America’s Most Frightening Motel Is A Short Drive From Boise

It's an eerie motel tucked away in the desolate heart of Tonopah, Nevada, less than eight hours from Boise. It's called the Clown Motel, and it's not your average roadside inn. It's so spine-tingling that it's been named "America's Scariest Motel."  What makes this place so fear-inducing is coulrophobia – the abnormal fear of clowns.

A Brief History of the Clown Motel

The Clown Motel opened in 1985 with 150 clowns, primarily located in the lobby. Now, this nightmare factory has expanded to more than 2,000 clowns. Previous guests gifted some, while others arrived mysteriously, probably shipped by someone who believed they were possessed and wanted them out of their house.

WARNING: The pictures of this motel, featured below this article, will freak you out.

A Room of Nightmares

Not all of the clowns here are of the happy, balloon-animal-making variety. The Clown Motel has themed rooms inspired by iconic horror movies like 'It,' 'The Exorcist,' 'Halloween,' and 'Friday the 13th.' The walls are even filled with scary clown art that will likely keep you up at night. Surprisingly, the rooms decorated with 'friendly' clowns have the most paranormal activity.

Haunting Stories

Some guests have reported eerie encounters with ghostly clowns peering through their windows at night or hovering at the foot of their beds, but most stories revolve around miners from the early 1900s. You see, the Clown Motel shares its backyard with a mining-era cemetery considered one of the most active to the paranormal in the country.

WARNING: The pictures of this motel, featured below this article, submitted by actual guests, will freak you out.

The Clown Motel was recently featured on the new Hulu docuseries, "Living for the Dead." Check out clips of the investigation below. 

A Night to Remember... or Forget?

If you're feeling brave and want to test your luck against the ghostly occupants of the Clown Motel, pack your courage and a change of underwear. This place is not for the faint of heart. However, if you enjoy being terrified, this might be the twisted road trip you're looking for from Boise.