I brake for roadside attractions and perhaps one of the most iconic roadside attraction in the United States is Arizona’s “The Thing.” I was thrilled to realize that we would encounter “The Thing” on our November road trip through Arizona.

I’m lucky to have a husband who is willing to support my roadside attraction obsession. Not just willing, but he shelled out ten dollars and diverted from our tight schedule for us to experience this tourist trap.

Apparently, “The Thing” has had a recent upgrade. According to TripAdvisor it is a much bigger experience and worth the stop. We had low expectations, but it is quite a large attraction. We stopped for about twenty minutes, but we could have easily spent an hour. The exhibit spans several rooms and weaves history and science, with conspiracy theories involving aliens and dinosaurs.

I loved the little alien carvings that were scattered through the exhibit. They look like they were inspired by drawings of a preschooler.

The exhibit never really states if they believe in all of the conspiracies, they just use the phrase “What If.” Personally, I think it’s all ridiculous and in good fun, but I can imagine some people taking it seriously. It’s a bit timely to tour an attraction based on conspiracy theories, when conspiracy has dominated our life in 2020. Kind of scary actually.

Finally, we reached “The Thing”…a mummified…well, a mummified thing.

Admittedly, the whole dinosaur/alien/conspiracy added a lot to my enjoyment of “The Thing.” If you’re driving through the Arizona desert you must stop. It is a quintessential part of the American road trip experience!