Your Guide to New Mexico’s National Parks
New Mexico is one of the hidden gems with the National Park Service. You can plan one epic trip to visit all of New Mexico’s National Parks, or you can break the sites into smaller visits by region. You’ll need to log a decent amount of highway miles to visit all 15 sites, but New Mexico will reward you with beautiful views and tasty food along the way.
Northeast
You’ll need to plan a special trip to Capulin Volcano National Monument unless you’re driving between Amarillo and Raton. It’s near the highway, but it’s also not really near anything else. You can also add this on to a trip to Great Sand Dunes National Park, though it will be a long drive.
Northwest
Add Aztec Ruins National Historic Site to your Four Corners road trip. You can easily visit the other National Park Sites in southwest Colorado, including Mesa Verde National Park. Then head south to visit Chaco Culture National Historical Park near the town of Nageezi.
Santa Fe
Spend an extra day on your Santa Fe itinerary to explore Fort Union National Monument and Pecos National Historic Site (and the westernmost Civil War battlefield!). Then spend a day around Los Alamos to visit the Manhattan Project National Historic Park, Valles Caldera National Preserve, and Bandelier National Monument. Be sure to pack your photo ID and fill up your tank ahead of time.
Albuquerque
Get your kicks on Route 66 before a quick hike (or three) at Petroglyph National Monument, near downtown Albuquerque. You’ll pass El Morro National Monument and El Malpais National Monument on I-40 between Gallup and Albuquerque. Plan a long day detour to explore these sites on your way in or out of town.
Southern New Mexico
The rest of New Mexico’s national parks may take a bit more coordination, but you could visit them in one trip if you’re driving east or west. These are in order heading west to east. From I-10, prepare for a long, scenic, and potentially nauseating drive to the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument near Silver City. Return to the interstate and pick up US 70 in Las Cruces to drive over to White Sands National Park outside Alamogordo. From there, you can head southeast to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Guadalupe Mountains National Park is a short drive into Texas. Or turn back north towards Albuquerque to explore the four sites within Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument around Mountainair.
