Reviews of City of Rocks National Reserve (Park)

Jeff McEwen

They are working hard to make the place a great little destination. Lots of history to discover.

Megan Hoover

An absolute must for any family! Climbing for kids of all ages. We loved it! A short drive from the visitor center and you can stop for a picnic lunch at the campground.

Lori Levise

Amazing scenery. I want to spend more time here camping and hiking.

Daniel Lay

Neat place, but there is no first come first serve camping. Also, this place is overcrowded.

Tony Keife

World class climbing and challenging hikes make this anoutdoor playground. Great mountain biking and bouldering, too.

Justine Byers

Had an amazing time here.

Trent McRae

Beautiful area, lots of hiking and rocks to climb on.

Anna Stephenson

A great place to kick around for the day. Hiking trails, picnic areas and lovely surroundings. If you are a rock climber it is a great place to climb. I loved watching the climbers!

Mercedes Matthews

Fun for kids and for a good hike. The Reserve is beautiful!

Jonah Small

Visited over a weekend for climbing. Absolutely loved the granite and became a big fan of the grippy nature of this rock. Visiting here - especially when going deeper into the city - felt like a surreal playground where hikers and climbers could spend weeks and still feel entertained. I loved the networks of huge granite structures interlaced with greenery. The trails were well maintained.

Austin Garrett

My family has been staying here for generations, even before it was a National Reserve. Great place to explore and enjoy, its cold except for the middle of summer. Bathtub Rock is a good place to start. Mecca for rock climbers.

Steve Hetherington

A lot of history here... Besure to stop at visitor center for information

Tyson Whiting

Awesome for all ages.

Darcie Porter

Amazing. The hiking is great even for small children. Our kids aren't athletic but all enjoyed camping our four year old all the way up tp our twelve year old and everyone in between. Its fun and beautiful. There are lots of rocks that can be climbed safely without ropes.

Arthur Brown

This place is remarkable. Decent granite climbing in the middle of farm central. Bathrooms all over the place, and fun easy trails like Window Arch that our kids loved. Also, very cool historical place, with emigrant rock. I was bugged that ranchers can just let their cows wander and defecate everywhere, and that half of the good climbs are on private, closed off ranch land. I would like to see more of it purchased by the federal government and protected.

Matthew Robinson

This is a neat piece of the world

T/ T S

Great get away for families with amazing scenery!

Mike Needham

Love to spend time here in the fall when the leaves are changing. Such an incredible experience. Make sure you hit up Rock city for pizza.

LB Whip7

Something beautiful everywhere you look.

Todd Redfield

This is a must see area with amazing rock formations and historic remnants of those distant travelers heading west in their wagons. This is a great place for a day trip and hiking or a place to camp and stay with various camping options for RV’s and Tents alike. It never grows old and it is also fun to watch the rock climbers, from all over the world. If your in the area, this place needs to be a part of your visit and plan. You will not regret seeing this amazing place and experiencing all it has to offer.

Elizabeth Davis

Really pretty park. The bathrooms were pit toilets but were very clean. Not much water available so bring some with you. More leaning towards trad climbing or long sports pitches, my 70m rope wasn’t enough for a bunch of the climbs. Lots of routes available so even on a long weekend (4th of July) we were able to find uncrowded places. The campsites are nice with good views and fire pits

Cindy Anton

Awe inspiring. I had no idea that the California trail went thru here. The signature rocks were amazing. The rocks were beautiful

Yuezhou Wang

It is a hidden gem of Idaho. I came to this park after visiting the Golden Spike NHS. The GPS led me into a 15-mile of dirty road. There should be more signs to direct the visitors into this area. The rock formation is amazing.

John Anderson

Fun camping sites in towers of rock. One of my favorite places in idaho.

Celtic Nomad

Great park?

Stephen Alger

Beautiful park. Loop was tough but not too bad.

Elsie Anderson

This is a great place for climbers the bolting is great and we have had a great time with the rangers there they were very polite and respectful my adcice is to get to the campsites asap if your using them though we've had ours stolen onece or twice even though we reserved it , the rangers have told us that even if they have closed up the station though that we should go knock on their door and they would help great climbing and great gear atatchments my recommendation is to go

Lindee Lou Hendrix

Spectacular if you are into geology.

Jason Keller

One of the most beautiful places I have ever been still have lots of places to explore

Haley Taylor

Endless fun! Climbing for every age and absolutely gorgeous views. They also have tons of camping spots up here and bathrooms.

Casey Carlsen

Really neat area to explore. Need to be more short bolted short routes.

