Beatty

Beatty is located 115 miles north of Las Vegas in a small valley surrounded by three peaks: Bare Mountain, Sawtooth Mountain, and the Bullfrog Hills. Six miles west of Beatty is the border with California, the gateway to Death Valley. The population of this unincorporated township (one square mile area) is about 1,700. If you decide to visit Death Valley, you will be driving mostly downward, from 3,308 ft above sea level, where Beatty lies, to 282 ft below sea level, at Badwater, the lowest point in the western hemisphere and the second lowest in the world.

Beatty's main attraction is its proximity to Death Valley (do not miss Death Valley National Park Information Center); the area's history is shown at the Beatty Museum and Historical Society, at 417 Main St (10 am-4 pm, weekdays). For a rare experience, stop by the Exchange Club Casino and have a drink sitting at an old Brunswick bar built in Boston in the 1880s and shipped initially to San Francisco via the Panama Canal.

Services are available 24 hours a day. There are several motels and RV parks to accommodate travelers for long or short stays.

• Burro Inn Hotel & Casino. 1-800-843-2078; (775) 553-2225.
• El Portal Motel. (775) 553-2912.
• Exchange Club Hotel & Casino. (775) 553-2333.
• Phoenix Inn. (775) 553-2250.
• Stagecoach Hotel & Casino. (775) 553-2419.