Reviews of El Malpais National Monument (Park)

Nikki Kindinger

Great for kids to go caving! Free camping at Joe Skeen Campground-- I think we got the last spot for the night. Junction cave was awesome-- it is cool in there. Be sure to get a free permit at the visitors center, and definitely bring a helmet, or get one there because you will need it! If you have kids that love climbing all over everything, this is the place to go!

John Hutchinson

Hidden gem. We did not know that the park existed and that there were lava flows and tubes in New Mexico. We got any early start to avoid the hotest part of the day and found the trail to be spectacular. The wild flowers were beautiful.

Kimberly Sanchez

A must see spot!!! Beautiful place and easy to find

Joseph BoomBotz

Beautiful National Monument to stop by the plants are amazing year and even the stuff the ants build we're amazing in front of the visitor center

Rita Candelario

Very beautiful but we couldn't explore because it was windy.

Peter Mack Grubb

One of the most underrated parks. Caves, off roading, and several different beautiful vista's. Worth the day trip from ABQ.

Sarah Studt

Huge park with lots to explore. Great free campground in the monument

Nick Harrington

I took some teenagers "caving". We went into the bottom of Xenolith Cave. I can not stress enough how much fun it was. The next time we are in New Mexico we plan to spend much more time at El Malpais.

Bob Youens

It was closed when I got there but looked beautiful and worth visiting.

Michelle Chavez

Beautiful rock formations. Great place for hiking and exploring.

Richard Campbell

Great place to hike and enjoy the clean air.

David Borger Germann

We covered Sandstone Bluffs, La Ventana, and the Lava Falls Trail in about 5 hours. And we stopped for a picnic at the Narrows Picnic area (which has lovely, shaded tables). All of these with grade school children that loved it. Highly recommended.

Matthew Jones

Liquid hot mahgmah

Pamela Rutter

Interesting juxtaposition of cliffs and lava fields. Beautiful scenery. Not crowded.

Sarah Guinn

Absolutely beautiful and rugged landscape. Volcanic rock blankets a wide swath of the valley that is edged by fantastic sandstone cliffs and mesas.

justin martinez

Awesome place!!

Nicole Baxter

This is a very beautiful area of New Mexico! The visitor center for the park unit is a huge museum with a ton of information on the history, culture and the geography. The staff were very helpful and provided good info as well as some brochures for private company tours. The visitor center doesn't open until 9am. There are gas stations, travel centers, and restaurants at the exit for the visitor center. The actual park and most of the hikes are about a 30-45 minute drive, but there is an easy hike that starts at the visitor center.

Jason Wayman

A very different landscape but a ton if things to do.

Melissa Conn

Visit the tourist center and get the map to the arch. Its a steep and short hike to the arch. Well worth the trek.

Jason Albritton

There are some fun views, but hiking on the lava flow was not that great. That would not be the place to take little ones, and don't forget to take a lot of fluids.

Mark Boyer

Beautiful drive and nice hikes. Check history center for restrictions during bad weather.

Megan Harmon

This place is so cool! We stopped by on our tour of NM in early March. The rangers at the visitor center are super helpful! We easily got permits for some caves. Unfortunately we were only able to do Xenolith cave because the other road was impassible due to rain. It was so cool tho! We also went down the other road and saw the arch and stuff. Would definitely recommend this national monument!

maureen wielang

One of my favorite places to hike.

Bryce Caster

Lava tubes, ice caves, volcanos, oh my! El Malpais truly has it all. There are a couple different roads through the monument. I would highly recommend spending a day to visit both El Calderon and the La Ventana Arch.

Gwen Sund

It's tough to review Malpais considering how much there is to it. At the visitor center there are trails with some nice views, but if you keep going down the road there's a cliff you can park at, another parking spot with a great arch, and there's a wilderness/grassland to explore that has a giant lava field in it. It's a great place to make a day trip to because it will take a day just to see what's around Malpais, it would take multiple trips to fully explore it. There are so many places to get awesome photos here.

Lazaro Minto

I'd used the toilet before and after.

A H

Highly recommend. Stop at the visitor center off 40 FIRST. The park stops are laid out over 150 mile loop (if you include El Morro, which you should definitely go to as well). Big tubes trail is VERY rough and not for novice hikers or folks with knee or back problems, but well worth the effort for the able-bodied, careful adventurer. Be sure to take the long trail past the carvings at El Morro to the top of the rock. The views are awesome and there's a hidden canyon on the back side of the monument.

