Snapshot Planning Your VisitWhen we visited the park We visited the park in late March, and it was perfect! We decided we wanted to go to White Sands in the spring for the comfortable temperatures, and because the wind is not as strong. I read that summer and winter months can regularly have strong winds, which would reduce visibility and tick up a lot of sand in the air. Late March was great because we could comfortably spend extended time exploring the dunes. We dressed in layers because the mornings and evenings could be colder, but midday warmed up quickly. I would definitely recommend Spring or Fall for a visit to this National Park.  weather-us.com Things to Consider 1. The first thing to know is, White Sands National Park is unlike any other place we have been, and we would highly recommend this other worldly place! 2. A sunset over the dunes is a must here! Check times and plan accordingly. The park is not open 24/7, so you need to know open/closing times. 3. Rent a sandboard or sled from the visitor center. It is so worth it here! Unlike Great Sand Dunes, the gypsum sand doesn't get hot here, so sledding is way more enjoyable. 4. Bring hats, sunscreen, sunglasses, umbrellas to get a break from the sun. It is easy to get lost in the dunes, so any protection from the elements is something you should plan ahead for. 5. There is a small herd of gemsbok (South African Oryx) introduced years ago the area. A sighting is rare, but would be a cool story to tell! 6. The Cloudcroft area in the mountains offers a little more quaint tourist areas to explore than Alamogordo (about 45 minutes from the park, 30 minutes from Alamogordo).  How to Get There The visitor center and Dunes Drive is located directly off of Highway US-70 between the cities of Alamogordo and Las Cruces. The entrance to the park can be found between mile markers 199 and 200 on Highway US-70. From Alamogordo, NM: Drive time: About 15 minutes Head west on Highway US-70 towards Las Cruces. The visitor center is located about 15 miles west of Alamogordo on the north side (right-hand side) of the road. From Las Cruces, NM: Drive time: About 1 hour Head east on Highway US-70 towards Alamogordo. The visitor center is located about 52 miles east of Las Cruces on the north side (left-hand side) of the road. Additional Maps Provided by the Park Where to Stay Backcountry Camping When it is available, backcountry camping in the dunes is the only way to stay inside the park. You need to get a permit to camp and check in with park rangers to camp here. The visitor center does have some food and necessities available for purchase. Outside the Park The nearest town to stay in Alamogordo, about 15 miles from the park. This town has many places to stay at and plenty of food options. We stayed at a chain hotel in Alamogordo, and were very bored. The hotels in the area do not open their pools until late spring/summer, so my kids were very disappointed. There is not a tone of other activities to do. Another option is to stay at Las Cruces, about an hour away. This town has more options for things to do. The place that was recommended to us by a park ranger was Cloudcroft. Cloudcroft is in the mountains, and has different things our kids would have enjoyed. It feels less like a desert, with more comfortable conditions. We wished we would have known about this place before our trip.   Our first night had the most spectacular sunset! What We Did We spent two days at White Sands National Park. The first day, we went in the evening to see the sunset. We learned that the visitor center closed at 5pm, and the park closed right after sunset. We decided to hike the Dune Life Nature Trail first. It was about halfway down the Dune Drive, on the right side of the road (there is only one road in and out of the park). This 1 mile loop took your through some of the plant life in the area, to some historic geographical markers, and into a dried up lake where there were some lizards. My kids loved chasing the lizards! It was a short and easy hike, but nice to see this side of the park. After the hike, we headed to the Alkali Flats area. This is a large dune field, and we found a spot to park and hike up to the top of the dunes. It appears that the dunes go on forever here, and it is all white sand, a very other worldly experience. We also learned that the sand is made from gypsum rock, and never gets hot in the sun. It is perfect for spending the day in. We learned that White Sand Dunes is the largest gypsum dunes field in the world and one of the only gypsum dune fields in the world. It was one of the most unique national parks we have ever visited. We stayed for sunset, and it looked like it was going to be cloudy and not good visibility. We decided to stay as long as possible, and we are so glad we did. The very last 10 minutes of light turned the sky into an orange and pink fireball. It was one of the most breathtakingly beautiful sunsets I have ever witnessed. Being juxtapositioned next to white sands only made it more striking! I highly suggest getting as many sunsets here as possible. The next day we decided to spend the afternoon at the park, leading up to another sunset. We headed to the park around noon. The first stop we made was the visitors center to rent some sand sleds. It was about $30 to rent a sled or board. You could also pick up some snacks and water from their small convenience store area. The store offers souvenirs, but also necessities for out in the dunes, like hats, sunscreen, and sand toys. Once we had everything we needed, we made our way to the Alkali Flat area of the dunes. There were people all around, but because of the large space, we never felt crowded. We hiked a little of the dunes until we felt like we found a good place for eating and sledding. We spent the afternoon hanging out and exploring this area. The sun was perfect, but because the gypsum sand never gets hot, we were able to play all day! We stayed for sunset, hoping for another amazing sight. Although the sky didn't light up like the night before, it was still beautiful and worth the time. We stayed as long as we could before security started moving people out of the park. I know there are some night hikes you can get tickets for, and also a guided sunset hike. The guided sunset hike was very crowded, and I don't know that we would have enjoyed it as much as just finding our own spot to explore. There is some history of the park included in the tour that we were not privy to, but the sights were still the same. This is park is definitely something you need to see at some point in your life! Where this fit in our Road Trip This was one of our first stops on our Southwest road trips. We came down from Bandelier National Monument by Santa Fe. The drive was long, with a lot of empty space between the two places. Once we got to Alamogordo, we settled in and headed to the park for our first sunset. We stayed here two days, before moving on to Roswell, NM and Carlsbad Caverns (about 4 hours away). I would recommend getting to Carlsbad Caverns earlier in the day, we were very rushed there before everything closed. NPS App and All Trails Maps I highly recommend using the National Park Service (NPS) App, as well as the All Trails App for hiking. There is limited service in the park, so planning ahead is helpful. These two apps allow you to download sights, maps, and trails so that you can access information anywhere. The NPS app also links to the full National Parks Website, with a plethora of information.
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