Many news releases from motel chains are self-serving and not terribly useful. But this one from Motel 6 is notable for what it says and providing numbers to support its material.
According to a story posted on Breaking Travel News:
Route 66 is the most popular U.S road trip for British travellers this year according to booking data from US Motel chain, Motel 6, as British holidaymakers take to the open road to explore famous sites such as The Metro Diner and Meteor city.
The 2450 mile long scenic route, famous for towns such as Amarillo and Santa Monica and seen in popular movies such as “It Came From Outer Space” has seen up to 25% more visits this year than its closest competitor, the Pacific Coast Highway, cementing it as the UK’s most popular road trip. In fact, Motel 6 locations situated along Route 66 have already had almost 3000 bookings since the start of 2013 compared to less than 2100 for the PCH.
The numbers for Route 66 are pretty amazing, when you think about it. First, that is for just one lodging chain. It doesn’t take into account Hampton Inns, Marriott, Hilton, Super 8, etc.
Second, a sizable number of Route 66 travelers will choose the plethora of historic motels along the highway. It wouldn’t surprise if a third to half of the overnight stays on the Mother Road occur in mom-and-pop lodgings. I’d like to know whether the Pacific Coast Highway would skew to mom-and-pops at that percentage as well.
The story also makes one wonder what the numbers are for travelers from other foreign countries, such as France, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, Brazil, etc.
Hi from the UK – I travelled R66 in 2011 with my son for his 21st birthday – a great 19 days.
I returned 2012 to do the desert states Texas, New Mwxico and along the Mexican border then heading North.and did Amboy, Midpoint and up through Sitgreave pass.
Would recommend R66 to anyone as a fantastic trip – hope to go again and re do part of it in 2014
At the beginning of 2013, I had about a dozen reservations for the year. Eleven of them were from other countries, mostly the UK. One was from the US. We’re a small B&B so our numbers are small but it was interesting how many were from other countries compared to our US bookings. The US has caught up but not by much.