Lynn Catlin

Amazing hiking and climbing - excellent sunrise, sunset, and solitude during mid-week even in high season of tourism (Genearlly May-June and Sept.)

Brooke Wayment

Such an amazing experience! We did the rock climbing program and it was incredible. Our guide Ryan was super helpful, inspiring, and great. He helped us feel confident and safe. We were with him for around 3 hours and we got to try several climbs. I would really recommend coming to the city of rocks if you love rockclimbing or want to get into it, or if you just love beautiful views.

Gretchen Rowe

City of Rocks is absolutely STUNNING. This is one of my favorite places to visit. Whether you come just to walk around or to do some climbing, it's a gorgeous place. There are TONS of climbing routes here, though not quite as many if you're a beginner. The top roping is a little scarce and a little hard to find. If you can lead climb, there's plenty to do, but there are a few more routes for trad climbing than for sport. If you have beginners, it helps to lead climb something and turn it into a top rope for them. But there are also some very beginner-friendly lead climbs. You will definitely want to invest in a book and plan where you will go ahead of time so you can hit up as many climbs as possible. It's also really nice that there is a water spigot and bathrooms near Bath rock. And you can drive quite close to any rock you're interested in with a short hike to get there. You will definitely need a pretty long rope for a lot of these climbs. Definitely look into equipment required in the guidebook before coming. City of Rocks is free admittance and only about $15 per night if you get a camping spot there. Castle Rocks costs $5 for admittance. Both are worth the visit.

Norma Martin

Can hardly wait to see it.

Tyler Hurst

Great place to go and play. The only complaint is the roads. Rough and washboard all over. Needs better maintenance.

Ricky Schulz

Great place to sight see and hiking on trails. Great place to camp with easy access.

Derek Larsen

Magical rock in the city! #climbhard #augustweatherinjune #sachorama

Kathy Saville

Always wanted to see it and finally got there. It was awesome. Quite far from any main road. But maybe that is one thing that was cool.

Susie Q

What a gorgeous day my older son and I had on our visit. The sky was dark blue and free of cloud or breeze. The temperature of the air was perfect, and we watched climbers ascend to the top of Elephant Rock, and repel down again. The Message Rock was fascinating with it's fading messages and mud nests way up high! Such a beautiful, peaceful, and spiritual place!

Timothy Williams

We would move there if possible!!!

John Stinnett

This is a one of a kind place that will take your breath away!

Hilary Neilson

This place is a rock-climbing mecca! Even if you're not a formal climber it seems like a fun place to hike and scramble around. There are really awesome pay campsites in the park or free camping nearby (sorry, i dont know the name of the road, use the ioverlander app). In terms of rock climbing, wow. Go here.

Jeanne Bristol

Rocks, rocks, rocks. Interesting historical site. Had no idea this existed. Visitor Center had a nice movie and small gift shop.

lucas strauss

Beautiful, out of the way, great campsites. Water and bathrooms. Even some data signal is possible, if you know where to park. Totally worth the long drive in. I took the long way out, and it was a great drive.

Dan

Fantastic rock formations. In the summer months remember to bring water. It can be very hot.

Jacob Richens

Epic big, epic wild.

Heather Wright

Loved it. Very peaceful.

Robert Kervian

Amazing place for camping, hiking and climbing.

Lynn Dines

Very interesting.

J Lamb

Great for hiking and climbing. Campsites are decent. Schedule them online.

Rose Durfee

Tons of rocks to climb without needing gear, lots of hiking trails, lots of historical stuff. Cool place to visit.

Russell Eggleston

One of my favorite things to do

Leona Alexander

This is one of the most beautiful places in I've been to in Idaho! Great trails and incredible views!

Shannon McAvoy

Ended up here during our roadtrip because we got smoked out of CA. This place is amazing. Tons of great climbing. Hit the rocks early to beat the crowds.

Jennifer Richardson

Fantastic day thank you

MIKE BECK

beautiful even if your not a rock climber but if yoy are, what an extra treat.

Caleb Hiatt

Love climbing in the city. It's such a great place. World class. I wish there was more camping available. Also a lot of people don't leash their dog so be ready to deal with their dog while you climb.

Skylar Cromarty

Super fun please to go.

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Great time exploring

07hog

Beautiful place, excellent for hiking, biking, climbing. The rock formations and views are just amazing. Highly recommend for families, children, or just friends hanging out outdoors.

Finley Butler

Very beautiful and welcoming place

Harrison Vashro

Beautiful, it's hard to believe this is in Idaho. Little to no cell phone service.

