66 Motel

2105 Navajo Blvd., Holbrook, AZ
Phone:

East < GO > West

The motel dates back to 1948, but it has been heavily remodeled over the years. The motel opened with 28 units, each with an adjoining carport. Even though it was pretty heavily remodeled by 1963 it still had the carports, but two less guest rooms. By 2016 the guest room count was up to 34, probably at least partly due to converting carports to living space.

Be sure to check out the cool old sign with it's starburst and neon.

This is a fairly large motel stretched out along the Mother Road. As always with vintage motels it's a good idea to check online reviews before booking a room. On early postcards they mentioned, as a selling point, that there would be no railroad noise. That seems to have been fairly common for Holbrook motels, but we've stayed at the Wigwam Motel which is pretty close to the tracks and haven't been bothered by train noise at night. I'm guessing the city has instituted a "quite zone" for night time trains.

According to a late 1940s postcard the attached restaurant was Bob's Fine Food Cafe. The cafe became Bob Lyall's 66 Steak House in the 1950s. Later it became the Hilltop Cafe.

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Vintage Advertising Highlights

(Front)
66 MOTEL AND CAFE, HOLBROOK, ARIZONA
ON BROADWAY OF AMERICA, U.S. HIGHWAY 66
COAST TO COAST

(Back)
66 MOTEL and CAFE
1 Mile East of HOLBROOK, ARIZONA
Twenty-eight ultra modern insulated units with private bath. - Adjoining car sheds - Simmons Beds - Brand New - Sound proof - Cafe on grounds - No railroad noise -
Visit the
Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Monuments.
The Navajo and Hopi Indian Reservations are nearby.
Mailing Address: P.O. BOX ***
HOLBROOK, ARIZONA
GUS SCHUMACHER - Owner and Manager

NOTE: This early postcard is undated. The front of the card proclaims Route 66 went "Coast to Coast", a slight exaggeration. The sign on the roof of the cafe reads "Bob's Fine Food" and Cafe.
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Photo(s): 2009, 2012