Oklahoma Travel Guide

Native American powwows, cowboy capers, Route 66 adventures and outdoor escapades are all par for the course in Oklahoma.

Some 60 Native American tribes have lived in ‘The Sooner State’ and visitors can wander among prehistoric mounds at Spiro, experience early Cherokee life at Tahlequah's replica villages and hit Oklahoma City for the Red Earth Festival, an energetic extravaganza of Native American artists from across the continent.

There are few better states in which to giddy up for an authentic cowboy experience than Okie. Kit yourself out in clothing at Langston’s in Oklahoma City, which has been dressing cowboys and gals since 1913. Then take your pick of cattle-wrangling on a ranch, cheering on bronc riders at a rodeo, chowing down on belt-busting hunks of steak, or stomping your boots to country music at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa.

Oklahoma lays claim to the longest driveable stretch of Route 66, which is littered with quirky roadside attractions. Snap pics of the iconic neon sign hanging outside Clinton’s Route 66 Museum and dive into POPS, a landmark diner in Arcadia, which serves classic road trip fare and a heroic selection of sodas. Catch a silent flick at the Coleman Theatre in Miami (no, not that Miami) or cast your eyes over vintage motorbikes at the Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum in Warwick.

If all that driving sounds too sedentary, duck underground at Alabaster Caverns State Park, rappel down walls at Red Rock Canyon State Park, or zip across Lake Murray on waterskis.

Take time too to visit the moving memorial commemorating the 1995 Murrah Building bombing in Oklahoma City, where the bronze Gates of Time mark the minutes immediately before and after this tragic event.