Our Impressions of Winslow, Arizona
Winslow is a quaint small town in Arizona. Route 66 follows Second Street through the downtown area. We liked it! There were some interesting things to see in town and the surrounding area. We like it when there is a separation between the downtown area and a commercial area where there are big box stores, for example, Walmart and the Safeway Grocery Store. Certainly, the focus of Winslow is the “standin’ on the corner” area. There were dozens of people wandering around the statues any time of day!
Attractions
Geographically Winslow is a small city located in northeast Arizona on Route 66 / I-40. From the late 1880s Winslow was known as a big railroad town. By the 1950s the railroad industry had decreased and so did the population and attraction of Winslow. Jackson Browne / The Eagles put Winslow back on the map in 1972 with their song Take It Easy, with the line “standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona”. The late 1970’s brought an I-40 bypass around Winslow and further decimation of a once thriving Route 66 town.
Homolovi Ruins State Park: Homolovi State Park consists of 4,000 acres of high desert (4,900 feet elevation). There are also two areas of ruins of the Hopi, who inhabited this area from the 1200s to late 1300s. There is a museum, hiking trails, a campground and multiple picnic sites. Viewing ancient pottery and petroglyphs helps put the ancient quality of these lands into perspective.
La Posada Hotel: This is a hotel, art museum, restaurant and flower gardens. The hotel originally opened in 1930 to cater to wealthy travelers exploring the newly popular sights in the southwest. Designed by famous architect Mary Colter, it is one of the last remaining Harvey Hotels. La Posada is also an art museum. Tina Mion, one of the owners of the hotel, is an American contemporary artist who has exhibited at the Smithsonian and other prominent museums.
Meteor Crater: Meteor Crater is a privately owned national landmark about 30 minutes west of Winslow. It is a HUGE crater, measuring 550 feet deep and a mile wide. The crater was formed 50,000 years ago when a meteorite careened to earth. The landmark is privately owned and within a 282,000-acre ranch. There is a museum where you can watch a 15-minute film and 45-minute guided tours (part of your admission fee) around the east rim of the crater. It is an amazing place, not to be missed!
Old Trail Museum: The OTM is located in downtown Winslow, within eyesight of The Corner. Quaint, cute, free museum of all things Winslow. From trains, to the La Posada, to the Henley letter, to a dental exhibit from the 1880s. The museum sells books about the railroads and about Route 66. Also for sale are handmade Navajo and Hopi jewelry. Worth a visit!
Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park: The Petrified Forest is about an hour east of Winslow within the 218,000 acre Painted Desert. Jasper Forest (in the Petrified Forest) contains the largest accumulation of petrified wood in the world! It was originally called “the first forest”. There is a 28-mile paved driving trail through the desert with many scenic turnoffs. Numerous hiking trails from .03 miles to as long as you want to hike. Start on the north rim. That is where the museum, gift shop, café, restrooms and gas/diesel are located. The south rim only has a gate house and two large tourist shops. It is much more remote.
Remembrance Garden: This is a small park in remembrance of 9-11. There are two beams from the fallen towers. Walmart provided the transportation for the tower beams from NYC to Winslow.
Smallest Church on Route 66: Down the street from “The Corner” is what is called the smallest church on Route 66. It is a 6’ x 6’ open air building with writing over the door “Dedicated to all Veterans who have served our Country”. It is in a small courtyard with posters of the area and benches to sit on. It is a great place to sit in the shade and reflect.
“standin’ on the corner”: One of the attractions of Winslow is its famous downtown streetcorner. This is the street corner made famous by Jackson Browne and Glenn Frey in the Eagles 1972 song Take It Easy. The park pays homage to the lyrics. A letter in the Old Trail Museum from June 20, 1995 from Don Henley documents a $6,500 donation to help with the upkeep of the park. There are well worn bronze statues of the songwriters, a mural on a brick wall, and of course, a red flatbed Ford! This corner receives more than 100,000 visitors per year!
Downtown Winslow
Downtown Winslow consists of two 5-mile one-way streets, Route 66 (3rd Street) and Second Street. “The Corner” has made this area a thriving tourist area. There are lots of stores, gift shops and restaurants in the downtown area. No parking meters!!
Food and Drink
BoJo’s Grill and Sports Bar: Small local restaurant where the locals go. Food was plentiful and flavorful. Attentive waitstaff.
Relic Road Brewing Company: This is a great little café across the street from “standin’ on the corner” in downtown Winslow. I had a very interesting, very tasty vegetarian sandwich on marble rye. The ingredients included sliced pickles, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, avocado and pepper jack cheese. Instead of mayonnaise or oil, it was made with cream cheese. Fantastic!
Home Base: The Campground
For us, a campground is not our destination. Our RV is self-contained. Except for water, electric and sewer rarely do we use campground services or amenities. We are explorers, not campground reviewers!
We stayed on site 39 at Homolovi Ruins State Park in Winslow. 30 and 50 amp service were available. The campground was clean and well maintained. Our full hook up (water-sewer-electric) site was level and paved. Ours was a back in site with plenty of room for the RV and the Jeep. There were many pull throughs as well. Site 39 is the only FHU in the park; all others were water and electric only. I made reservations 6 months in advance. There was good cell phone coverage (Verizon) and a great open southern sky for our satellite. Easy off and on I-40. I-40 noise and trains exist, but they are only heard in a very far distance.
This state park campground is in the Top Ten of state parks we have been in anywhere in the country. Nice scenery, privacy the way the park is laid out, a good distance between campsites and close proximity to town.
Fun Facts
La Posada is the only hotel in the United States that has its own Amtrak depot! There are only two passenger trains per day that stop at the hotel: one going east in the morning and one going west in the evening.
Route 66, referred to as the Mother Road, ran from Chicago to California, and was a popular route from the 1920s to the ’80s.
| Population: | 8,943 |
| Elevation: | 4,869 |
| Founded: | 1882 |
| Average income for a single person: | $20,636 |
| Average price of housing: | $207,500 |
| Median age of the population: | 34 |
Summary
We really liked Winslow. There was lots of Route 66 history, lots of things to do and many places to eat. Homolovi State Park was one of our favorite state park campgrounds in the country.
Since beginning our full-time journey to discover the country, we have found something to appreciate in every city and town we have passed through. We hope you enjoy reading about them as much as we have enjoyed discovering them!
| No person, business or attraction has paid us for an endorsement. AI has not been used to create any of the content in our blogs or website. All photos and graphics within our blogs and website were taken or created by David or Kathryn Harrington. |
Your partners in travel,
Kathryn, Dave and Lucky
RVing Nomads
It’s a lifestyle
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