Illinois - Chicago, The Bean, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Like a Funhouse Mirror - For the whole city

The Bean
The artist, Anish Kapoor, called it "Cloud Gate." Chicago locals call it, "The Bean." Kapoor may be miffed, but we love this giant structure, which sits right in the heart of Chicago, reflecting the skyline from all angles.

Chicago Downtown
Nearest La Quinta: 7 blocks

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

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South Carolina - Gaffney, Peachoid Water Tower, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Time for a pit stop.

The Peachoid Water Tower

Juicy rumors abound about efforts made by civic authorities to have the million-gallon "Peachoid" water tower near I-85 in Gaffney, South Carolina repainted.  A local artist studied native peaches before applying fifty gallons of paint in twenty colors, including those used for the seven-ton leaf on the side.  Now that's a big peach.

Gaffney, South Carolina
Nearest La Quinta: 2 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Illinois - Niles, Leaning Tower of Niles, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Pretend you're in Rome

Leaning Tower of Niles

Built in 1934, this half-sized replica of The Leaning Tower of Pisa came 600 years after the original.  But if this one falls, it's sure to make an even bigger splash - and not just in the news.  The Leaning Tower of Niles is actually a water tower.  Recently revitalized with a fountain and terrace, it's a great place for a family picnic and photo opportunity.

Say mozzarella!
6300 Tougy Avenue, Niles, IL
Nearest La Quinta: 12 miles
Photo courtesy of Michelle Reitman.

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010 

Florida - Christmas, Jungle Adventures, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Feed your kids to a gator
(relax, they'll get out alive)

Jungle Adventures
Even in the heat of summer, Florida's "Jungle Adventures" is a cool place to visit.  It's like a trip to the zoo, but with an alligator show, live panthers, boat rides and more - all in one 200-foot building shaped like an alligator, this is truly a classic roadside attraction.

26205 East Colonial Drive (State Road 50) - Christmas, Florida
Nearest La Quinta 15 miles
Photo courtesy of Willy Volk.

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Texas - San Antonio, World's Largest Cowboy Boots, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

These Boots Were Made for Shoppin'.

World's Largest Cowboy Boots
These 40-foot-tall, 35-foot-wide boots mark the stomping grounds for Saks Fifth Avenue in North Star Mall. Decorated with Christmas lights in December, they're a San Antonio landmark you won't want to miss.
San Antonio, Texas

Nearest la Quinta: 1 mile

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Texas - Boys Town, World's Largest Ball of Stamps, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Think They Licked Each One?

World's Largest Ball of Stamps
Remember when people used to send letters in the mail?  Long before E-mail and the Internet, the Boys Town Stamp Collection Club began creating the world's largest ball of stamps.  Beginning in 1953, they collected 4,655,000 cancelled stamps and rolled them into a 32-inch, 600-pound ball, which is still on display today.  Why did they do it?  According to the staff's secretary, "It must have been a particularly cold winter."
13628 Flanagan Boulevard
Boys Town, Nebraska

Nearest la Quinta: 4 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

North Carolina - High Point, Word's Largest Chest of Drawers, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Your Drawers are Showing

The World's largest Chest of Drawers
We couldn't help but notice that the two socks hanging from the drawers don't match.  Typical.  But unless your shoe size is "10-feet", they probably won't fit, anyway.  Built in the 1920's as a monument to the city's status as "Home Furnishings Capital of the World," this oversized chest is actually the facade of a building - home to the High Point Jaycees.

High Point, North Carolina

Nearest la Quinta: 9 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Texas - Houston, The Beer Can House, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

This is what happens when ....
You Let A man Decorate

The Beer Can House
When John Milkovisch retired from his job as an upholsterer for Southern Pacific Railroad in 1968, he didn't just drink a few beers and lie around the house all day.  He drank 39,000 beers and used the empty cans to decorate his house.

222 Malone Street
Houston, Texas

Nearest la Quinta: 2 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Houstonian John Milkovisch worked through the late 1960s to transform his Houston home at 222 Malone Street into the Beer Can House.  It is a folk art monument to eccentricity and recycling. The Beer Can House is now one of Houston's most recognizable folk art icons.

Milkovisch started his project in 1968 inlaying thousands of marbles, rocks, brass figures and metal pieces in concrete blocks and redwood, all of which were used to make patios, fences, flower boxes, and an array of other items. The result was a yard with no grass, as the entire front and back yards were covered with cement. When asked why he did it, John simply answered, “I got sick of mowing the grass.”

Today, the Beer Can House is owned and operated by The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, a non-profit organization founded in 1980 to preserve and present works of extraordinary imagination and provide people the opportunity to express personal artistic vision.

Massachusetts - Wellesley, The Babson World Globe, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Circle the Globe in Less Than a Minute

The Babson World Globe
See the world as it looks from outer space.  Built in 1955, the 28-foot-wide, 25-ton Babson World Globe represents the Earth's size from 5,000 miles away.  Sixteen years ago, it looked more like Mars after the continents and oceans fell from its rusted surface.  But after a brilliant restoration in 1993, it's back in shape, geographically correct and ready to roll.  Where else can you explore the whole world in a single afternoon?
Map Hill Drive
Wellesley, Massachusetts

Nearest la Quinta: 19 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Colorado - Denver, SoundWalk, Art you Hear, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

The Most Unusual Art You'll Ever Hear

Soundwalk
Soundwalk is a unique sound installation in downtown Denver, created by artist Jim Green.  Head down Curtis Street, and you may hear elephants, chickens, or even subway sounds from the grates below (there is no subway in Denver).  The only thing more fun than listening in - is watching the reactions of other passers-by.

