Route 66, America’s most famous highway, is back on the map for Kiwis … and our resident expert on this world-renowned drive between Chicago and Los Angeles has picked a fabulous must-see stop-off.

JUST west of St. Louis near Kirkwood, Missouri, between Manchester Road, the pre 1932 alignment of Route 66, and I-44, course for post 1932 Route 66, is an almost magical place.

Preserved at the National Museum of Transportation is almost overwhelming collection of planes, trains, and automobiles and historic buildings such as railroad depots. There are also fascinating exhibits that chronicle more than a century of American road trips, and even tangible links to Route 66 history.

The railroad related collection alone includes nearly 200 exhibits. It is one of the largest in the world.

One of the oldest items on display is a Boston & Providence Railroad passenger coach built in 1833. The stagecoach-style was designed and built by John Lightner in Boston & Providence Railroad shops. It was manufactured just three years after the first American steam locomotive went into service.

Exemplifying the diversity of the railroad collection is an experimental gas turbine engine powered by two Boeing 502-2E 150 horsepower jet engines built in 1952. Built for the United States Army, it was the first successful gas-turbine-mechanical locomotive.

The automotive collection is even more diverse. During the first decades of the 20th century, St. Louis was home to more than a dozen automobile manufacturers and vehicles produced by those companies are on display.

One of these is a 1901 St. Louis Motor Carriage powered by a one-cylinder, 7-hp engine. The St. Louis Motor Carriage Company was the first successful automobile business west of the Mississippi River.

An Adolphus bus provides a rare glimpse of luxury highway travel in 1931. This is the only existent model of the unique bus built by Yellow Truck and Coach, a division of General Motors.

The exterior appearance is that the conventional Z-250 model passenger bus. But this was a luxury coach with air conditioning, Pullman berths, a telephone for passengers to call the kitchen, and a lavatory complete with shower that had hot and cold water.

It was specially built for use by the president of the Buick Motor Division. In the early 1940s it was acquired by Anheuser-Busch of Saint Louis, Missouri, for August A. Busch Jr. It was powered by an inline 6-cylinder, 616 c.i.d. 150 horsepower engine.

An exhibit in the Earl C. Lindburg Automobile Center building blends automotive and Route 66 history. The Coral Court Motel built along Route 66 in 1941 was a uniquely styled landmark that was demolished in 1993. Preservationists extensively photographed a room, carefully tore it down, and reassembled it at the museum with great attention to detail.

Parked in front of the Coral Court Motel display is a 1941 Cadillac Fleetwood Series 60 Special Sedan. There is a consensus among automotive historians that this car was the pinnacle of prewar Cadillac design. This car is equipped with the divisions V8 engine and revolutionary Hydra-Matic automatic transmission that would be used in American tanks during WWII.

As the name implies, preserved at the museum is more than a century of transportation history. Other gems in the collection include an 1880 milk delivery wagon, an experimental helicopter built in 1957, a 1957 Cushman Eagle scooter, a 1929 refrigerated rail car, singer Bobby Darrin’s custom-built dream car, a U.S. Army Air Force Douglas Aircraft C-47A “Gooney Bird” built in 1947, and an array of locomotives.

For the fan of trains, planes and automobiles traveling Route 66 the National Museum of Transportation is stop that should not be missed.

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