches or wider cannot be parked on city streets except while actively loading/unloading, and cannot be left unattended.
Who should avoid: Most Class A motorhomes and some large fifth-wheels.
What to do instead: Stay at an RV park and explore downtown by passenger vehicle.
Santa Monica, California: Pier Parking Limits
Hazard: Vehicles over 22 feet are directed to specific oversized parking areas (Lot 1 North).
Who should avoid: Anyone assuming they can roll into general pier parking.
What to do instead: Plan your Route 66 finale as a park-and-walk stop. Know exactly where oversized vehicles are routed before arrival.
Plan for Full Parks and Closed Streets
In 2026, Route 66 won’t just be a scenic historical drive. It will be a rolling series of parades, cruises, festivals, and downtown street closures.
For big rigs, the issue isn’t the crowd, it’s what crowds trigger: detours onto tight streets, blocked turns, and nowhere legal to park a 35–45-foot setup.
Plan accordingly:
- Assume downtown is park-and-play. Drop the RV outside town and explore by dinghy, tow vehicle, rental car, bike, or rideshare.
- Book event-weekend sites 6–12 months early. Especially near kickoff events and well-known towns.
- Arrive early on parade or festival days. If you plan to park and explore, get positioned before the streets start closing.
- Keep a same-day bailout campground 20–30 miles out. If traffic or closures make your original stop unrealistic, you already have a Plan B.
Lock In These Three Habits Before You Go
Before you roll onto Historic 66, lock in these three non-negotiables:
- Use RV-specific routing that accounts for your exact height, weight, and total length.
- Know your RV’s real numbers, with the actual height including roof accessories and the real full length including dinghy or tow vehicle. “Guessing” is how rigs meet underpasses.
- Treat posted restrictions as hard limits, not suggestions. If a segment says 40 feet maximum, it means it. Do NOT push it.
Why Use RV LIFE Trip Wizard and the RV LIFE App?
Exploring Route 66 in 2026 isn’t just about mileage. It’s about avoiding known clearance traps, posted length limits, and downtown routes that don’t work for big rigs.
That’s where RV-specific routing matters.
With RV LIFE Trip Wizard, you can enter your rig’s exact height, total length (including tow vehicle, dinghy vehicle, or trailer), and weight. The system builds routes designed to avoid low clearances and other common hazards, which is especially important on a patchwork road like Historic Route 66.
It also makes the whole experience much easier. You can plan your interstate travel days, identify campgrounds 20–30 miles outside busy towns, and build in those “park-and-play” stops before you leave home.
Once your route is built, the RV LIFE app follows that same RV-safe plan on the road, so you’re not relying on a generic automotive GPS that may try to send you under an 8-foot underpass or over a restricted mountain grade.
The Bottom Line
The Route 66 Centennial is a great excuse (not that you need one) to do a classic American road trip at its peak. Big-rig RVers can absolutely enjoy it, but the best trips come from realistic expectations and smart planning.
- Detour hard restrictions like Sitgreaves Pass if you are over the limit.
- Bypass known clearance traps like the Needles underpass.
- Treat the big cities and festival weekends as park-and-play.
Follow those guidelines, and Route 66 experience stays what it’s supposed to be: diners, neon signs, roadside oddities, and a hundred years of stories—not a daily stress test.
Share your Route 66 experiences
Do you have an interesting or frightening story or tip about traveling Route 66 in your RV? Help fellow RVers out and tell us about it in the comments.