GALENA, Kan. (AP) Businesses along the famed Route 66 are gearing up for tourism season, hoping for an annual boost in revenue from history buffs from inside and outside the U.S.
The Carthage, Mo., Convention and Visitors Bureau is planning a Travel Workers Rally May 8 at the Boots Motel, an icon along the route that will open that day.
The Joplin Globe reports some businesses already had tourists this season. A business called Four Women on the Route in Galena, Kan., welcomed visitors last week from France, Spain, Denmark and Australia.
And Amanda Davis, director of the Miami, Okla., Convention and Visitors Bureau, says several groups have visited Route 66 stops in that town.
Route 66 was the main route from Chicago to Los Angeles before the interstate system was built.