Wagon Wheel Motel

About Wagon Wheel Motel

The Wagon Wheel Motel has been welcoming travelers on Route 66 since 1936, making it the oldest continuously operating motel on the Mother Road. The original cabins were built from native Ozark sandstone in the Tudor Revival style by stonemason Leo Friesenhan, and they have not moved since. Three stone lodging buildings set 200 feet back from the highway, each housing cabins with garages, exactly as Robert and Margaret Martin designed them. The neon sign was added in 1947 by Mr. Mathis, who designed it personally, and it remains lit. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and documented by the National Park Service. In 2026, Rich and Christina Dinkela acquired the property from longtime owner Connie Echols, who had restored and stewarded it since 2009. Rich had painted the iconic Route 66 shield at the Wagon Wheel in 2012, nearly fifteen years before he became its owner.

What Wagon Wheel Motel Is Known For

The Wagon Wheel has survived for 90 years because of what it is, not what it has been made to look like. The Ozark sandstone cabins are original. The neon is original. The glass knob door hardware is original. The preservation decisions made over nine decades of ownership reflect a consistent understanding that the Wagon Wheel's value is inseparable from its authenticity. The National Park Service documentation and the National Register listing confirm what Route 66 travelers have been saying for decades: the Wagon Wheel has earned its standing through genuine respect for its structures and a practical commitment to their upkeep.

Amenities

• WiFi
• Jacuzzi rooms available
• Outdoor fire pits
• Bike shelter
• Guest laundry
• ADA accessible room
• Original 1947 neon sign
• National Register of Historic Places

The Room

Be mindful, this is a historical stay and on the National Register of Historic Places. The rooms are authentically smaller and as they were when built. The rooms are true motor court size, faithful to the 1936 original proportions: comfortable and authentic, not expansive. The rooms are made of original Ozark sandstone structures, with the original architectural details preserved: wood doors with glass knobs and hardwood floors throughout. Modern updates include pillow-top beds, TVs, free WiFi, and air conditioning. Select rooms include Jacuzzi tubs. One ADA accessible room is available. Amenities vary between rooms: not every unit includes a microwave and refrigerator, so confirm specific needs when booking.

The Grounds

The property layout is unchanged from its original 1936 configuration: three stone lodging buildings set well back from Route 66, with the famous neon sign visible from the highway. Outdoor fire pits are available for evening use. A bike shelter and guest laundry are on site. Free parking is at each room. The surrounding Cuba Route 66 corridor is walkable, with Missouri Hick Barbeque and Shelly's Route 66 Cafe within walking distance.

The Experience

Staying at the Wagon Wheel is the closest thing to the original Route 66 motor court experience that still exists on the Mother Road. Travelers who have driven sections of the highway specifically to sleep in this building describe it as the trip's defining night. The stone cabins, the glass knob door hardware, the hardwood floors, the neon sign outside the window: these are not reproductions. The Route 66 murals that have made Cuba famous as Mural City are scattered within walking distance throughout the downtown. Meramec Caverns, the most-visited cave in Missouri, is 26 miles east. Belmont Winery is 3 miles from the motel. The drive between Cuba and St. Louis on the old Route 66 alignment takes travelers through some of the most intact stretches of the original highway remaining in Missouri.

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