Western Hills Motel (Closed)
Flagstaff, AZ
Photo courtesy Jeff DeFord

Heading east from downtown Flagstaff, it would be pretty hard to miss the fantastic marquee outside the Western Hills Motel. There is a lot going on with this one, from the big slanted lettering and colorful neon to the covered wagon being pulled by a team of galloping horses across the top. This is the sort of sign that could make a Route 66 roadtripper hit the brakes and circle back for another look. 06-07

The Western Hills was built along Route 66 in 1953, when Flagstaff’s east side was filling up with motor courts, cafes, and service stations. Travelers crossing Arizona could leave the desert behind and suddenly find themselves among pine trees at nearly 7,000 feet. A room in cool Flagstaff probably sounded mighty good after a long day behind the wheel.

Western Hills Motel
Flagstaff, AZ
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

The motel had a long, low Southwestern-style layout where guests could park close to their rooms. Its elaborate sign may have been installed a few years after the motel opened as a way to stand out from the growing lineup of roadside lodging signs. It has often been called the oldest surviving neon sign in Flagstaff.

The real showpiece is the animated horse-and-wagon scene. When everything was working, the neon horses appeared to gallop while pulling the covered wagon across the top of the sign. Add the sweeping red, yellow, and green tubing, and the whole thing must have put on quite a show after dark. Nothing says modern motor travel quite like a neon-covered wagon.

Another shot from the sidewalk
Flagstaff, AZ
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

The property also had an attached restaurant for many years. It operated under different names over time, including a Greek restaurant and, more recently, Agave Mexican Restaurant. A motel room, a hot meal, and a flashing neon wagon made this a pretty complete stop before continuing toward Winslow and the wide-open country to the east.

The Western Hills welcomed overnight guests for more than 70 years, surviving long after Interstate 40 pulled most through traffic away from the old highway. Its sign remained one of the real roadside highlights along Flagstaff’s surviving Route 66 motel strip.

The Western Hills Motel sign in 2000
Flagstaff, AZ
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Featuring a sign that appears to have once been animated, the Western Hills Motel and its marquee still stands in Flagstaff, AZ. The sign was originally painted blue.

UPDATE: The Western Hills ended its run as a nightly motel in March 2026. Housing Solutions of Northern Arizona purchased the property for conversion into 29 affordable workforce apartments, making it the organization’s third motel housing project in Flagstaff. The great Western Hills marquee remains standing, although it is uncertain how often its animated neon will continue to gallop after dark. 09-26

Hi-Line Motel - 2016 (Demolished)
Ash Fork, AZ
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

The bright Arizona sun really brings out the orange colors on the great neon marquee at the Hi-Line Motel in Ash Fork. That looping Hi-Line script looks like it was made to catch the eye of motorists rolling through town on Route 66. The motel was abandoned when these photos were taken, but the sign was still standing tall above Lewis Avenue. 2016

The Hi-Line began welcoming travelers around 1935 or 1936 as the Hi-Line Modern Auto Court. Alton McAbee developed the property with a U-shaped arrangement of rooms surrounding a central courtyard. Each room had its own attached garage, a handy feature when travelers wanted to protect their cars from the high-desert sun, wind, snow, and occasional Route 66 dust storm.

Hi-Line Motel - 2016
Ash Fork, AZ
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

The front office originally doubled as a Shell gas station, complete with two pumps out front. A traveler could fill the tank, rent a room, and pull the car into a private garage without leaving the property. When Route 66 was widened into divided lanes during the 1950s, there was no longer enough room for the fuel islands. The pumps disappeared, and the building continued as the motel office and manager’s residence.

Hi-Line Motel - 2000
Ash Fork, AZ
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

The orange neon sign arrived during the late 1950s, replacing an earlier wooden sign as the Hi-Line dressed itself up for the postwar Route 66 crowd. Its sweeping script and backlit metal panels must have looked especially inviting after dark. Ash Fork once had a busy collection of service stations, cafes, and motor courts, but Interstate 40 eventually carried most travelers around town instead of through it.

The Hi-Line closed in the early 2000s and sat empty for more than two decades. By 2016, the rooms were deteriorating and the windows were boarded, but the sunny orange sign still provided a great roadside photo stop. With only a handful of old motels remaining in Ash Fork, the Hi-Line was one of the last reminders of the town’s days as a busy Route 66 overnight stop.

Hi-Line Motel
Ash Fork, AZ
Photo courtesy Dave & Debra van Hulsteyn

Here are a couple photos of the Hi-Line back in the 2000's. The motel sign from back then did not look too different from its appearance today. The Hi-Line was just one of the eye catching sights to see along the old Route 66 in Ash Fork.

UPDATE: The below photos from around 1999 or 2000 shows a comparison with what the old motel looked like 10 to 15 years prior. 03-19

UPDATE: The abandoned Hi-Line Motel was demolished on December 30, 2025. Its orange neon sign was saved and removed for restoration in June 2026, although its future display location has not yet been announced. The motel site is now a vacant commercial lot. 09-26