11 Towns Made For A Quiet Getaway In Nevada
If you're looking for a getaway, head out to the wide desert roads of Nevada. You could drive the Loneliest Road in America and learn about Nevada's silver-mining past in Austin. You could also go off-grid in the most isolated town in the state. There are haunted houses here too, plus a terrifying clown-themed motel that sits next door to a cemetery. Nevada also brims with natural wonders and wild desert landscapes. One town even runs a stargazing train deep into the desert to watch the Milky Way through telescopes.
Some are communities thriving in the middle of the desert and others are old mining towns using their history to fuel their future. Either way, these eleven towns will help you feel far from the city.
Austin
Austin is a more than 150-year-old living ghost town along Highway 50, otherwise known as the Loneliest Road in America. At its height in the 1860s, Austin was a silver mining city with a population of over 10,000. Today, Austin is a quiet, tiny town with a population of under 200 people.
You can learn about Austin's history at the Austin Historical Society Museum, which is free to visit and is open seasonally. Austin's Main Street also includes a visitors' center, an art gallery, a coffee shop, and motels. In the 1800s, silver tycoon Anson Phelps Stokes commissioned the construction of Stokes Castle as a summer house, modeled after an ornate Italian villa. Stokes only lived there for a few months, but the castle still stands and makes a good photo opportunity.
For a day trip out of Austin, drive 30 minutes (25 miles) to Hickison Petroglyphs to camp, picnic, and see the ancient rock carvings left by the Western Shoshone people. Austin is also a half-hour drive from Spencer Hot Springs, which has four baths filled with naturally hot spring water. Hiking, biking, and ATV exploration are all available at the nearby Toiyabe Mountain Range, which spans more than 117 miles.
Gardnerville
Gardnerville is a rural 19th-century agricultural and mining town with a history dating back to 1879. European immigration heavily influenced Gardnerville, and today it offers Basque culinary experiences. In the summer, the town's streets are lined with flower baskets. In winter, you can learn about birds of prey at the Eagles and Agriculture multi-day educational event. Carson Valley Museum & Cultural Center features exhibitions and displays highlighting the history of the indigenous people, the Basque Country, natural history, a pioneer exhibition, and the history of the area's first newspaper.
Other activities include exploring the Carson Valley Arts and Antiques Trail, which features galleries, antique stores, and shops in Minden, Genoa, and Gardnerville. If you visit Gardnerville in June, head to the Carson Valley Days celebration to watch the parade, go on some rides, and eat corn dogs as you listen to live music and check out local vendors. Gardnerville is also about half an hour's drive from the ancient, deep-blue waters of Lake Tahoe.
Gerlach
Gerlach is a remote, tiny town deep in the Northwestern Black Rock Desert, Nevada, best known for its proximity to the Burning Man festival. The landscape is vast, desolate, and quiet, with small shrubs and brown grass scattered around the open land. Less than 100 people live in this town, and all it contains is a school, a gas station, and the Miners Club, which serves coffee in the morning and acts as a bar and social hub in the evening.
Outside of Burning Man, people visit Gerlach to explore the Black Rock Desert, relax in the area's natural hot springs, and visit petroglyph sites. ATV riders and mountain bikers can also travel further afield to explore abandoned ghost towns, stare at black lava sites, and take a guided nature walk to see the man-made Fly Geyser.
If you're hardy enough, camping on the surrounding public land, particularly during the Burning Man festival, is a popular way to stay in this area. If you prefer the comfort of four walls, Bruno's Country Club Motel is a friendly place to rest up.
Eureka
Eureka is a well-preserved 1860s mining town on Highway 50. Despite having a population of under 300, Eureka bills itself as the 'friendliest town on the loneliest road'. You can explore Eureka by picking up a map and taking a walking tour to see 62 historic sights, including the Eureka Opera House (1880), the Eureka Sentinel Museum, and the Eureka County Courthouse. For unique gifts, pay a visit to the quirky Afterlife Antiques & Oddities store.
Dating from the 1880s, the Colonnade Hotel offers two room options: the modern loft and the rustic loft. There are also RV hook-up options available. If you don't mind staying in a hotel featured on Ghost Adventures, Jackson House Hotel (1877) has Victorian-style bedrooms available to stay in.
Jarbidge
You can't get much quieter than the most isolated town in Nevada. Jarbidge sits in a canyon in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and is popular with off-gridders, campers, and those who want to get lost in the wilderness. The population varies between a dozen and about a hundred, depending on the season, and if you visit in August, you'll catch the Jarbidge Days pioneer history celebration, which includes games, a parade, and lots of drinking.
Things to do in town include visiting the Jarbidge Jail, attending a wine walk or community event at the Jarbidge Community Hall, and buying essentials at the Jarbidge Trading Post. Jarbidge provides access to the Jarbidge Wilderness Area, which has more than 150 miles of hiking trails past lakes, wildflowers, canyons, and mountains.
