Free-Range Art Highway
One "Far Out" Trip from Las Vegas to Reno
Route Distance
440 to 515 miles
Suggested Time
1 to 3 days
Fear and Loathing hallucinations have nothing on the real-world wackiness along US-95, where psychedelic free-range art meets the American West. We’re talking kaleidoscopic boulder towers, a color-changing “forest” of junk cars, “post-Playa” Burning Man sculptures, and plenty of other amazingly odd art installations. The 500 or so miles from Las Vegas to Reno also carry you to several funky-flavored towns, home to intriguing murals, top-notch art galleries, and plenty of iconic places to stay—including one with the world’s largest private collection of… clowns. Hands-down, few routes put the trip in “road trip” like Nevada’s Free-Range Art Highway.
Highlights
- Shop and art-hop around the Las Vegas Arts District, AKA “18b”
- Get ghosted at Goldwell Open Air Museum and Rhyolite ghost town
- Add some art to a vertical vehicle at the International Car Forest
“Far Out” on the Free-Range Art Highway
A Psychedelic, Open-Air Odyssey Across the Silver State
If awesome art, wide-open roads, and #WeirdNevada wonderment get your gears turning, then—for the love of odd!—this colorful road trip is the blank canvas for your next unusual adventure. Truckers may blast up the 500-mile stretch from Las Vegas to Reno, but with sights ranging from mural-draped districts and oddball open-air galleries to funky shops and historic “haunts” (like, literally), you’ll want to slow your roll and follow your curiosity on—and off—Nevada’s eccentric slice of US-95. On a route bookended by vibrant urban art oases, you’ll bounce from one camera-hogging art installation to the next, while quirked-out small towns entice you with great grub, unique retreats, and new stories.
Glovebox Essentials
Prepare for Your Adventure
Get ready to come chase some horizons with this handy tool kit. Here, you’ll find all the Free-Range Art Highway road trip essentials, including downloadable directions, maps, and podcasts, and tunes to complement your upcoming adventure.
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Featured Story
Leg 1
Las Vegas to Beatty
180 miles
- Ogle vintage neon at the Neon Museum, Ferguson’s Downtown & Fremont East
- Snap surreal selfies that really rock at Seven Magic Mountains
- Scope larger-than-life sculptures at gloriously odd Goldwell Open Air Museum
Kick off your art-tastic adventure in Downtown Las Vegas’ Fremont East District, where several hip, walkable blocks buzz with restored vintage neon signs, Googie fonts, and out-of-this-world art. Then hit the Las Vegas Arts District, AKA 18b, to scope out Graffiti Art Gallery Alley, funky Antique Alley, art galleries, chic cafés, and more. Make the requisite photo-op stop at Seven Magic Mountains before blasting to Beatty, where Goldwell Open Air Museum’s wild sculptures mystify and the town’s warm hospitality satisfies.
Give yourself some space at the funky, retro, alien-friendly Atomic Inn; hit up the pool at the Death Valley Inn & RV Park; or keep things classically cozy at the Exchange Club and Motel 6.
Death Valley Inn and RV Park
Beatty
Stagecoach Hotel & Casino
Beatty
Exchange Club Motel
Beatty
Atomic Inn
Beatty
Motel 6 – Beatty & Death Valley
Beatty
Shady Lady Bed & Breakfast
Beatty
If it’s art you’re after, Downtown Las Vegas is where it’s at, especially along the several walkable blocks of the Fremont East and the 18-block Las Vegas Arts District. Then it’s off to Beatty to get weird in the desert.
Vegas Theatre Co.
Las Vegas
Rhyolite Ghost Town
Beatty
The Smith Center for the Performing Arts
Las Vegas
Las Vegas Arts District
Las Vegas
The Mob Museum
Las Vegas
AREA15
Las Vegas
Ice Age Fossils State Park
North Las Vegas
Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument
North Las Vegas
Fremont East District
Las Vegas
The Neon Museum
Las Vegas
It’s hard not to find a great café in Las Vegas’ Fremont East District and 18b. But when you get to Beatty, you can’t beat Happy Burro Chili & Beer, a rustic old saloon serving up, well, homemade chili and ice-cold beer.
Death Valley Nut & Candy Co.
Beatty
Happy Burro Chili & Beer
Beatty
Gema’s Café
Beatty
Area 51 Alien Travel Center & Brothel
Amargosa Valley
Smokin’ J’s Barbecue
Beatty
For 3 days, Beatty fills up for town-wide revelry powered by chili and unusual competitions. Our faves? Bed Races, Root Beer Belching, and the Pickle Liquor Hoot-N-Holler (drink pickle juice and hot sauce… then yell).
Leg 2
Beatty to Tonopah via Goldfield
95 miles
- Explore old cars turned canvases at the International Car Forest
- Admire the “detail” job on Rocket Bob’s artifact-adorned “art cars”
- Pose with thousands of clown figurines in the haunted Clown Motel lobby
Cruise on to Goldfield, home of the International Car Forest, a junkyard of painted (and planted) vehicles, AKA sculpture-ized canvases for visiting artists. In town, relish Rocket Bob’s automotive mosaics, as well as haunted historic buildings and sagebrush saloons. Follow your nose to Tonopah Brewing Co. for house-smoked everything and sleep it off at the period-chic Mizpah Hotel or the exactly-what-it-sounds-like Clown Motel. Come nightfall, fight that food coma, step outside, and gaze upward; the skies here are literally stellar.
