Detour From Vegas To Area 51: Where Mystery Meets The Desert

Curious about what’s really lurking in the Nevada desert? Wonder if aliens are real and if they call Area 51 home? Why not take a guided tour of the outskirts of Area 51, only a short drive from the glitz and glamour of the Las Vegas Strip? 

Adventure Photo Tours takes curious and intrigued people on a fun tour to Area 51 that includes a few stops along the way. Whether you fully believe there are aliens deep in the Nevada desert or you’re just interested in seeing something less flashy than Sin City for a change of pace, a tour with Adventure Photo Tours is a memorable and fun experience. And no worries - if aliens aren’t your thing, they offer many other fun-filled tour options.

Area 51 is real! But have you ever wondered what it’s all about? Could it be hiding an alien spacecraft and otherworldly secrets? It’s no surprise that this remote desert location was chosen as one of America’s most top-secret military sites.

If you want a closer look at Area 51 and what it’s all about, a tour with Adventure Photo Tours is the way to go. With a few stops along the way, a fun alien-filled adventure is within reach when visiting Las Vegas.

The adventure begins with a stop at Janet Airlines at Harry Reid International Airport in the heart of Las Vegas. This airline, which is hidden in plain sight, carries hundreds of Area 51 workers to and from Vegas every day. 

Janet, believed to be an acronym for “Just Another Non-Existent Terminal,” primarily transports military personnel and other workers to the Nevada Test and Training Range, which encompasses Area 51 and the Tonopah Test Range. 

Locals in Vegas know just what Janet looks like - a white plane with a red strip from the front of the plane to the rear -  and sometimes catches a glimpse of the plane taking off or landing. 

What can you expect from a tour with Adventure Photo Tours when on their Area 51 adventure?

"This tour is a bucket list adventure and a Pilgrimage for our guests who believe there is other life out there. They are a great group of people who are mostly well educated and scientific minded individuals," Will Tryon, co-owner of Adventure Photo Tours, told The Blast. "To actually go to all the famous locations that have been on many documentaries brings this topic into full focus where it's now completely understood, 'this is not a movie set,' Area 51 really exists."

A few exciting stops are made on the tour. After the first stop at Janet Airlines, the tour visits the "remote and very desolate Nevada Outback" before moving on to a "spooky dry lake where many UFO sightings have occurred."

The tour stops at the "Extraterrestrial Highway sign" before stopping for lunch and gift shop browsing at the Famous Little A'Le'Inn. Many might recognize it from the movie "Independence Day."

Then it's onto the Black Mailbox, which is a "sacred meeting location for enthusiasts" the Joshua Tree Forest, and then "absolute perimeter where the heavily armed Camo Dudes, or as we like to call them, 'The Men in Black,' forever watch from their 4x4 on the hillside where the sign reads, 'Top Secret Military Facility Use of Deadly Force Authorized.'"

Tryon said this is the area where there are cameras and listening devices "scattered throughout the desert."

"This is very real," he said. "Area 51 really does exist."

Tryon added that there's a gate on the remote road that goes to Area 51.

"If anyone tries to duck under the gate, they will be arrested at gunpoint," he shared. "We have not lost a customer yet."

Tryon said that guests on the tour should keep the weather in mind when planning for their adventure.

"Wear comfortable shoes, dress lightly in the summer. And as this is the High Desert, it can get quite cold in the winter," he told The Blast. He added that there are, "no restrictions on conversation about Area 51 or aliens" while on the tour.

Many people who go on the tour ask Tryon if Area 51 is holding crashed spacecrafts or if they have alien bodies there. And sometimes, strange things happen right in front of everyone.

"One evening, we saw something shoot up into the sky at a 45-degree angle, and then once in space at a very high rate of speed, it made a 90-degree turn and disappear into space," he shared. "In addition, we have been buzzed many times by fighter jets and military helicopters."

For a hardcore alien believer, each part of the tour holds a special meaning and "builds credibility that reinsures their belief is sound."

If aliens aren't quite your speed, the company offers other tour options including, the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Hollywood, Valley of Fire, Death Valley, and more.

Tryon said his favorite tour is the one to Area 51 and he wishes more people knew about it.

"The Area 51 story is quite common in Las Vegas since George Knapp exposed the secret base about 3 decades ago. I, being a pilot, look up a lot day and night, with all those billions of stars and planets around many of them, not to mention other galaxies, what are the chances of life existing out there, rather good actually. I started this tour 24 years ago and it is my favorite of the 10 tours we offer," he said.

"I wish more people knew of this experience. We have pages of 5-star ratings in Trip Advisor from people that have had a ball on this tour and from spouses that really didn't believe before the tour and went home a believer."

For more information and to book one of the tours, visit their website.