Rachel
Rachel is the closest town to Area 51 and the UFO capital of the world. This tiny, remote town features in The X Files and Independence Day and sits in the middle of Route 375 (otherwise known as the Extraterrestrial Highway). Visitors can stock up on UFO paraphernalia at Alien Cowpoke Gasoline & General Store.
Little A'Le'Inn serves as the town's closest hotel, quirky bar, and source of UFO memorabilia and information, with photographs and witness accounts depicting close encounters of the third kind. Little A'Le'Inn offers rooms, RV parking, and camping. This part of the US is famous for stargazing, and on some nights, you can see the Milky Way.
Tonopah
Home to the 'scariest motel in the world', Tonopah is a historic mining town known for stargazing and paranormal activity. If you want to stay in a haunted hotel, this is the place. The Mizpah Hotel (1907) has a fancy restaurant and a range of rooms and suites. It is also allegedly home to a bunch of ghosts, including a Lady in Red called Rose, bank robbers, and a senator. Tonopah's infamous Clown Motel features horror-movie-themed rooms and displays an ever-growing collection of over 6,500 big and small clown ornaments, pictures, and toys from around the world.
If that wasn't creepy enough, the motel is also neighbors with Tonopah Cemetery, and it is said that the ghosts of miners and other deceased residents come over to possess the clowns. Unsurprisingly, the Clown Motel has been the subject of paranormal investigatory shows, books, and movies. Other activities in and around Tonopah include paying a visit to the Tonopah Historic Mining Park, gazing at over 7,000 stars in the Clair Blackburn Memorial Stargazing Park, and taking a drive to see the Lunar Crater Volcanic Field.
Incline Village
Standing about 2,000 meters above sea level on the north side of Lake Tahoe, Incline Village is an affluent community and popular base for skiing and snowboarding on nearby Mount Rose and Diamond Peak. Incline Village also offers tennis courts, golf courses, private beaches, hiking trails, skate parks, and quick access to Lake Tahoe.
The Flume Trail is a 14-mile route for mountain biking, hiking, and horseback riding linking Spooner Lake and Incline Village, and Monkey Rock is a shorter hiking option at 2.6 miles. Other activities include paying a visit to Thunderbird Lodge, an eccentric mansion built by a reclusive millionaire in 1936, taking a trip to see Lake Tahoe's Bonsai Rock, and having a picnic, boating, kayaking, fishing, swimming, or scuba diving in Sand Harbor State Park.
Caliente
Known for its outdoor adventures and proximity to multiple state parks, canyons, meadows, and cottonwood trees, Caliente is a quiet town offering easy access to trails, campgrounds, wildflowers, trees, and spring water within the canyon-encased Kershaw-Ryan State Park. This area is popular with off-road drivers and bikers looking to explore the diverse landscape.
You can also hunt for fossils in the Oak Springs Trilobite Area, explore the arid remains of Delamar Ghost Town, and take a drive past the colors of Rainbow Canyon. Cathedral Gorge State Park has unique, naturally occurring church-like structures and is less than a 20-minute drive from Caliente. In town, you can pay a visit to the historic Caliente Railroad Depot.
Fallon
Known as the 'Oasis of Nevada' due to the town's wetlands and water sources in the midst of the desert, Fallon sits on the Loneliest Road in America and offers a base from which to go bird watching at Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge. You can also go canoeing, camping, and relaxing by the shores of Lake Lahontan, or peruse ancient rock art at Grimes Point.
Off-roading or hiking through the sand dunes in Sand Mountain Recreation Area, and looking at multiple generations of shoes hanging from the Shoe Tree of Middlegate are both must-do activities when in the area, no matter who you're traveling with. If you visit Fallon in August, you will catch the Fallon Cantaloupe Festival, which aims to spread awareness about agriculture in Nevada through games, vendors, stage shows, and competitions.
Ely
A former mining town found along the Loneliest Road in America, Ely is less than an hour's drive to Great Basin National Park. Here, you can explore the isolated wilderness by hiking along one of the park's trails. Great Basin is one of the least-visited national parks due to its remote location, making it a good place for a quiet escape. It is also a hotspot for stargazing, which you can take advantage of by catching the Great Basin Star train. The train takes you to Star Flat in the remote desert, where telescopes and professional stargazers are waiting to facilitate a night of guided stargazing.
Other things to do in Ely include riding the steam train or going on one of the many other train excursions (including a haunted ghost train in October and an annual fireworks train in July) at the Nevada Northern Railway Museum, learning about local history at Ely Renaissance Village, looking at the town's street art, and slurping an ice cream soda at the town's retro Economy Drug and Soda Fountain. Hotel Nevada (1929) is a historic, retro-looking hotel with a gambling hall, fitness center, and bar.
Rest And Relaxation In Beautiful Nevada
Whether you want to spend your quiet getaway exploring old ghost towns, learning about alien abductions, stargazing in the desert, skiing, hiking, mountain biking, ghost-hunting, or trying not to get creeped out by more than 5,000 clowns, Nevada has the place for you. The best times to visit Nevada are typically spring and autumn, as summers can be extremely hot, and winters at high-elevation destinations can be extra cold. However, the best time for your visit depends on the activities you would like to do.
