6 of the Best Road Trips in Nevada for an Unforgettable Adventure

When most people think of Nevada, Las Vegas is usually the first place that springs to mind. But road trips in Nevada reveal a completely different side of the Silver State, where lonely desert highways, ghost towns, alpine lakes and quirky roadside attractions are all part of the adventure.

We’ve driven thousands of kilometres through Nevada as a family, following lonely desert highways, searching for aliens along the Extraterrestrial Highway, hunting for gemstones, discovering weird roadside art and falling completely in love with Lake Tahoe.

If you’re planning a Nevada road trip, these are six of our favourite routes and adventures to consider.

Nevada is one of the easiest states in the USA to explore by motorhome. Many of these road trips pass through national parks, state parks and small towns where having your accommodation with you makes it easy to travel at your own pace.

Why Nevada is made for road trips

Nevada is one of those places where the journey really can be as memorable as the destination.

Once you leave Las Vegas and Reno behind, the landscape opens up dramatically. Highways stretch towards the horizon, mountains rise unexpectedly from the desert and tiny communities appear seemingly out of nowhere.

It’s also wonderfully weird.

You can drive an alien-themed highway, explore historic mining towns, hunt for gemstones, discover enormous pieces of art in the desert and soak in natural hot springs – sometimes all within the same road trip.

For Australian families accustomed to covering big distances, driving in Nevada also feels surprisingly familiar. Just don’t underestimate those distances. Fuel stations, food and services can be few and far between once you head into more remote parts of the state.

Here are six road trips in Nevada worth building into your next USA adventure.

---

#1. Drive Highway 50 (aka The Loneliest Road in America)

Best for: A classic Nevada road trip
Allow: Around 4-6 days

If you only have time for one classic Nevada road trip, make it Highway 50.

Nicknamed the Loneliest Road in America, Highway 50 crosses Nevada through a landscape of enormous valleys, mountain ranges and tiny towns. It’s remote, beautiful and a completely different experience from the Nevada most international visitors encounter in Las Vegas.

But don’t let the nickname fool you into thinking there’s nothing to see.

Along the way you’ll encounter historic communities, old mining towns, natural landscapes and plenty of places that encourage you to pull over and explore.

This is the Nevada road trip I’d recommend for anyone wanting to experience the state’s enormous open spaces and get a feel for just how remote parts of the American West still are.

#2. Follow the Free-Range Art Highway from Las Vegas to Reno

Best for: Art, quirky towns and desert landscapes
Allow: Around 4-6 days

If traditional art galleries aren’t really your thing, Nevada has another option.

The Free-Range Art Highway connects Las Vegas and Reno via a wonderfully unusual collection of murals, sculptures, outdoor installations and unexpected works of art.

And we’re not talking about neatly arranged artworks hanging on gallery walls.

This is Nevada, so expect things to get a little weird.

You’ll find enormous outdoor installations, colourful murals, unusual sculptures and art appearing in places where you’d least expect to find it.

The route also gives you a great excuse to explore some of Nevada’s smaller communities rather than simply flying between Las Vegas and Reno.

For families, it’s a particularly fun way to break up the drive because there’s almost always something strange or colourful waiting at the next stop.

#3. Search for Aliens on the Extraterrestrial Highway

Best for: Aliens and unusual roadside stops
Allow: 1-2 days

There aren’t many road trips where stopping for alien-themed souvenirs feels like an essential part of the experience.

Welcome to Nevada’s Extraterrestrial Highway.

Officially Nevada State Route 375, this remote desert highway passes close to the famously secretive Area 51 military facility and has wholeheartedly embraced its connection with UFO folklore.

The tiny town of Rachel sits at the heart of the route and is home to the Little A’Le’Inn, where you’ll find alien memorabilia, food and plenty of stories surrounding the mysterious goings-on in the Nevada desert.

You won’t be driving into Area 51 itself (and you definitely shouldn’t try) but that’s really beside the point.

The fun comes from the bizarre roadside stops, alien signs and sheer novelty of driving through a landscape that looks suitably otherworldly.

It’s one of the easiest Nevada road trips to combine with a stay in Las Vegas and one that our kids certainly weren’t going to forget in a hurry.

#4. Go rockhounding (fossicking) through Nevada

Best for: Families, geology lovers and hands-on adventure
Allow: Several days or incorporate stops into a longer road trip

This one isn’t a single highway so much as a reason to build an entire Nevada road trip.

Nevada is one of the best places we’ve visited for rockhounding (or fossicking as we call it here in Australia), where you can search for rocks, minerals, gemstones and fossils.

And yes, it can become surprisingly addictive.

There are rockhounding locations scattered throughout the state, which means you can incorporate stops into a larger Nevada itinerary or plan your road trip around places where you’re allowed to search.

It’s particularly good with kids because it turns a long drive into a treasure hunt. Instead of simply looking at the landscape through the window, everyone gets to jump out and start searching.

