Route 66 Still Kicks: 3 Sights Worth Seeing Along One of America's Original Highways

Immortalized by John Steinbeck’s 1939 book “The Grapes of Wrath”, as well as the 1946 song “(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66”, the highway became one of the most recognized thoroughfares in North America, crisscrossing not just from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, and back again, but also across our hearts (*cue studio audience: “aww!”). And though the highway no longer exists in a technical sense — it was officially removed from the U.S. Highway System in 1985 — stretches of what has become known as “Historic Route 66” in some states are still out there waiting for you.

North AmericaLogan T. HansenJuly 24, 2023travel, travel guide, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel ideas, travel advice, travel recommendations, travel planning, travel bucket list, Route 66, Uranus, Catoosa, Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken, Historic Route 66, Mother Road, U.S. Highway System, John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath, Get Your Kicks on Route 66, Chicago, Santa Monica, Santa Monica Pier, California, Wigwam Motel, Magnolia Gas Station, Blue Whale, Blue Whale of Catoosa, Oklahoma, Missouri, Hugh Davis, Tulsa, Pinocchio, Animal Reptile Kingdom, World's Largest Gift Store, Redmon's Candy Factory, Redmon's, Phillipsburg, Lucille Ball, Toxic Waste, Uranus Missouri, Louie Keen, Mayor of Uranus, Roadside America, Uranus Fudge Factory and General Store, Moonicorn Creamery and Funnel Cakery, Escape Uranus, Uranus Axehole, Chicken Bones Party Bar & Grill, Uranus Sideshow Museum, World's Largest Belt Buckle, road trip, road tripping, road trips, cross-country road tripComment

This... is Oklahoma City? A Look at the Magnificent Treasures Lining OKC's Plaza District

One of Oklahoma City’s unexpected gems is the Plaza District, a quaint little neighborhood just northwest of downtown filled to the brim with vintage shops, various boutiques, a handful of bars and restaurants, and a few other ditties worth checking out. It’s honestly a spot where you could easily lose track of time and end up spending the whole day, if not the evening.

The Flint Hills of Kansas Will Shatter Your Definition of Wide Open Spaces

For once in my life, I looked around, surrounded by unfamiliar territory, and though I had the greatest urge to spout that age-old movie reference — “we’re not in Kansas anymore” — the fact of the matter was that, yes, we very much were in Kansas. I mean, in the very heart of America, in that region known as the Great Plains, you have some idea of what you’ll come across, but reading about it or seeing a photo or video is truly not the same as being surrounded by rolling green hills as far as the eye can see.

No Matter How Many Times You've Been, New York City is Always a New Adventure

Here’s the thing about New York: there’s always a new adventure to be had. That is even the case when you only have roughly 36 hours to spend in America’s largest city, needing to cram a number of stops and activities into a short amount of time. But under those kinds of time constraints, what can you feasibly make happen? Well, let me tell you.

No Stress in Key West: Soaking Up the Sun on Ernest Hemingway's Erstwhile Island Home

Key West wasn’t necessarily high on my travel bucket list, but it was on there (as is just about every other destination on planet Earth). Regardless, I figured it was better to visit sooner rather than later; that is, before the Florida Keys succumb in their entirety to the catastrophic effects of unchecked climate change and become the newest version of the Lost City of Atlantis.

North AmericaLogan T. HansenMarch 27, 2023travel, travel guide, travel advice, travel ideas, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel recommendations, travel reviews, travel tips, travel planning, travel bucket list, Florida, Florida Keys, Key West, Ernest Hemingway, Sloppy Joe's, Sunshine State, Cuba, Captain Tony, Duval Street, Gulf of Mexico, Mellow Cafe, Smoked on the Water BBQ, Garden of Eden, Whistle Bar, Luke Skywalker, Batman, Joker, Gotham, tourist trap, Lost City of Atlantis, Atlantis, Airbnb, Duval, Irish Kevin's, Lucy's Retired Surfers Bar & Restaurant, live music, Key Western Fest, Little Texas, Ricochet, Kendall Marvel, Capt. Tony's Saloon, Hemingway, Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, Jimmy Buffet, Mike Leach, Papa Hemingway, John F. Kennedy, Rick's Bar, Rick's Entertainment Complex, Durty Harry's, The Durtbags, Red Garter Saloon, The Bull, South Beach, Smathers Beach, beach life, beach day, beach getaway, Higgs Beach, Simonton Beach, Key West International Airport, Sunset Watersports, Salute! On the Beach, Southernmost Point, Southernmost Point of the Continental U.S., Southernmost Beach Cafe, Southernmost Beach Resort, Lagerheads Beach Bar & Watersports, Blue Mojito Bar & Grill, Mother Nature, outdoors, the great outdoors, Sebago Watersports, Fury Key West, Ocean Vue Adventures, Sandbar & Kayak Eco Adventure, Miss Valyn, mangroves, mangrove islands, Florida Keys National Marine SanctuaryComment

