2 Days in Mesa Verde National Park

You could spend weeks exploring every nook and cranny of Mesa Verde National Park, a cultural gem located in southwestern Colorado. But what if you only have 48 hours? Don’t worry. We have you covered! Stick to our detailed itinerary, and you’ll hit all the most important stops

DAY ONE

Early Bird Gets the Best Tour

Buy tickets in advance at recreation.gov for the Balcony House Sunrise or Earlybird Tour. These early tours will let you experience one of Mesa Verde’s most adventurous cliff dwellings before the heat of the day. On this tour, you’ll climb with a ranger up exposed ladders and through narrow tunnels to explore Balcony House, an Ancestral Puebloan compound on the side of a cliff.

If you’re not an early bird, it’s still recommended you reserve a tour of the Balcony House, Cliff Palace or Long House in advance at recreation.gov or by phoning the call center at 1-877-444-6777. Tickets sales open 14 days in advance of your desired tour date at 8 a.m. MST.

Tip: If you’re driving from out of the park, allow yourself an hour to get from the entrance to the Balcony House parking lot, as the roads are steep and windy and the speed limit is low.

Drive Through the Past

After finishing your Balcony House tour, drive Mesa Top Loop Road. You’ll pass 12 archaeological sites on this six-mile loop, including surface sites and the best views of Cliff Palace in the park. Give yourself plenty of time, as you’ll be stopping often to get out and admire the views.

Cool Off in the Museum

After spending the morning exploring Mesa Verde, you’re bound to be ready to cool off. Head to the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum to learn more about the Ancestral Puebloans that called Mesa Verde home in the 1200s. The museum is home to impressive dioramas, artifacts, a gift shop and an informative movie.

Dinner with a View

Make an advance reservation for dinner at the Metate Room (www.visitmesaverde.com). This southwestern-inspired restaurant located inside the park won the “Award of Culinary Excellence” for sustainable cuisine from the Culinary Federation of Colorado Chefs Association in 2010. A wall of windows offering beautiful park views, you might get distracted from eating if the food wasn’t so delicious. Think pan-seared rainbow trout with red pepper aioli and charred lemon, and salads made with ancient grains.

Learn Around the Fire

Attend a nightly free campfire program led by a ranger. These programs have been teaching visitors about the history of the park since 1907. Although the talks have moved from around a campfire to the Morefield Amphitheater, the tradition continues. Check the most up-to-date schedule at the museum.

DAY TWO

Take a Hike

Hike the 2.4-mile Petroglyph Trail and see the only petroglyphs in the park. Start early to avoid the heat and keep an eye out for wildlife such as coyotes, black bears, turkey vultures, jackrabbits and wild horses, which are actually an invasive species.

Tour the Far View Sites

On this .75-mile loop, you’ll realize that Mesa Verde is much more than just cliff dwellings. The Ancestral Puebloans lived in villages on the top of the mesa before moving down into the cliffs. The loop will take you past the Far View House, four other villages and a dry reservoir.

View the Park from a Fire Lookout

Evidence of fire is obvious as you drive through the park. Stop by the Park Point Fire Lookout to get a feel for what watching this special park for fires must’ve been like. Originally built in 1939 and remodeled in 2009, the fire tower also is the highest point in the park.

Drive-In in Cortez

As you leave the park, stop in Cortez at the Burger Boy Drive In (www.burgerboydrivein.com) and go back in time again, though a little closer to present day this time! Park your car and give your order to your carhop and then sit back, enjoy your air-conditioning and scroll through your pictures of Mesa Verde as you wait for an old-fashioned brown bag meal of a burger, fries and a milkshake.

Don’t want your road trip to be over yet?

Continue to either Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, which is 4 hours away, or Great Sand Dunes National Park which is 4.5 hours away. 

Download an official Mesa Verde National Park map for basic road and attraction locations. Want a detailed topographical map of trails in the park and beyond? Buy the Durango Cortez Trail Map at REI.com. Or get the National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map for Four Corners. The map for this unique area where Arizona, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico meet includes the Mesa Verde region, the Trail of the Ancients National Scenic Byway and much more printed on waterproof, tear-resistant material.