Bed down at the freshly-restored Belvada Hotel—built in 1906, reopened in 2020. Lux it up at The Mizpah Hotel (still swanky after all 110+ years). Or embrace your inner oddball at the clown-themed motel next to the graveyard.
Jim Butler Inn & Suites
Tonopah
Hard Luck Castle & Mine
Goldfield
Tonopah Station Hotel and RV Park
Tonopah
The Clown Motel
Tonopah
Best Western Hi-Desert Inn – Tonopah
Tonopah
Belvada Hotel
Tonopah
Diamondfield Gulch
Goldfield
Goldfield Stop Inn
Goldfield
The Mizpah Hotel
Tonopah
Santa Fe Motel & Saloon
Goldfield
Ogle art on automobile mediums at the International Car Forest and Rocket Bob’s Art Cars, hunt for haunted history around Goldfield’s boomtown-era buildings, then trace constellations at the Tonopah Stargazing Park.
Goldfield Hotel
Goldfield
Diamondfield Gulch
Goldfield
Enigmata Esoterica
Goldfield
Goldfield Historic Cemetery
Goldfield
Tonopah Stargazing Park
Tonopah
Central Nevada Museum
Tonopah
Gemfield
Nearest Goldfield
Rocket Bob’s Art Cars
Goldfield
Goldfield Visitor’s Center
Goldfield
Goldfield Historic High School
Goldfield
Match wits with the “meanest bartender in Nevada” at the Santa Fe Saloon, raise a glass to the Earp bros at the Mozart Tavern, or pair a Stinkeye Porter with house-smoked brisket at Tonopah Brewing Company.
Mozart Tavern
Goldfield
Tonopah Brewing Company
Tonopah
Hometown Pizza
Tonopah
El Marques Mexican Restaurant
Tonopah
The Dinky Diner
Goldfield
Santa Fe Motel & Saloon
Goldfield
Get behind boomtown history with gunfights and lying contests at Goldfield Days, or arm wrestling and mining competitions at Jim Butler Days. Or buddy up with an astro pro for some serious celestial celebrations.
Leg 3
Tonopah to Reno
240 miles
- Go mural spotting with 120+ public art pieces in Midtown and Downtown Reno
- Examine all kinds of old explosives at the free Hawthorne Ordnance Museum
- Peruse spectacular rotating art exhibits at Oats Park Art Center in Fallon
Gear up for galleries, offbeat attractions, and epic eats on the home-stretch to hip and happenin’ Reno. Look out for vintage neon and bighorn sheep en route to the free Hawthorne Ordnance Museum to examine explosive artifacts. Beyond picturesque Walker Lake lies Fallon, home to the artistic oasis of Oats Park Art Center. Then roll to Reno, the funkiest town in the West, where public art, fancy food, swanky bars, bohemian shops, and “burner” vibes abound.
For vintage-meets-modern vibes, check into Kramer’s Midtown boutique motel, or one of six beautifully restored rooms at 1907-built The Jesse Hotel & Bar. For 24-hour action, Reno’s casino-resorts deliver in spades.
Whitney Peak Hotel
Reno
Whiskey Flats RV Park
Hawthorne
Atlantis Casino Resort & Spa
Reno
The Jesse Hotel & Bar
Reno
Grand Sierra Resort and Casino
Reno
Motel 6 – Hawthorne
Hawthorne
Kramer’s Midtown
Reno
THE ROW Reno
Reno
Hawthorne’s Best Inn
Hawthorne
Peppermill Reno Resort Spa Casino
Reno
Go gaga over more great galleries at Yerington Theater for the ARTS, Fallon’s Oats Park Art Center, and in Reno at the Nevada Historical Society and the nationally accredited Nevada Museum of Art.
Brüka Theatre
Reno
Walker Lake Recreation Area
Hawthorne
Hawthorne Ordnance Museum
Hawthorne
Candelaria Ghost Town
Hawthorne
Nevada Historical Society
Reno
Oats Park Art Center
Fallon
Bighorn Crossing at Walker Lake
Walker Lake
Nevada Museum of Art
Reno
Midtown Reno
Reno
Reno Neon Line District
Reno
At the end of a badass road trip, it’s hard to beat Nevada for celebratory burgers, brews, and Basque family feasts. Luckily, Reno delivers hefty portions of all of those, plus some great made-here wine, spirits, and more.
Noble Pie Parlor
Reno
Great Basin Brewing Co. – Reno & Sparks
Sparks
The Depot Craft Brewery Distillery
Reno
Butchers Kitchen Char-B-Que
Reno
Chapel Tavern
Reno
Beefy’s
Reno
Reno Brewery District
Reno
Louis’ Basque Corner
Reno
The Eddy Reno
Reno
Reno loves art and wants you to know it. Especially in July, when Artown holds about 500 music, theater, dance, and visual art events. And in October when Off Beat Music Festival takes over Midtown with 100+ live bands.
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#FreeRangeArtHighway
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