Folk Music on Oklahoma’s Route 66
The Soundtrack of America
5 Days | Spring | Summer | Fall
Starting At $Flexible Pricing
Folk music on Route 66 isn’t just about the road – it’s about spirit, the people and their storytelling traditions. This trip is rooted in the Oklahoma’s experience along Route 66, showcasing not only music icons and landmarks, but legends. This truly is the soundtrack of America.
Highlights
Tour Highlights:
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Tour Inclusions:
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U S Tours Flexible Pricing:
- Customizable Comps
- Luxury or First Class Hotels & Meals
- Motorcoach Transportation & Professional Tour Managers are available
Whatever you want, U S Tours will be happy to structure tour prices to match your needs. Just let us know!
Itinerary
Day 1 – Oklahoma City, OK
Arrive today in Oklahoma City, OK. Oklahoma boasts more than 400 miles of Route 66 – more than any other state – and Oklahoma City serves as a center point. You will find a mix of historic and modern experiences along the route, as OKC is home to some of the Mother Road’s most iconic landmarks, attractions and destination dining.
Check into your downtown hotel for a two-night stay. Dinner will be on your own this evening.
Day 2 – Clinton, OK – Lucille’s Service Station – Route 66 Museum – Lunch at Lucille’s Roadhouse – American Banjo Museum & Performance – Tower Theatre – Dinner at Toby Keith’s “I Love This Bar”
After breakfast, depart this morning for next stop on Route 66, Clinton, OK. Start with a stop at Lucille’s Service Station, a classic and historic gas station along Route 66. The outside of the service station has been restored, and an historical marker on-site recounts the tale of the family that lived there and ran the station for years.
Next, visit the Route 66 Museum for the ultimate Route 66 experience. Discover the iconic ideas, images and myths of the Mother Road. Exhibits at this museum begin with “the world’s largest curio cabinet” offering special treasures collected from along the route. Each room is enhanced by music in keeping with that rooms particular theme; like “Will Rogers Highway” by native son Woody Guthrie and “Hotel California” by The Eagles.
Lunch is included today at Lucille’s Roadhouse – serving fine food for the hungry traveler. This Route 66 themed restaurant has a 1950s Diner-look with polished chrome, glass brick and colored lighting.
Returning to Oklahoma City this afternoon, visit the American Banjo Museum. The museum houses the largest collection of banjos on public display in the world and is the only museum dedicated to just the banjo. Enjoy a self-guided tour through banjo history from its humble African roots through its heyday during the roaring ’20s to its present-day voice in bluegrass, folk, jazz and world music. Then, take a seat in the performance venue modeled after one of the wildly popular banjo nightclubs of the 1960s, known as Your Father’s Mustache, to enjoy a banjo performance.
Also included this afternoon is a photo stop at Tower Theatre. The Tower Theatre is a famous landmark on Route 66. Now a live music venue, the theatre was originally a historic movie palace built 1937, known for its neon sign and original architecture, making it a key stop for Route 66 travelers.
Tonight, dinner is included at Toby Keith’s “I Love This Bar” Restaurant. Named for the country singer’s hit single, Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill offers a down-home dining and an entertainment experience right in the middle of OKC’s historic Bricktown. (B, L, D)
Day 3 – Arcadia Round Barn – Lunch at The Chicken Shack – Pops 66 Soda Ranch – Tulsa, OK – Bob Dylan Center – Osage Casino Lodging – After breakfast, depart Oklahoma City for another day on Route 66. Start with a guided tour of the Arcadia Round Barn in Arcadia, Oklahoma. This historic, bright red, 60-foot diameter barn was built in 1898 by William Odor, is famous as a Route 66 landmark and for its unique circular design intended to resist tornadoes. The barn is a popular photo stop and cultural center on the iconic highway.
Next, enjoy lunch at The Chicken Shack for a one-of-a-kind experience on historic Route 66. Experience the unforgettable taste of their famous broasted chicken—crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside—at The Chicken Shack.
Then stop at Pops 66 Soda Ranch, an iconic roadside attraction on the historic Route 66. It’s known for its 66-foot-tall soda bottle sculpture, which is a major landmark and the main attraction, along with a vast selection of over 700 different sodas, a full service restaurant, and a gas station.
Arrive this afternoon in Tulsa, OK. Enjoy a visit to the Bob Dylan Center. Designed by Olson Kundig, the world-class Bob Dylan Center houses and exhibits exclusive cultural treasures created and owned by Bob Dylan over seven decades. These include handwritten lyric manuscripts to some of the world’s most treasured songs, previously unreleased recordings, never-before-seen film performances, rare and unseen photographs, visual art and other priceless items spanning Dylan’s unparalleled career as one of the world’s most important cultural figures.
End the day by checking into the Osage Casino Hotel for a two-night stay. Did you know Route 66 was built largely along historical trails used by the Osage people for bison hunting, connecting the highway’s origins to thousands of years of Osage presence in the region.
The evening is free to try your luck at the casino and enjoy dinner on your own at one of the casino’s restaurants. (B,L)
Day 4 – Church Studio Tour – Mother Road Market – Woody Guthrie Center – Tulsa Murals Tour
Start the day with a guided tour of Church Studio, a legendary Route 66 landmark. Originally built as a church, then purchased and transformed into a recording hub by Leon Russell in the 1970s, attracting stars like Tom Petty, Eric Clapton, and JJ Cale. The studio is now a museum, venue, and recording studio celebrating the “Tulsa Sound.” Unlike other historic studio “museums,” The Church Studio is a real-world working recording studio that boasts top-of-the-line analog and digital gear. Don’t be surprised if you get to peek into an actual recording session.
Then break for lunch on own at the Mother Road Market – Oklahoma’s first food hall! It’s known for offering a diverse range of food and retail concepts under one roof, with a focus on supporting local entrepreneurs. Visitors can eat, sip, shop, and enjoy various activities like Route 66-themed mini golf and live music. The market also features a demonstration kitchen, event spaces, and the WEL Bar with local brews and cocktails. Enjoy some time exploring the market and grab lunch on your own.
This afternoon, visit the Woody Guthrie Center. Guthrie was one of America’s greatest folksingers and most influential songwriters. Although born in Okemah, Oklahoma, Guthrie’s true home was all of America— “from California to the New York island,” to take a line from his most famous song, “This Land Is Your Land.” Guthrie was also among the countless travelers on Route 66, when he hitchhiked along the highway from Texas to California in 1936. The songs he wrote about the Dust Bowl were based in large part on his experiences along Route 66. Many of these songs were released in 1940 on the acclaimed Dust Bowl Ballads, the most successful and influential album of Guthrie’s career.
Also included today is a tour of Tulsa’s Must-See Murals. Tulsa is rich with music-themed murals celebrating its unique “Tulsa Sound,” featuring icons like Woody Guthrie, Leon Russell, and Bob Wills, found across the Arts District, near the Guthrie Center, and other neighborhoods like the Blue Dome, showcasing local culture. Today, you will have the opportunity to see some of these murals such as the Leon Russell Mural, Take Me Back to Oklahoma Mural, the Woody Guthrie Mural and the Wayman Tisdale, Gap Band and Aretha Franklin Mural.
Dinner is included this evening at a local restaurant. (B,D)
Day 5 – Depart for Home
After breakfast, depart Tulsa, OK for home. (B)