Depending on where you go, you may find everything from colourful minerals to unusual rocks and other geological treasures.

Just make sure you know the rules before collecting anything. Land ownership and collecting regulations vary between locations, and collecting is prohibited in some protected areas.

#5. Take a road trip around Lake Tahoe

Best for: Spectacular scenery and outdoor adventures
Allow: 2-4 days

If your mental picture of Nevada is nothing but desert, Lake Tahoe is going to come as a surprise.

Straddling the Nevada–California border high in the Sierra Nevada, Lake Tahoe delivers brilliant blue water, pine-covered mountains, beaches and spectacular viewpoints.

It’s a completely different side of Nevada.

Driving around the lake allows you to stop at beaches, lookouts and small communities along the way, although it’s worth giving yourself plenty of time rather than treating it as a drive you need to complete quickly.

Depending on the season, you can combine the road trip with hiking, swimming, kayaking and other outdoor adventures. Even snow activities in the winter!

Lake Tahoe is particularly good if you’re travelling with children and want to balance Nevada’s desert landscapes with somewhere greener and cooler.

And after spending time exploring Nevada’s dusty highways, seeing that enormous expanse of blue water for the first time is pretty special.

#6. Discover quirky Nevada

Best for: Offbeat attractions and embracing Nevada’s quirkiness
Allow: 5-7+ days

If there’s one thing Nevada does exceptionally well, it’s embracing the weird.

Sure, you’ll find spectacular scenery and wide-open highways, but you’ll also stumble across ghost towns, giant sculptures, clown-themed motels, alien encounters, abandoned mining communities and roadside attractions that leave you wondering in the best possible way, “Who thought this was a good idea?”

One day you could be standing beneath enormous desert art installations. The next, you’re exploring a town where the local motel is famous for its clown collection, before continuing on to search for alien life or wandering the streets of a near-abandoned mining settlement.

The beauty of a quirky Nevada road trip is that there’s no single route to follow. Instead, it’s about joining together the state’s most unusual attractions into one unforgettable adventure.

Along the way you’ll discover places that simply couldn’t exist anywhere else, making this one of the most entertaining road trips in the American West.

If your family enjoys the unexpected, don’t be afraid to leave the interstate behind. Some of Nevada’s strangest and most memorable experiences are found down quiet back roads and in tiny towns where curiosity is always rewarded.

---

Which Nevada road trip should you choose?

The best Nevada road trip really depends on what you want from your holiday.

• For a classic Nevada experience, I’d choose Highway 50 and the Loneliest Road in America.
• If your family loves weird and wonderful attractions, take the Extraterrestrial Highway.
• For art and quirky roadside stops, follow the Free-Range Art Highway.
• If you’re travelling with kids who enjoy getting their hands dirty, add some rockhounding to your itinerary.
• And for mountains, water and spectacular scenery, it’s hard to beat Lake Tahoe.

If you have a week or more, however, I’d be tempted to combine several of them into one larger Nevada road trip.

Tips for road tripping in Nevada

In general, Nevada’s roads are in good condition and suitable for car and RV travel.

However, make sure to:

• Fill your fuel tank whenever you have the opportunity on remote routes.
• Carry plenty of drinking water.
• Download offline maps before leaving major towns.
• Don’t assume you’ll have mobile reception everywhere.
• Check road and weather conditions before travelling.
• Keep snacks in the car, particularly when travelling with kids.
• Allow more time than Google Maps suggests if you want to stop and explore.
• Check opening hours for attractions in small towns before making a special detour.

Summer temperatures can be extreme in desert areas, while higher elevations can experience snow and icy conditions in winter. Conditions around Lake Tahoe can be completely different from those around Las Vegas on the same day, so pack and plan accordingly.

How long do you need for a Nevada road trip?

You can experience some Nevada road trips in a day or two, but I’d recommend allowing at least five to seven days if you’re travelling a longer route through the state.

With a week, you can slow down enough to explore smaller towns and attractions instead of spending every day behind the wheel.

If you’re travelling all the way from Las Vegas to Reno and want to incorporate several side trips, seven to ten days gives you much more flexibility.

Nevada is better beyond Las Vegas

Las Vegas might be the reason many travellers first arrive in Nevada, but you need to leave the Strip behind to really appreciate how fascinating this state is.

Our Nevada road trips have taken us from alien-themed desert highways and tiny mining communities to brilliant blue alpine lakes and places where we’ve literally spent hours staring at the ground searching for rocks.

It’s the kind of destination where seemingly empty stretches of highway often lead to the most memorable experiences.

So hire an RV or a car, give yourself more time than you think you’ll need and start exploring. Because some of the best parts of Nevada are found somewhere between where you started and where you thought you were going.

---

FAQs about road trips in Nevada

---

^{This article contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.}

---

Where to next:

---

📌 Save this article to Pinterest so you’ll have it handy when planning your own trip.