Mesa Verde National Park - Ultimate 1 Day Itinerary
Mesa Verde National Park is one of the most unique national parks in the United States as it is the one of the first national park in the United States created to protect cultural and historical sites rather than natural features.
Additionally, UNESCO named Mesa Verde National Park a World Heritage Site in 1978 as it home to the “Cliff Palace” and largest cliff dwelling in North America.
Ancestral Pueblo peoples made Mesa Verde their home from about 550 to 1300 AD. For more than 700 years they and their descendants lived and flourished here.
While we may never know why the ancestral pueblos suddenly left, one can clearly see why they decided to call this land home for over 700 years.
About - Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park is open year-round and the entry fee is $30 per vehicle or you can use your America the Beautiful National Parks Pass
Cliff dwelling tours require a reservation, made 2 weeks in advance
Always check nps.gov for recent park and road closures as we may not update this post as quickly
Visiting Mesa Verde
Best time to visit Mesa Verde National Park —
While Mesa Verde National Park is open all year long, one part of the park (Wetherill Mesa) is closed during winter. I recommend visiting Mesa Verde during the Spring or Fall to avoid summer crowds. Weather is favorable March to October.
How many days do you need for Mesa Verde? —
You only need one full day to see a good amount of Mesa Verde National Park. Most of the popular attractions are drivable with a short walk to the view or around the cliff dwelling. Most of the cliff dwelling tours last 1-2 hours as well.
Is Mesa Verde worth it without a tour?
It is absolutely worth visiting Mesa Verde even without a tour! While you won’t be able to go inside a cliff dwelling without a tour, you can still get up close to multiple cliff dwellings, see petroglyphs from over 1000 years ago, and learn first-hand about the ancient pueblo civilization.
One Day in Mesa Verde
There are more than 4000 archaeological sites and 600 cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde National Park and you can even tour 6 of the cliff dwellings up close and personal, although you will need to make a reservation for the tour 14 days in advance.
While you could spend months trying to visit any of the 600 cliff dwellings inside the parks, we’ve put together a full one day itinerary for the best things to do inside Mesa Verde National Park.
Stop 1: Park Point
Hiking distance: 0.25mi roundtrip
Handicap Accessible: yes, in most areas
Dogs allowed: yes
What to bring: camera
First stop is Park Point which is the tallest point in the park at 8,572 feet. Here you will be captivated by expansive roaring 360 degree views of Mesa Verde National Park.
You will see exactly why this park is called Mesa Verde and understand why ancestral pueblos may have decided this hilltop lush fortress would be a great home.
Stop 2: Spruce Tree House Overlook
Hiking distance: steep, 0.5 mile round trip (out and back)
Handicap accessible: no
Dogs allowed: no
Most of today’s park visit will be in the Chapin Mesa part of the park, which is also the busier side of the park so it’s best to get into the park as early as possible.
You will be combining two hikes once you park your vehicle. First up is the Spruce Tree House then it’s the Petroglyph Trail! Below is a map of the area where you will park, the hikes, museum and gift shop.
Trail Map of Spruce Tree House, Petroglyph Trail, Museum, and Spruce Terrace Gift Shop.
The Spruce Tree House can technically be seen from above right when you pass the museum, but if you want the best views you will want to walk down the short, yet steep half mile for a better view of the park’s third largest cliff dwelling.
After walking down the switchbacks stay to the left and take the trail to the Spruce Tree House. Make sure you are going on the hike for the Spruce Tree House and not the Spruce Canyon Trail. After you have finished this short half mile loop you can continue down the trail to the Petroglyph Point Trail for my favorite hike in the park!
Stop 3: Petroglyph Point Trail
Hiking distance: moderate 2.4mi loop, technical parts throughout
Handicap accessible: no
Dogs allowed: no
Being avid hikers, we had to at least try one hike in the park and this one was definitely our favorite! It is such a fun hike with narrow walkways, tucking under and through boulders, and getting to see petroglyphs from over 1000 years ago.
While it is a relatively easy hike, it does require technical footings and some bouldering to climb out of the cliffside.
Make sure to wear your hiking shoes as you’ll traverse down narrow, rugged rock ways with grand views of the Spruce and Navajo Canyons.
At about 1.4 miles into the hike you will arrive at a large petroglyph panel. It’s pretty astonishing how clear they still are. After the panel, you’ll scramble up a large stone staircase using hands and feet to climb to the top, then enjoy an easy return through forest to complete the loop by the museum.
