The scenic and solitary Amboy Crater was a popular sight and stop for travelers on U.S. Route 66 in California before the opening of Interstate 40 in 1973.

Visits decreased after Interstate 40 opened, but have increased in recent years with the nearby Mitchell Caverns, Mojave National Preserve, and renewed historical tourism interest in "old Route 66".

Regular desert precautions apply here: being alert for rattlesnakes and old military explosives, and having a hat, sunscreen, sturdy shoes and abundant drinking water.

[2][4][10] Amboy Crater was used as a location in the 1959 movie Journey to the Center of the Earth, with matte paintings used to alter the shape of the cone and place it within the landscape of Iceland.

In HBO's From the Earth to the Moon Apollo 15 episode, Amboy Crater is overflown during astronaut training as a stand-in for the terrain of the San Francisco Volcanic Field outside of Flagstaff, AZ.