Chip Olsen

Love the rock!

Lonnie Huffman

Very interesting rock formations abound here.

Paul wood

What an amazing place!

Sofia Behling

Beautiful land. Loved doing the driving tour since I had some health issues before my trip and wasnt able to hike as much as I wanted to.

Josie Wilson

Great place to camp and let the kids climb on the rocks. Watch out for the low growing cactus. Bring some tweezers... my kids had a blast. Facilities were clean and well stocked. Reservation policy is a bit of a bummer, though. People reserve a spot and the whole area gets booked but sometimes people don't show and the site goes unused. Beautiful area and we will go back!

Alex

Very very surprised this is not a national park

Robert Cynthia Danielson

Great place to hike around.

patty mcrory

Love this out of the way park. Beautiful camping sites overlooking the rock formations. A worthwhile detour off the main driving routes.

April Parry

Long day, incredible drive and views! Perfect weather, thunderstorms and beautiful skies!

Cyndi P-L

Great place. Go early so it’s not too hot. Dry camping. Lots of trails to hike. Rock climbing galore.

Johndebi Hillan

"The City of Rocks" never disappoints you!!!... Whether you're a tourist site seeing person or a rock climbing fanatic, everyone will have a wonderful time. I really like how the campsites are set out, and the restroom facilities where clean and plentiful. With a little imagination , some of the rock structures look like giant sky scrappers and assorted animals.

Jennie Wilcox

We go every year! This is an amazing place to go with the family, but bring a guide. There are only a few suitable routes for kids!

Todd Dashwood

Great place to take the kids! So many places to explore my kids love coming here! Highly Recommended!

Megan Webb

Beautiful place, but definitely full of people during this part of the season. Be prepared for very rough roads. Don't need a 4x4 for most of the park, but you'll be bouncing around a lot. Just a warning.

ross hamand

Busy, but a great climbing destination.

Josh Ashdown

This place is amazing! I love to climb around all the rocks and explore. This is a great place to camp with kids that are old enough to run around and be safe. It really is a gem of a location.

Mary O'Malley

Beautiful terrain, good hiking trails, fun to watch the rock climbers. But the road into and through the park is not paved, so not a great idea to bring a sedan or car with low clearance onto the very rugged road. If you decide to go stop in to the Visitor Center to discuss your plans with the very knowledgeable rangers.

Derek Lee

Went and spent a few days up here. Unique landscape with lots of different places to climb. We have young children and they loved climbing all over the smaller rocks. We camped right by a rock which the kids loved that they could climb all over it while we were in camp getting meals ready. The camping spots are spread all throughout the park by all the different rock formations which makes for some fun spots to stay in.

Jose Luis Teran

Is beautiful place

Marc H Price

Beautiful area

Chadwick Law

The people there were driving around hooting and hollering. It looked like a bunch of college kids and high schoolers having a keg party. The campgrounds were messy trash everywhere. Don't forget to reserve your Camp spot six months in advance. To me it looks like rock climbers know how to ruin everything. It is a beautiful place.

Robert Olsen

Out of all the National Parks I've been to. This place has the cleanest outhouses I've used. They are probably cleaner than the toilet in my house.

Cheyenne Olsen

Love the trails and rocks to climb. Good areas to picnic. Great picture opportunities as well.

Jenn Holt

Loved it here, would have liked to camp. Will definitely return to camp among the giant rocks one day. Graded 37 mile dirt road into the park, so don’t come in a sports care. Really cool park if you like geology or astronomy (dark sky park).

Clifford Godby

...BREATHTAKINGLY AWESOME SCENERY...PEACEFUL,SERENE,BEAUTIFUL .

Taigan Neibaur

Awesome outdoor playground for all ages. Great camp spots, trails, mountain biking, bouldering, and climbing.

Tony Romero

Great place to visit.

Sheena Harper

Amazing park with inspirational geological vistas!

Bdt

I truly underestimated this place it's not just a pile of rocks it's what mountains would look like if there was no dirt left.

Amanda Drake

Very beautiful natural creations. The staff at the visitor center was amazing at engaging my lil ones and answering any questions that they had.

David Tilley

Excellent campgrounds, excellent hiking trails. The area isn't just for serious rock climbers, the whole family will enjoy the hikes and the scenery.

Jamie Barrett

Love it!

Shane Scott

Cool place!

Mark Shaw

Beautiful scenery, first class rock climbing. Camping is available and is considered remote. A excellent day or multi day trip.

