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.

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.

COMMUNITIES ON THIS TRIP

Las Vegas, Beatty, Goldfield, Tonopah, Hawthorne, Yerington, Fallon, Reno

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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Google Maps

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Let’s Get “Far Out”

The Free-Range Art Highway: It’s a Trip

The stretch of open road from Las Vegas to Reno is about as far out as it gets—in more ways than one. From kaleidoscopic boulder towers and a psychedelic “forest” of junk cars to a ghost town sculpture garden and a haunted, clown-themed motel, the Free-Range Art Highway abounds with oddball attractions. Ready to put the “trip” road trip? Read on.

Leg 1

From Neon Alleys to Ghost Town Galleries

Start off exploring the vibrant Las Vegas Arts District. Then swing by Seven Magic Mountains en route to Beatty where Goldwell Open Air Museum’s avant-garde sculptures await.

Leg 2

Art Cars, Old Haunts, and Way Too Many Clowns

Ogle offbeat auto art at Goldfield’s International Car Forest. In Tonopah, grab BBQ and beers before chasing ghosts at two old haunts: The Mizpah Hotel and the Clown Motel.

Leg 3

Bound for Reno’s Biggest Little Arts Scene

Spot bighorn sheep around Walker Lake, scope out a totally “bomb” museum, and peruse literally “old school” art galleries en route to hip, public art-obsessed Reno.

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.

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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.

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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).

Beatty Days Festival

Life is Beautiful Festival

RiSE Lantern Festival

Electric Daisy Carnival

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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.

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.

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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.

Astrophotography Weekend in Tonopah

Tonopah Ghost Walk – Cancelled

Jim Butler Days & Nevada State Mining Championships

Tonopah Star Parties

Goldfield Days Celebration & Land Auction

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Leg 3

Tonopah to Reno

240 miles

Tour 120+ vibrant murals in Midtown and Downtown Reno with Art Spot 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.

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.

Reno Rodeo

Reno River Festival

Great Reno Balloon Race

Reno National Championship Air Races

Reno Santa Pub Crawl

OffBeat Music Festival

Reno is Artown

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Hitting the Road? Here’s the Map.

Our 10 Nevada Road Trips

Searching for road trip ideas? Look no further. Go ahead. Scroll around and click the road trip icons for the inside scoop on Nevada’s 10 best road trips, with detailed itineraries, maps, and tips for getting off the beaten track.

Burner Byway

110 to 250 miles | 2 to 4 days

Cowboy Corridor

400 miles on I-80 Nevada | 2 to 4 days

Death Valley Rally

Up to 370 mi | 3 or 4 Days

Extraterrestrial Highway

100+ miles | Loop from Las Vegas: 470 mi | 2 Days

Great Basin Highway

350 to 585 miles | 3 to 5 Days

Lake Tahoe Loop

145 miles | 2 to 5 days

Loneliest Road in America

375 to 500 miles | 2 to 4 Days

Neon To Nature

60 to 210 miles | 1+ Day Per Route

Rubies Route

30 mi to 375 mi | 2 to 5 days

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#FreeRangeArtHighway

You’re gonna dig this funky desert art scene. Unleash your inner artist and get in on our gallery by tagging #FreeRangeArtHighway next time you’re motorin’ between metros.

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