Area 51 and the Extraterrestrial Highway: the honest day trip
By the ThingsVegas Editorial Team | Published November 6, 2026 | Last reviewed: November 6, 2026
You cannot visit Area 51. The trip is the 98 mile Extraterrestrial Highway, the town of Rachel, the perimeter signs and the darkest skies in Nevada, and it works only if you fill the tank in Alamo or Ash Springs: there is no fuel in Rachel.
Prices last checked: November 6, 2026. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026. Sources are named on this page; check the official page before you pay, because prices and hours change.
What can you actually see, and what can you not?
Area 51 is an active restricted military installation at Groom Lake, about 85 miles north northwest of Las Vegas as the crow flies. Crossing the boundary is a federal crime, and the perimeter is signed and patrolled. No tour enters the base, and no civilian has walked onto the Groom Lake test site since it was annexed in 1955, per current operator reporting. Tikaboo Peak, 26 miles from the base, is the only legal distant viewpoint. Everything else on this trip is outside the fence: the highway, the town, the signs, the mailbox and the night sky. If a tour or a video promises you the base itself, it is selling something that does not exist.
| Leg | Distance and time | What happens there |
|---|---|---|
| Las Vegas to Crystal Springs | About 100 miles on I-15 north and US-93 | Last reliable fuel in Alamo and Ash Springs; ET Highway sign and Alien Research Center at Crystal Springs |
| Crystal Springs to Rachel | About 40 miles on NV-375 | Black Mailbox at the NV-375 and SR-318 junction area; the Little A'Le'Inn in Rachel |
| Rachel to the perimeter gate area | About 12 miles south on Groom Lake Road | Signed perimeter, photographed from the public road, then back the way you came |
| Rachel to Warm Springs | NV-375 continues 98 miles total to US-6 | The full highway, for the overnight version via Tonopah |
NV-375 was designated the Extraterrestrial Highway by the state in 1996 and runs 98 miles from Crystal Springs to Warm Springs. Rachel is the only settlement on it, population about 50, about 150 miles and 2.5 to 3 hours from the Strip. Its one business is the Little A'Le'Inn: bar, cafe, motel and gift shop, serving this road since the late 1980s. The Black Mailbox at the NV-375 and SR-318 junction area and the ET Highway sign at Crystal Springs, with the Alien Research Center next to it, are the named photo stops.
Fuel range checker
There is no fuel in Rachel and none on the ET Highway. Enter your car's range on a full tank and see whether the round trip fits.
Tour or self drive?
A guided tour from Las Vegas runs about 10 hours, several days a week, in a small van, from about $215 per person including hotel pickup and lunch at the Little A'Le'Inn, per 2026 operator listings. The tour buys a driver who knows the empty 300 miles, and it removes the fuel math from your day. The self drive buys the night sky: stay over in Rachel, then drive back via Tonopah and US-95, and you get the darkest skies in the state with nobody else on the road. Either way, download your maps before you leave the Strip: cell service is minimal to nonexistent for long stretches, and the same emptiness that makes the road famous is what strands a car that runs dry. Compare current guided departures on Viator's Las Vegas day trips page before you book, and verify the tour's current price and days on the operator's own page: no tour enters the base, and any listing that implies otherwise is a listing to skip. The other long desert drive in the same cluster is Route 66 in Arizona, and the full loop of parks that starts and ends in Las Vegas is on our Grand Circle page.
What are the safety rules that actually matter?
Fuel first, always: fill in Alamo or Ash Springs, about 100 miles from the Strip, and treat the tank as your range, not a suggestion. Heat second: summer temperatures in the open desert regularly exceed 105F, so carry water for every person, and do not hike away from the road in the afternoon. Maps third: download them offline, because the phone will not save you out here. Perimeter fourth: photograph the signs from the public road, do not cross them, do not pass them, and do not fly a drone near the base. The strangeness of this road is documented, not invented: the base is real, the fence is real, and the trip is the road to it, not the road into it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you visit Area 51?
No. You cannot visit, enter or get close to Area 51. It is an active restricted military installation at Groom Lake, about 85 miles north northwest of Las Vegas as the crow flies. Crossing the boundary is a federal crime, and the perimeter is signed and patrolled. What the trip actually is: the highway, the town, the perimeter signs and the darkest skies in the state.
How long is the Extraterrestrial Highway?
NV-375, the Extraterrestrial Highway, was designated by the state in 1996 and runs 98 miles from Crystal Springs to Warm Springs. Rachel, population about 50, is the only settlement on it, about 150 miles and 2.5 to 3 hours from the Strip via I-15 north, US-93 and NV-375.
Is there fuel on the Extraterrestrial Highway?
No. There is no fuel in Rachel and none on the ET Highway. The last reliable stations are in Alamo and Ash Springs on US-93, about 100 miles from the Strip. Fill the tank there, and do not count on a station appearing later: this is the rule that strands people.
How much does a guided Area 51 tour cost?
Guided tours from Las Vegas run about 10 hours, several days a week, in small vans, from about $215 per person including hotel pickup and lunch at the Little A'Le'Inn, per 2026 operator listings. No tour enters the base: tours stop at the perimeter gate area and the landmarks. Check the current price and days on the operator's own page before you book.
Can I take photos near the Area 51 perimeter?
At the public perimeter signs, yes, from the public road. Do not cross the boundary, do not pass the signs, and do not fly a drone near the base. The signs are the attraction: photograph them, then leave the way you came.