Stop 4: Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum & Gift Shop
If time permits, I recommend stopping in the museum for a quick 10 minutes. The museum displays dioramas illustrating Ancestral Pueblo life. There are also many exhibits of prehistoric artifacts, a chronology of Ancestral Pueblo culture, and other items related to the park.
After the museum, walk across the street to the gift shop for the best souvenirs. Bathrooms are next door to the gift shop as well.
Stop 5: Mesa Top Loop Road
Distance: 6 mile driving loop with intermittent stops
Handicap accessible: yes
Dogs allowed: yes
This is a unique and serene 6 mile driving loop tour where you will park every 0.25 to 1 mile to get out and see cliff dwellings, kivas, and mesa-top villages. I highly recommend downloading the audible tour presented by Ranger TJ Atsye (Laguna Pueblo) beforehand so you can play the podcast as you are driving through the loop.
Getting to hear Ranger TJ talk about her ancestors and learn how they discovered, cultivated, and lived on this land over 1400 years ago gives you the chills to think about how rich American history truly is. It is very sad that we don’t learn more about the Ancestral Pueblos in history classes.
Square House - Mesa Verde National Park
If you are short on time and can’t get out for every pit stop, at least stop to see the Square House Cliff Dwelling.
Square House is the tallest standing structure in the park, with an intact kiva roof, original plaster and paint, and plentiful rock art. If you aren’t able to make reservations to tour Square House, it is still breathtaking to see this cliff dwelling from the overlook point.
Continue the tour and drive or walk a quarter mile to see the Pit Houses and Villages. These small houses and kivas are only half in tact, but you still get a real sense of how the people lived and learn a great amount about how they developed their building techniques over the centuries.
View of the Pit Houses at Mesa Verde National Park
Last stop that is a must see is the Sun Temple and Cliff Palace overlook view. Sun Temple is a very unique structure compared to the rest of what you’ll see in the park and researchers think while huge, it actually may never have been finished.
Cliff Palace is the “crown jewel of Mesa Verde National Park” and an architectural masterpiece by any standard. With over 150 rooms and 21 kivas it is the largest cliff dwelling in the park. Hopefully you scored reservations to tour this gem!
Stop 6: Cave Dwelling Tour (reservation required)
Cliff Palace - Mesa Verde National Park
Distance: depending on which tour, ranges from 0.25-3mi roundtrip
Handicap accessible: no
Dogs allowed: no
If you are planning to come to Mesa Verde National Park with at least two weeks notice, you have a chance to reserve tickets in to see the epitome of this national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site!
Make sure to go to recreation.gov before 8am mountain time because these tickets sell out within 5 minutes of going on sale! You can reserve a ticket 14 days before the tour date.
Here is the cliff dwelling houses I would choose to tour in order of most favorite to least:
Cliff Palace
Square House
Long House
Mug House.
I didn’t include Spring House because it is an 8 hour tour and that would be near impossible see everything on this itinerary and tour Spring House. You can read more about each of the cliff dwellings.
If you are planning your visit sooner than 14 days prior and can’t reserve tickets, don’t be discouraged, you can still snag last minute cancellations on recreation.gov or you can always tour Step House which is the only cliff dwelling in the park that does not require a reservation and can be toured on your own time.
Stop 7: Far View Community Sites
Distance: easy, 0.75 loop trail
Handicap accessible: no
Dogs allowed: no
On your way out of the park you can option to take one last tour of the Far View Community Sites. The Far View area was once an extensive farming community and one of the most densely populated regions of Mesa Verde.
In the mid-1100s, there may have been at least 35 occupied villages and surrounding farm and garden plots within a half-square-mile area, including those you can visit today.
Fun fact! Not everyone ultimately moved to live in the cliff dwellings. Some families clearly chose to remain on the mesa top, like those at Far View, well after many of their neighbors moved into cliff alcoves.
Wetherhill Mesa:
If you have a chance to come back to the park or have a second day to visit the park, make sure to drive over to Wetherill Mesa, the lesser visited area of the national park.
Wetherill Mesa is home to the Long House and Step House cliff dwellings.
It also has a scenic 6 mile hike or bike trail called Long House Loop that showcases many other dwellings and beautiful overlooks. Long House Loop is also dog-friendly!