Suzanne House

Awesome scenery and great, well laid out campsites. Lots of space. It was really cold and windy when we camped there this week. Note to parents of school aged kids: Great place for kids and bikes, do be mindful that some of these campsites have dangerous dropoffs right in them.

Ryan Carter

Great campground off the beaten path. Beautiful views from many of the sites. Water only available in a central location, bring a container to carry back to your site. Very affordable and available for online reservation

Jason Mendenhall

Fun hikes. You can also enjoy rock climbing and camping.

McKay Harper

Great place to find pine nuts!

Ben McClary

Displace is very cool and I wish we had more than a couple of hours to explore it.

Craig Caldwell

Nice place to climb rocks.

Alex Wilson

Great climbing, birding, and trails

Jacob Lugaresi

Great views and great trails. Nice nature spot to see nature

Matthew

City of Rocks Natural Reserve is truly magical. I stayed at site 15, upon recommendation from a family member, and it was incredible. Truth be told, after checking out every campsite, I would be happy anywhere. So many campsites (50+), and they are all unique. I visited in mid-April. I enjoyed some broken sun when I first arrived, though the weather shifted to windy, and snowy by the next day. It was cold, and hampered some activity, but It created a wonderfully moody experience for views, and I still explored a bit after I bundled up. The second day I was the ONLY person in the entire park! The first day, there were three! In the middle of the night the storm broke for a bit, and I was awoken by multiple hooting owls. It seemed like 4 or 5 owls at varied distance hooting, it was really special and unusual (that many owls at once). Staff at the visitor center in Almo were knowledgeable, friendly, and very helpful.

Carol Stringer

Lots of interesting rock formations and scenic views. There are some hiking trails off the first overlook that we explored and enjoyed. This place also has some cool history with the graffiti from settlers on the california trail. Unfortunately this park is kind of in the middle of nowhere so be prepared to drive a while (and even on dirt/gravel roads) to get there.

Jeff Hagen

A surprising geologic wonder in Southern Idaho. However the day I went the weather was quite hazy and warm from surrounding wildfires. I think it would be gorgeous in the fall or spring. Definitely a great place to embark on rock climbing with somebody who is experienced. It is also remote enough that if you were to Camp there on a clear night you could probably get excellent stargazing opportunities.

MARCEL L'HEUREUX

Gravel Road makes it a little difficult to access but experience very worthwhile.

Tanner Zilles

Yoit mc-yoiters. Who knew there was just a copious amount of bad dog granite in Idaho? What a cool place to climb or just scramble around!

James McDermott

The rock formations are awesome! This is a fun place to take kids and let them climb around on some big boulders. There are plenty of places for varying levels of experienced climbers too. The campgrounds are nothing fancy - you're in the wilderness, so just be prepared. Be smart about your activities too because the nearest medical facilities are pretty far away if you get seriously injured.

Drew Buck

Pictures of it are awesome. But nothing like being there. One of my favorite places to be

Rich Cower

What an amazing place.

Jason McGee

Beautiful place to go camping and hiking. The rock formations are gorgeous through the park. I am not a rock climber, but I understand this is a rock climbing paradise. The campground amenities in and around the park may vary, but there is something for everyone and they are all well kept. My wife and I plan to return soon to continue hiking and exploring the park.

Brian Melle

What an amazing place. Lots to see and rocks to climb. We are not climbers but we had lots of fun climbing around and hiking with the dogs. All of the campgrounds were full so we camped out the west side on the BLM. Other than the cows on the range it was a nice place to camp.

Patrick K

Fun and free park. Tons of areas for climbing and hiking. I really liked that they had several map posts on the trails to check the route. Bath rock had toilets and trash cans.

j 149374

Bring your sunglasses and hiking boots. A fabulous day trip!

Scott Larsen

City of Rocks is 100% truth in advertising. Great open park with boulders of all sizes, dimensions, and climbing difficulties everywhere. Very little shade so bring your own, hiking and biking trails as well. Great place for big groups.

Ernest

There are granite rocks of different shapes formed by years of erosion.

Brenden McGarrity

Probably my new favorite climbing area within 3 hours of Salt Lake!

Brandon P

I'm a photographer, not a rock climber. Could spend several days here. You'll need a long lens for animals (including the ones that climb the amazing structures with rope and harness), a wide lens for the unique vistas, and a fast lens for the night sky. In each case, you'll likely find yourself with more options than you can shoot! Seriously, you might need more than one camera. One thing I didn't expect: there is some distance between many of the structures. Though the reserve is not large, I expected it to be more compact. That said, you are never more than a few minutes by car from where you want to be.

