Hays, KS

Hays is the largest city in western Kansas and serves as the seat of Ellis County, with a population of roughly 20,000 residents. Sitting along the historic route of Interstate 70, the city has the feel of a regional hub for the surrounding agricultural communities, anchored by Fort Hays State University. Travelers often treat Hays as a gateway to the wide-open landscapes of the High Plains, and it lies about 250 miles east of Denver, Colorado, and roughly 280 miles west of Kansas City. The town is best known for its Old West heritage and as the home of one of the region's most popular natural history museums.

The Sternberg Museum of Natural History, housed on the campus of Fort Hays State University, is one of the strongest draws in the area. Its collection focuses on the paleontology of the Western Interior Seaway, with displays of fossil fish, marine reptiles, and other specimens collected from across the Great Plains. The museum sits just a few minutes' drive from downtown Hays and draws school groups, road-trippers, and paleontology enthusiasts traveling along I-70.

Hays carries a strong Wild West identity and preserves several reminders of its frontier past. The city's Boot Hill Cemetery, located in the old townsite, is one of the few surviving frontier-era burial grounds in the state, with historical connections to figures like Wild Bill Hickok. The Ellis County Historical Society Museum offers additional exhibits on pioneer life, the cattle trade, and regional history, making the downtown area a worthwhile stop for heritage travelers who want a sense of nineteenth-century Kansas.

Fort Hays State University, founded in 1902, gives the city a steady college-town rhythm. The campus hosts concerts, sporting events, and cultural programming that bring visitors to Hays throughout the year, with football games and commencement weekends serving as notable draws. The university's presence is a reliable source of lodging demand, supplementing the road-trip traffic flowing along I-70 and the seasonal hunters who come for pheasant and deer in the surrounding fields and reservoirs.

For short-term rental owners, Hays offers a balanced mix of travelers: interstate road-trippers, hunters visiting the surrounding plains, families in town for university events, and heritage tourists exploring the Old West. Its location at the crossroads of central and western Kansas, combined with a year-round calendar of events and a strong university base, makes the city an understated but reliable market for short-term stays.