Little A'Le'Inn
This little road stop in south-central Nevada has become a popular stop for those that may be seeking a close encounter of the third or fourth kind. Little A'Le'Inn sits in the rural city of Rachel, Nevada next to the Extraterrestrial Highway and in the general area of the infamous, top-secret military base known as Area 51. Pat and Joe Travis purchased the Rachel Bar & Grill in 1988 and decided to rename it to Little A'Le'Inn in 1990, when they hosted their first annual UFO conference. Over the years, the facility has served host to several conferences, seminars, rallies, and events.
The History
The bar was first opened in 1976 as The Watering Hole and went through almost as many names as it did owners before the Travis's arrived. It initially started out as a single mobile home, but expanded to a double-wide shortly after its opening. It remained that way until the Travis's ownership, which happened to coincide with the sudden boom of interest of UFO watchers in late 1989. With the surge of tourism to the small town, the main building quickly doubled in size and several mobile homes were added out back to serve as motel rooms for guests. They even added a sign out front that announces, "Earthlings Welcome."
Rachel, Nevada and the passing Extraterrestrial Highway have attracted countless tourists over the years since, whom are eager to catch a glimpse of a mysterious light or unidentified flying object in the sky. Several claim to have seen just that, which didn't come as a surprise to Pat and Joe. According to them, they were visited shortly after they moved in by a beam of light that suddenly shone through the center of the backdoor and the duo felt a presence with them. Rather than fear the unexplained event, they chose to openly invite the presence in with them. Following that experience, the presence reportedly continued to visit them every night at around 4:00 A.M. and even communicated with them. According to some of their guests, they were not alone in their experience.
Rooms 2 and 3
Guests that have stayed in either Room 2 or Room 3 have even reported similar visitations in the night. Although a thin, white being has been spotted on occasion, most guests report feeling a presence around them. Allegedly, a few are even said to have communicated with the entity through a form of "mind transference."
The ID4 Time Capsule
The small facility had the honor of being chosen by 20th Century Fox to be the site of their ID4 Time Capsule in promotion of the then-upcoming film, Independence Day. It was donated on April 18, 1996, during an official ceremony by Fox and the Nevada Department of Transportation to rename Nevada State Route 375 as the Extraterrestrial Highway. Aside from various props and trailers from the film, Independence Day co-star Brent Spiner donated pages from the shooting script of his upcoming Star Trek movie, and then-governor Bob Miller even pitched in a model of a stealth bomber in reference to the nearby airbase. Just in case any extraterrestrials stumbled upon the time capsule, then- Lieutenant Governor Hammargren donated a "universal gaming chip" for them to use at any nearby-Las Vegas casino. Scheduled for opening in the year 2050, the capsule now sits out front of Little A'Le'Inn.
Little A'Le'Inn Today
Sadly, Joe Travis passed away on September 13, 2003, but Pat is still hard at work on running the store, now with Bill Laundenklos. Aside from the rooms and bar, tourists can sit down for a meal at the restaurant (the Alien Burger is a popular choice) or peruse the gift shop, which offers up a wide array of gifts and items of UFOs, aliens, and even Area 51 souvenirs. Guests can also play a game of pool or spend a great deal of time scanning the newspapers and photos on the walls, detailing the latest information on UFO sightings and the infamous base. As mentioned, the facility also hosts several events throughout the year for UFO enthusiasts or just those that are curious. Please visit their site below for a calendar of upcoming events and more information.