Cherri Boren

Great place to walk, see rock formations, learn about history. Wonderful place for the family

Vernal Hurst

Love it here so many good climbs

Steve Ellsworth

Stopped to see a few of the features. Difficult to find info on the lengths of hiking trails, but there are many awesome sights to see.

Cynthia P

The rock formations are amazing! You can also watch rock climbers climbing the rock formations. If you’re into camping, plenty of camping sites. Short and long hikes possible.

Tracy Warner

Rock climbing paradise, we go every year for vacation. We even "tied the knot" at City of Rocks. We look forward to our annual trip all year round!

Sarah Leavitt

So amazing. Rock climbing!! Hiking!! Beautiful!!

Bob Gaiser

Great place to see rocks!

Claudiagronberg Gronberg

So fabulous. Nice camping

Mark Iwaasa

If you climb or like to escape the crowds, then this is for you.

Kay Peterson

Fun to go to. But to many people. Next time I will go in late fall.

David Schmidt

The park itself is spectacular. I recommend taking the creekside trail near bath rock. About 1000' in is a view of the rock valley that is just awe inspiring. Camp sites are well spread out, pit toilets are clean and maintained. There is even a free RV dump with drinking water at the park entrance.

Shea Stobaugh

5$ to get in. No camping but excellent climbing. Moose sometimes

Kerry Albright

If you like to climb on Rocks, watch people climb on Rocks or learn about one of the major landmarks on the California Trail, this is a great place. History, nature, wildlife.

Chris Kastner

There are 2 camping areas. The more rustic in the rocks area prefered by the climbing visitors within the National Reserve and Castle Rocks State park, The paved parking with hook ups and great hot showers, nice campground in a juniper forest, campground 2 miles away. Love this place. You can ride or run 2 miles up a sweet trail into the rocks area. Great stop over between Salt Lake City and anywhere north.

Jessica A

Definitely recommend this place. Awesome adventure for whole family. Kids had great tume finding sparkling rocks. Easy accessible by any car. Awesome views.

Susan Herte

Majestic! It was fun watching people climb the rocks... Wouldn't do it myself, but to look at the beauty is astounding! Truly God's handiwork. It is so worth visiting. The camping is about $13 a night, but you can only stay one night.

Jill Brown

Always a new experience going there. New rocks to climb and hikes to go on. I've taken groups of all ages and everyone has enjoyed it.

Stormie Elmer

One of my all time favorite places. There's so much to explore here! It's a phenomenal place to camp, I especially love going in the fall when temperatures are cooler. Rock climbing here is so fun, but you don't have to rock climb to have fun here. If you don't have rock climbing equipment Bath Rock is a great experience and pretty easy to climb up without anything. I think this place is my cat's favorite place to adventure as well! Highly recommend camping here or at least spending the day here!

ArSha Ramiya

Granite rock protrusions are a sight to watch. But if you have seen the magnificent sand Stone formations near Moab, these are minnows.

Makenzie Hurst

Fun easy rock climbing and hiking

Brian Nuttall

Seemed like another world. I would have swore that I was in some video game world.

Julie Corella

They have the biggest rock's

M. Q. Smith

City of Rocks Natural Reserve is administrated through a joint venture between the National Park Service and Idaho State Parks. Located south after exiting I-84 at Burley or Delhi, Idaho (easiest route), it is a park where one must make a dedicated effort to visit. One big issue getting here is navigation. My Prius GPS does not accept many rural Idaho towns, including where the park’s visitor center is located in Almo. After inputting avoiding dirt roads (and not paying sufficient attention), my car’s navigation still sent me via 14 miles of dirt road through Oakley. Warning: if you head south from Burley, one is certainly destined for a lengthy dirt road experience on Hwy 27 into the west side of the park. If exiting from Delco along I-84, a paved backroad along Hwy 77 will take you to the east side of the park and into Almo where the visitor center is located. I have to admit that even with my low clearance Prius, the 14 miles of dry dirt road were well maintained with no washboard or potholes. Unfortunately, weather may change that experience as rain and mud could definitely become a preventable challenge. If entering from the west side via Oakley, the Emery Pass Canyon Road (continued dirt road) does cross easterly through the park to the town of Almo. Emery Pass has an elevation of 6,830 ft. Almo has an elevation of 5,397 ft.

Rebecca Ruda

Incredible rock climbing. Also unlimited fun for kids to scramble around on the rocks.

scott norcross

Awesome climbing

Tracey Price

Love this place, but very crowded these days

Peggy Hess

Great place to visit, tour, and hike.