Holloman AFB, NM
(505) 675-2599
website
- Hours: Open daily, except December 25
- Reservations: Not required
- Cost: Entry fee
- Location: Southern New Mexico, driving directions below
- How Long: Allow half an hour for the visitor center, and 45 minutes for the 16-mile Dunes Drive trip
- Best Time to Visit: Any time
White Sands National Monument
Covering 275 square miles of white gypsum sand in the northern Chihuahuan Desert in a mountain-ringed valley called Tularosa Basin, White Sands National Monument contains the world's largest gypsum dune field.Besides the Visitor Center exhibits, you can take the eight-mile, scenic Dunes Drive, where roadside exhibits explain the park's natural history, and walking trails lead into the dunes. Pick up a self-guided booklet at the Big Dune Trail, to learn about plants and animals that live here.
Ranger-led activities are available Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Getting to White Sands National Monument
White Sands National Monument is 15 miles soutwhest of Alamogordo, NM, and 52 miles east of Las Cruces. To get there, follow US 70/82.The highway sometimes closes here during missile testing at White Sands Missile Range, for up to two hours. If you are on a tight schedule, call ahead the day before you plan to arrive and ask about closures.
If You Liked the White Sands National Monument, You May Also Like:
- Great Sand Dunes National Park, CO: These sand dunes occupy a high desert location, and are caused when sand-laden winds slow down as they rise above the nearby mountains.
- Death Valley National Park, CA: Sights in this extreme desert environment include extensive sand dunes.
- Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, UT: The color of these dunes really is coral pink, and they're most beautiful near sunrise and sunset.