Cliff Dwelling Tours at Mesa Verde
The main attraction inside Mesa Verde National Park is the cliff dwellings and you definitely want to make a reservation to see at least one when you visit Mesa Verde.
There are a total of 5 cliff dwellings that you can reserve in advance to tour with a park ranger and 1 cliff dwelling can be toured on your own without a reservation.
Tours are offered between May 2 and October 23. Tickets are required and available online 14 days in advance of the tour.
Keep in mind, tickets sell out within 15 minutes the day the reservation becomes available.
You can buy tickets on recreation.gov.
Cliff Palace
0.25 mile, moderate hike, 30 min tour, $8/person
"The crown jewel of Mesa Verde National Park and an architectural masterpiece by any standard, Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in North America with 150 rooms. Built between 1190 and 1280 CE, Cliff Palace was once home to over 100 people.”
Long House
2.25 mile, difficult hike, 60 min tour, $8/person
“Located on Wetherill Mesa part of the park, Long House tours offer visitors an opportunity to enjoy the quieter side of Mesa Verde. As the second largest cliff dwelling, Long House feels both grand and intimate. Visitors will enjoy changing landscapes, picturesque views, and an active seep spring within the dwelling."
Square Tower House
1 mile, difficult hike, 90 min tour, $25/person
The 2nd most photographed dwelling in the park and the tallest standing structure in the park is Square Tower House. “An intact kiva roof, original plaster and paint, and plentiful rock art, Square Tower House is one of Mesa Verde's most impressive cliff dwellings.”
Mug House
3 mile, difficult hike, 90 min tour, $25/person
"Named for three mugs tied together with yucca rope found hanging inside one of its rooms, Mug House was a village of 80 to 100 residents during the 1100 to 1200s CE. Along the rough trail to Mug House, tours will also experience Adobe Cave, Ancestral Pueblo rock art, and wonderful views of Rock Canyon.”
Spring House
8 mile, strenuous hike, 8 hour tour, $45/person
Spring House is the largest unexcavated cliff dwelling in the park with 86 rooms and seven kivas. It is extremely fragile so you will not enter the site, but get excellent views of it from a platform at the south end of the village. On the way to Spring House, hikers will pass through a diverse landscape of both mesa tops and canyon bottoms and be rewarded with views of other alcove sites.
If you aren’t able to reserve a tour, you can still get visit Step House cliff dwelling on the Wetherhill Mesa side of the park from spring to fall.
Mesa Verde Hotels & Camping
The park entrance is along Highway 160 between the towns of Mancos and Cortez, Colorado and about 35 miles west of Durango, Colorado.
If you’re visiting Mesa Verde I would recommend staying near Durango since it’s a more vibrant town than Mancos or Cortez, including more options for hotels, amenities, and home to the beautiful Animas River!
Lodging inside Mesa Verde National Park
There is one lodge and one campsite if you want to stay inside the park.
Far View Lodge is the only in-park lodge at Mesa Verde. It is open from May 1st to September 30th. Learn more about the peaceful and rustic Far View Lodge and where to make reservations.
Morefield Campground is the only campground inside the park and the operating season is from May 15 to October 19. There are 267 sites and 15 full hook-up RV sites.
Reservations are accepted but not required unless you want a full hook-up site. There are restrooms, showers and laundry services nearby.
Hotels near Mesa Verde National Park
There are three main towns you can choose to stay at when visiting Mesa Verde.
Cortez, CO is located just 10 miles west of the park entrance and is a good size small town, offering a multitude of hotels and plenty of nearby dining options.
Recommended Hotel: Holiday Inn Express
Mancos, CO is located 8 miles east of the park entrance. it is a very small town with limited hotels and dining options. While I wouldn’t recommend Mancos being your first choice to stay in, I would recommend visiting this small artist town and seeing the shops in their quaint downtown.
Recommended Hotel: Mancos Inn
Durango, CO is located 35 miles east of the park entrance. Durango is a very big town with a lot to do, see, and eat! It will give you the most options to sleep and additionally you can make an entire vacation out of exploring this great mountain town.
Recommended Hotel: Historic Strater Hotel
Free Camping near Mesa Verde National Park
We camped just outside of Mancos, CO at Madden Peak Dispersed Camping, about 20 miles west of Durango and 20 east of Mesa Verde National Park entrance.
We absolutely loved this central location! The BLM land was very nice, had great cell service for Verizon, and lush mountain views!
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