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Voykit pocket guide · United States
Beatty
Stay one night in Beatty as a cheaper bed for a Death Valley trip, not as a destination: rooms run well under park lodges, and Rhyolite is about 10 minutes west.
Beatty is a small desert town on US 95 at the junction with Nevada 374, west of Las Vegas and on the road toward Death Valley National Park. It exists for travellers: motels, an RV park, a casino, a museum and the ghost town of Rhyolite just west. Most people sleep here to cut the cost of a Death Valley trip, then drive into the park early. Check the official park map for the exact entrance and drive times before you commit.
- Country
- United States
- Best months
- Oct–Apr
- Avoid
- Jun–Aug (extreme desert heat)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $70–110 excl. bed (check) · Mid $110–180 excl. bed (check) · High $180+ excl. bed (check) (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire and ambulance 911
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $3–5 |
| Diner breakfast | $10–16 |
| Casino café or steakhouse main | $15–35 |
| Motel double room, spring or autumn | $80–180 |
| Gallon of fuel | $4–6 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- LAS · Harry Reid International, Las Vegas
- About 2 h by car on US 95 north; the nearest airport (check)
Typical fares
- Beatty → Rhyolite, by car
- about 8 miles west on Nevada 374, 10 min (check)
- Beatty → Death Valley National Park
- check the official park map for the entrance and drive time
- Beatty → Las Vegas, by car
- about 2 h south on US 95 (check)
Get around
You need a car. There is no local transit; US 95 and Nevada 374 are the only paved routes, and distances to food, fuel and the park are measured in tens of miles. Fuel up in Beatty before heading toward Death Valley.
See and do
Known for
- Rhyolite ghost town
- Goldwell Open Air Museum
- Beatty Museum
- Base for Death Valley National Park
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Rhyolite ghost town and Goldwell Open Air Museum | Drive west on Nevada 374, about 10 minutes | About 15 min |
| Death Valley National Park | Drive west on Nevada 374 toward the park; check the official park map for the entrance and route | Check before you go |
| Tonopah | Drive north on US 95 | About 1 h 45 min (check) |
| Las Vegas | Drive south on US 95 | About 2 h (check) |
Sleep
- Main Street and Route 95 strip
- Almost all motels, the museum and the casino sit within a few blocks; you can walk between them.
- RV parks on Route 95
- Full-hookup sites for RVs; book ahead in spring and autumn.
Language
English everywhere, with strong regional accents; Spanish is the second language in the Southwest, Texas, Florida, California and New York. Some words differ from British English: restroom (toilet), check (bill), gas (petrol), trunk (boot), first floor (ground floor).
- Measurements are imperial: miles, Fahrenheit, gallons, pounds. 100 km ≈ 62 miles; 30 °C ≈ 86 °F.
- Small talk with strangers is normal and friendly; it is not a sales tactic.
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Summer daytime highs pass 40°C; carry more water than you think you need and do not hike in the afternoon.
- Cell signal drops quickly outside town and inside the park; download offline maps before you leave.
- Distances between services are long: fuel up in Beatty before you head out.
- Gambling is 21+ with photo ID; under-21s cannot gamble and can be asked to leave the gambling premises.
Beatty is a quiet, low-crime town; the real hazards are desert heat, long empty drives and wildlife on the road at night. Tell someone your route before heading into the park.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Beatty yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Rhyolite ghost town
- Goldwell Open Air Museum
- Beatty Museum
- Base for Death Valley National Park
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Beatty, revision 5290820 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5290820
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Beatty
Please take me to this address
Please take me to this address
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire and ambulance911
No consulates in Beatty; nearest consulates are in Las Vegas, embassies in Washington, DC.
Carry water and a paper map; signal is patchy outside town.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/beatty). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.