The Winslow Inn in Winslow, Arizona - a Review

Our overnight stay at the Winslow Inn on Route 66 in Winslow, Arizona was an unplanned stop following a long day in the car. Through a series of misadventures that involved driving the South Rim of the Grand Canyon after dark and a high school lacrosse tournament, we found ourselves driving east from Flagstaff on Interstate 40 having not found a vacant hotel room in over five hours of effort.

The man was driving while I dozed, and I awoke to see the highway exit sign for Winslow, Arizona. There were a few major hotels near the exit and the familiar "No Vacancy" sign was displayed at all of them. The man went inside the lobby of one and was told we might have a chance at a room closer to "downtown" Winslow.

We saw a vacancy sign just few blocks up the street. I walked to the night check-in window, hoping the vacancy sign at the Winslow Inn was not a fluke. The young man in the window told me yes, he had rooms available. While price was no object, I did ask the cost of the room. After inquiring if I was a AAA member, he reported he would be able to give me the room for $36.95 plus tax. Fee paid, key in hand, we parked below our room, grabbed our overnight bags and walked up the stairs to nirvana.

I laughed as we opened the door to our room at the Winslow Inn. Perhaps it was 3:00 AM exhaustion that gave me the impression we had walked through a time portal. The room was large and clean - and VERY reminiscent of the heyday of Old Route 66.

The powder-blue walls clashed with Southwest-themed bedspread on the single full-size bed in the room. We aren't tiny people by any means and we fortunately like to cuddle. The bed seemed a little low to the floor, but it was a bed. We quickly got undressed and pulled back the bedspread and the laughing hysterics overtook me again.

I would swear to any court of law that the sheets on the bed were the original sheets purchased when the Winslow Inn was built during the height of Route 66. No other word than "threadbare" can describe these sheets - I could read through them. The sheets were clean and they were soft - similar to an old, threadbare T-shirt.

The mattress wasn't exactly comfortable, but our exhaustion led to a solid five hours of sleep. The man woke me with hot coffee from the Winslow Inn office and we headed out for a new day, adding another story to our travel adventures.

Would I recommend a stay at the Winslow Inn in Winslow, Arizona? If a traveler is looking for clean, inexpensive accommodations and a bit of Route 66 history, the answer is yes. Anyone seeking modern pillow-top mattresses and 600-thread count Egyptian cotton sheets will be sorely disappointed in the Winslow Inn.

Sources: Winslow Inn official website