Denver, Colorado

Nearest la Quinta: 1 mile

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Missouri - Clayton, Shoe of Shoes, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

An 18' Heel Could Make ANYONE Uncomfortable.

Shoe of Shoes
This 18' tall fashion shrine entitled "Shoe of Shoes" is made of 2,000 aluminum shoes.  created by Victoria Fuller in 1999, it now stands in front of the Brown Shoe Company where, perhaps, it awaits a giant mate.

8300 Maryland Avenue
Clayton, Missouri

Nearest la Quinta: 5 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Colorado - Bust, Population Two, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

In BUST You're Either the Best-Looking ... or the Worst

Population TWO
There aren't many towns in  the U.S. with a population of two.  Actually, there many not be any at all.  Although Bust, Colorado is not an "official" town, its two members are swelling with community pride.  And a clever way of promoting their roadside souvenir shop.  Drop by and visit "Colorado's newest and smallest town."
Bust, Colorado

Nearest la Quinta: 3 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Virginia - Alexandria, Giant Watering Can, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Hey, It Saves on Yard Work.

Giant Watering Can
The coolest thing about the World's Largest Watering can is the fact that it actually works.  Too bad the pot it's watering appears to be pretty much empty.  No matter - you'll find a large selection of trees, bushes and plants on-site at Holly, Woods, and Vines, the garden center where the can is located.  For those who don't have their own enormous watering cans, there is also a large selection of neon-colored plastic palm trees.

8453 Richmond Hwy.
Alexandria, Virginia

Nearest la Quinta: 13 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

California - Three Rivers, Giant Cow Hamburger Stand, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

MOOVE On Down the Road

Giant Cow Hamburger Stand
Beef up your roadside lunch stop at this cow hamburger stand in front of The Kaweah General Store in Three Rivers, California.  After you scare up some lunch, be sure to step inside the store to see the"eight-foot rattlesnake on display" (Don't worry - it's stuffed.)
Three Rivers, California

Nearest la Quinta: 19 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Colorado - Denver, Big Blue Bear, from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

The Convention Was Great, But Parking was a Bear.

Big Blue Bear
"I See What You Mean."  Although that's technically the name of this impressive sculpture outside of the Colorado Convention Center, most people just call it "The Big Blue Bear."  Call it what you will, it's the only 3-story blue bear in the state of Colorado.  People will know what you mean.
Denver, Colorado

Nearest la Quinta: 2 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

North Carolina - Bynum, Artist Clyde Jones from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Why Use a Paintbrush When You Could Use A Chainsaw.

Artist Clyde Jones
Like art, but don't like spending a lot of money?  You're in luck.  Artist Clyde Jones carves animals from wood with a chainsaw, and instead of selling his work, he gives it away.  If you know someone who could use a smile, bring them by Clyde's to see hundreds of chainsaw critters.
Bynum, North Carolina

Nearest la Quinta: 15 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

California - World's Largest Pez Dispenser - from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Got a Big Sweet Tooth?
The Burlingame Museum of PEZ Memorabilia is the only collection that displays every PEZ dispenser ever made - including the world's largest.  At seven feet, ten inches tall, it is over twenty times the size of a normal PEZ dispenser.  Although it's capable of dispensing 6,480 PEZ candies at once (in a single plastic capsule), it's normally stocked with standard-size PEZ dispensers.
214 California Drive - Burlingame, California

Nearest la Quinta: 6 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Oregon - Witches in the Woods - from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

Witches in the Woods
Enchanted Forest
Oregon's Enchanted Forest is a fairyland for kids, with larger-than-life attractions like the walk-in gingerbread house, the Little Old Lady's Shoe, and the biggest log ride in the Northwest.  Admission is less than $10, and customers can bring their own food - so it's a dream come true for parents, too.
Salem Oregon

Nearest la Quinta: 3 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Missouri - Winstead's Steakburgers - from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

They Don't Call Their Milkshakes "Skyscrapers" for Nothing
Winstead's Steakburgers
If you order a skyscraper shake or burger at Winstead's, be sure to bring a friends - or six.  These big burgers and legendary choclaty shakes led humorist and gourmand Calvin Trillin to declare its burger "The Best hamburger in the World," in Life Magazine.  Although he later chalked the comment up to hometown bragging rights, he's not the only one who thought they were tasty - Food Network Magazine named Winstead's home of the Best Burger in Missouri.
Kansas City, Missouri

Nearest la Quinta: 3 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010

Massachusetts - Spike's Junkyard Dogs - from La Quinta

Greetings From Route LQ (Hotel chain La Quinta)

The Biggest and Baddest Dogs Around
Spike's Junkyard Dogs
Made with 100% beef, Spike's Junkyard Dogs are twice the size of ordinary hot dogs, and hold twice the toppings - so before you sign up for their famous contest to consume six in 90 minutes, consider yourself warned.  You'll get a free shirt if you win - but your tummy may not be happy.
Boston Sumerville, Massachusetts

Nearest la Quinta: 2 miles

With over 780 Locations, La Quinta Inns & Suites is everywhere you travel.
2010