National Automobile Museum — Attraction in Reno

The National Automobile Museum in Reno is an absolute must-see for anyone visiting the area. Located downtown along the Truckee River, this world-class museum celebrates the golden age of the automobile with one of the most impressive and beautifully displayed car collections in the country.

The museum was born from the legendary collection of Bill Harrah, the gaming pioneer who spent decades amassing more than 1,400 classic cars. After his passing, the community came together to save a portion of his incredible collection, which now forms the heart of this museum. The result is a stunning tribute to automotive history, innovation, and artistry — all under one roof.

The layout is fantastic, guiding visitors through themed galleries that feel like walking through time. You can stroll past early horseless carriages from the 1890s, gleaming luxury models from the Roaring Twenties, powerful muscle cars, and even one-of-a-kind celebrity vehicles. Some of the most famous pieces include the 1907 Thomas Flyer that won the New York to Paris Race in 1908, Elvis Presley’s 1973 Cadillac Eldorado, Frank Sinatra’s sleek 1961 Ghia, and the quirky “Jerrari” — a Jeep Wagoneer powered by a Ferrari V12 engine. Each car has its own story, and the exhibits bring those stories to life with detailed displays and historical settings.

What really makes the National Automobile Museum stand out is the people. The staff and volunteers are friendly, passionate, and extremely knowledgeable. They clearly love what they do and are always happy to share fascinating facts or answer questions. Their enthusiasm makes the experience feel personal and engaging, whether you’re a lifelong car enthusiast or just someone who appreciates craftsmanship and history.

The entire space is clean, well-organized, and thoughtfully designed — perfect for families, travelers, and locals alike. Every corner of the museum offers something interesting, from classic designs to rare engineering marvels. It’s easy to spend a few hours exploring and still feel like you’ve only scratched the surface.

In short, the National Automobile Museum is one of Reno’s true treasures — a place filled with history, heart, and horsepower. A definite must-visit when...

As others have mentioned in these reviews, we arrived 40 minutes prior to when the museum closed. We were told by the front desk that they were closing. The front desk (initially), did not offer us entry to the museum, but rather suggested we come the next day. Some confusing banter took place as we (and as other reviews have mentioned) did not understand how we were not being given the option to tour the museum 40 minutes before closing time. Because of this we asked for a refund as no where on the website does it state you must arrive at X amount of time prior to 5pm in order to be allowed in. When the manager came to speak with us she did not seem to be interested at all in learning of the confusion that had been taking place and merely said she was not going to give us a refund if we didn't want to tour the museum any longer. Which was not the case at all. We wanted to tour the museum and did not mind if we only had a limited time to do so. After this, the front desk finally gave us the opportunity to tour the museum despite now only having 30 minutes to do so.

Moral of the story, all we ask is there is better communication: “Hi thank you for visiting us today, just so you are aware we do close in 40 minutes, you are more than welcome to still tour the museum but ask that you adhere to our strict closing time of 5pm. Otherwise, we would love to have you visit tomorrow”

And as a manager, at least pretend to care/want to understand why a customer is confused/upset, instead of automatically denying their request.

Two stars are merely for the car collection and the front desk ultimately apologizing for the confusion. Otherwise, this was a pretty dissatisfying customer...

On the plus there are literally hundreds of cars to take photos of. The main center is well done with time period streetscapes. Vehicles are displayed in sections by age. Interpretive panels are informative for each vehicle. It fills a couple of hours. It's not very expensive and you can buy tickets at the door. There are several challenges. The building was built in 1989 and it shows. They have the look but do not touch mentality of museums from the 90s. The display and presentation of the cars speaks to this approach. One room was just full of tables and cars on the edges. All these are minimal issues, but if you're going to compare yourself to the top automotive museums, you need to deliver at the highest level. If The Henry Ford is #1 and this is #5, it's a steep drop. The biggest concern is safety. We walked from downtown in the middle of the day and it was hardly a pleasant experience near the museum. The street of their entrance drove was full of people living in their cars. Every path and sidewalk around the museum had some level of homeless encampment. Two blocks were completely impassable. Several other blocks had active and aggressive panhandling. As much as Reno is near failed state with local government, this museum continues to ignore the realities of the world around it at...