This Pair of Islands in the Bering Strait is Where Yesterday Meets Tomorrow

Consider this your introduction to what may just be the most unique pair of islands in the entire world: the Diomedes. Found in the middle of the Bering Strait, which separates the easternmost portion of Russia from Alaska, this duo of rocky, mesa-like islands is unlike any other for two big reasons.

2022, a Tribute to You: The Travels & Travails of the Best Year Yet on All Things Wanderful

There are so many cliché ways that a year-in-review post like this could begin. But instead of saying “another year in the books” or “isn’t it funny how time flies” — or even “what do you know, here we are again” — let’s just steer clear of all that gobbledygook, am I right? After all, this is now the sixth year (!) I’m sitting down to write this annual postmortem, and it certainly doesn’t deserve to suffer an indignity like that.

General TravelLogan T. HansenDecember 31, 2022travel, travel guide, travel advice, travel blog, travel blogging, travel writing, travel recommendations, travel reading, travel reviews, travel tips, travel ideas, travel inspiration, travelspiration, travel planning, travel photography, travel guidance, travel bucket list, All Things Wanderful, year in review, year-in-review, 2022, Caribbean, British Caribbean, Anguilla, Saint Martin, Sint Maarten, Logan's Run, Great Lakes, blogging, Star Wars, Wisconsin, ski trip, weekend trip, weekend getaway, weekend ski trip, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Texas, Dallas, Medieval Times, Stockyards, Fort Worth, Fort Worth Stockyards Historic District, Fort Worth Stockyards, Dutch Caribbean, French Caribbean, Chicago, Detroit Tigers, Iowa, Iowa City, Toronto Blue Jays, Michigan, Michigan football, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, DFW, Austin, The Mitten State, The Mitten State of Mind, Great Lakes State, altitude sickness, high-altitude travel, high altitude, hiking, hiking tips, hiking safety, travel safety, travel safety tips, Say Insurance, Orient Beach, Orient Bay, Orient Bay Beach, Marigot, Jesse Pinkman, Fort Louis, Le West Indies, nightlife, island life, island adventure, island time, day trip, day tripping, daytripping, winter sports, winter activities, skiing, snowboarding, ski area, ski resort, Wilmot Mountain, Wilmot Ski Resort, Wilmot Mountain Ski Resort, Wilmot, Milwaukee, Kenosha, hit the slopes, Vail Resorts, snow tubing, Tahquamenon Falls, Tahquamenon Falls State Park, Chippewa County, Alcona County, Dickinson County, Pine Mountain, Pine Mountain Ski & Golf Resort, The Netherlands, France, Maho Beach, Princess Juliana International Airport, Kamala HarrisComment

Looking for a True Wild, Wild West Experience? Say Hello to the Stockyards in Fort Worth, Texas

There are surely plenty of places in the western United States where you can get a taste of what it might have been like to be a rancher in the late 19th century, but perhaps one destination that captures that feeling better than anywhere else is the Fort Worth Stockyards Historic District in Texas.

Travel Back in Time With This Medieval Experience in Dallas Fit for a King

With the popularity of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, it kind of feels like we’re truly having a Medieval moment. You might even say that kings and queens and knights and dragons are experiencing a renaissance (see what I did there?). Of course, even in the absence of those HBO stalwarts, people have always been interested in the Middle Ages, which is why renaissance fairs and the like exist.

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