If you’ve lived in Arizona for any significant amount of time, you’ve probably heard of “The Thing.” What exactly is it? Well, you’ll just have to wait and see – just know it’s one of the strangest places you can go in the Grand Canyon State.

From El Paso all the way to Tucson, billboards advertising "The Thing" beckon travelers to stop and discover what the big mystery is about. You can find out by taking Exit 322 between Benson and Wilcox.
TripAdvisor/Thomas M.
Perhaps the most well-known tourist attraction in Arizona, The Thing is unassuming as can be. Located in a middle-of-nowhere gas station, it would be easy to pass up if not for the nearly constant, 300-mile hype.
TripAdvisor/Pake R.
Upon stepping inside, your anticipation like a pot about to boil over, an extraterrestrial being stands guard just beyond the doorway. Behind him, a barrage of unique items leaves you not knowing quite where to look first.
TripAdvisor/Don C.

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The first exhibit you'll walk through is a relatively new addition, installed after The Thing came under new ownership in 2018. It involves dinosaurs and aliens, linking the latter to a number of historically significant events.
TripAdvisor/Wyldecamp
After meandering through 12,000 square feet of oddities, you'll finally come upon the main attraction. "The Thing" is a mummified mother and child, perhaps of either Chinese or Native American descent, who died between the late 1880s and early 1900s. Various theories have attempted to give them a story, but nothing has ever been proven.
Wikimedia Commons/Thadrd28
You'll also see a vast array of objects ranging from handcrafted Native American artifacts and jewelry to a vintage American automobile from the 1930s to kitschy souvenirs and everything in-between. You could easily spend hours perusing all the interesting objects.
TripAdvisor/Don C.
The Thing is open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. daily. Admission is $5 per person or $10 per family.
TripAdvisor/Selvyn C.

Have you ever been to The Thing? If so, is it as strange as all the hype makes it out to be? Let us know your thoughts, and check out our previous article for more weird roadside attractions: 13 Bizarre Roadside Attractions In Arizona That Will Make You Do A Double Take.

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Johnson Rd, Benson, AZ, USA