The Route 66 Centennialin Flagstaff
The Mother Road turns 100 on November 11, 2026. There is no better place to mark it than a town where Route 66 is still the main street.
Book the Centennial WalkWhy Flagstaff Is a Centennial Anchor
Most Route 66 towns preserve a fragment of the old road. Flagstaff kept the whole thing in service. Both the original 1926 alignment and the 1934 reroute still run through downtown, past buildings that were already standing when the highway got its number.
That makes the centennial different here. You are not commemorating a road that disappeared. You are walking one that never left, past the depot that turns 100 alongside it, the neon that survived the sign wars, and the blocks where the Mother Road's full story, including the chapters most tours skip, actually happened.
Centennial Events Still Ahead in 2026
Dates from the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona's centennial calendar. The June 6 citywide celebration has passed; the year is far from over.
August 7, 2026
Nolan McKelvey Band with Pilcrowe
Orpheum Theater, Flagstaff
The Music of Route 66 concert series takes the stage at downtown Flagstaff's historic theater. All ages.
August 8, 2026
An Evening with Honeygirl & The Sundusters
Orpheum Theater, Flagstaff
The concert series continues with live music on the Orpheum stage. All ages.
August 15, 2026
Mother Road Classic Car Show
Flagstaff
A vintage vehicle exhibit supporting local Flagstaff charities.
August 21, 2026
An Evening with The Grant Brothers
Orpheum Theater, Flagstaff
The concert series returns with an evening of live music downtown. All ages.
September 5, 2026
An Evening with UNION32
Orpheum Theater, Flagstaff
The concert series rolls into September with a night of live music downtown. All ages.
September 25-26, 2026
Standin' on the Corner Festival
Winslow (an hour east on Route 66)
The famous corner town's annual festival lands in the centennial year.
October 10-11, 2026
Route 66, The Main Street of America
Orpheum Theater, Flagstaff
A documentary screening in downtown Flagstaff's historic theater.
November 11, 2026
The 100th Anniversary
All 2,400 miles
Route 66 turns exactly 100. Flagstaff is one of the few places you can mark it standing on a working stretch of the original 1926 alignment.
More dates are added through the year: see the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona calendar and the Discover Flagstaff centennial hub.
The Centennial Year
November 11, 1926
The Road Is Born
Route 66 is officially commissioned, threading 2,400 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica, straight through downtown Flagstaff.
June 6, 2026
Flagstaff's Centennial Celebration
Flagstaff marked its citywide Route 66 Centennial day with community events and historical programming, and centennial energy carries through the rest of the year.
Through 2026
Fun Run and the Great Race
The Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona's annual Fun Run brings hundreds of vintage cars up the Mother Road, and the Great Race follows Route 66 for the centennial, passing through northern Arizona's Route 66 towns.
November 11, 2026
The Mother Road Turns 100
The official 100th anniversary of Route 66. In Flagstaff you can spend it standing on the original alignment, because here the old road never stopped being the road.
How to Experience It
Walk it. The Centennial Edition of our Route 66 Walking Tour covers 16 stops along both alignments in 90 minutes, researched by published historian Susan Johnson and funded in part by a grant from the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona.
Exploring on your own? Start with our things to do on Route 66 guide, find the photo spots in the Route 66 signs and neon guide, or browse all 16 landmarks.
Once in a Century
The road only turns 100 once. Walk it while the year lasts.