Alex Cramer

Absolutely beautiful, amazing variety of terrain. Possibly the prettiest place I've been in new Mexico

David Hamlow

Nature relatively unsullied by excessive human presence. Beautiful to explore. Something for everyone, from seasoned hikers to a couple of 8 year olds.

Brandy Boyd

This is a hidden gem. We would have never known about it had the ranger at the next exit not told us about it while we were stopping to stretch and get some water. The drive down the gravel road is MORE than worth it, even if you feel like your car will be shaken to bits. :) The view is spectacular. There are all these sandstone cliffs to climb over and the lava flows are spread out in the valley below. It was an excellent atop, and well worth turning around and driving back 15 minutes. It will be a required stop for us next time we drive out west.

Cat Warren

If you want to go in to the caves you need to acquire a caving pass at the visitor's center. Sanitize your equipment before entering to protect the bats and be sure to have a high-clearance all-wheel-drive vehicle, the road to big tubes becomes impassable at any hint of water.

Troy Fisher

So many good memories here caving!

Yakov Talavera

A very beautiful place to visit and it's free of charge. The road to the sandstone bluffs is unpaved but the dirt road isn't too harsh. The last couple of times we went didn't have too many visitors which was nice. It let us enjoy the beauty of the landscape in peace. There is a bathroom at the bluffs but no running water. Just a toilet with a hole. Bring your own toilet paper, sanitary wipes, etc. There is also no water fountain so bring your own water, food, snacks.

john knight

Such variety! Volcano tube caving, hiking through sandstone arches and formations, recent lava flows.

Adrianne Elizabeth

Very nice place to visit. The El Calderon trail is easy. The park is easy to find. The view from the sandstone overlook is breathtaking. The lava Tube trail might be a little difficult for large parties or families. I recommend you see this place.

EmmaLia Mariner

These are some of the coolest hikes in New Mexico, and that is saying something. Bring flashlights and explore these natural caves. Just astounding geography, and a great family adventure

Matt Stephens

Amazing caves! Make sure you're prepared they are primitive.

Griz Hiker

Great place for solitude. From lava beds, ice caves, to forest. There's something for everyone. Camping limited to one small BLM camp in the monument, but more available near Grants. Don't miss this place.

Jesse Herrera

Love it

Nancy Needham

Stopped at el calderon rec area and hiked to a few sinkhole caves and a bat cave to watch them come out at dusk except there weren't many that came out..... nice trail though.

Mazie Taplin

Great ace to check out

Edward Gerety

Great Hiking. Easy (mostly), Scenic always. Mentally stimulating.

Jonathan Hulse

This is one of the nicest national monuments in New Mexico. The visitor center is huge and gorgeous with a large museum about the area. The park Rangers are extremely helpful and friendly. The park itself is enormous and requires a bit of driving to see all the sights. You could easily spend a couple full days here seeing all there is to see. This park is such a beautiful place in New Mexico and has rock features that you would expect to see only in places like Utah. The caving is actually really fun, just make sure you do your homework beforehand especially to minimize the spread of white nose syndrome. This is a park that not enough New Mexicans even know about and should be enjoying.

Ellen Bromley

Beautiful scenery. A pleasure to drive instead of the freeway. Nice areas for picnicking.

Jim Byers

Lots of driving. If you enjoy learning about volcanoes, you'll love this place. Go to the museum first for information.

Escobaria Gracilis

Very interesting monument. The lava beds are quite impressive.

Chad Hembree

A nice walk but well off the beaten path if you have limited travel time.

Donna Hatfield

Actually Albuquerque airport

Tim Thunell

Lava tubes were fun exploring.

Seth Newell

A surprising (to me) lava flow just off I-40 that hold some spectacular views like Lava Falls, a lava ampitheatre, sandstone bluffs overlooking a huge flow and a large sandstone arch. Definitely worth a visit!

Wayne Hastings

Beautiful scenery. Hike with concrete trails. Exciting canyon views.......and God looked and saw what He created, and it was good.

M. N.

The staff is very very polite, helpful and informative. They are definitely professional and very well trained. Visiting the caves requires a permit, which is free. Pick your permit up at the visitor center. DO NOT TAKE ANY SUPPLIES YOU MIGHT HAVE USED IN ANOTHER CAVE. There is a fungi going around that can causes bats to die that is found in some caves and they are very cautious to keep it out of New Mexico. Definitely take good hiking shoes, knee pads, elbow pads, lights, extra water and helmets.

Ed Unitas

Nice visit if in area. Not much to see except the arches and lava. However worth the visit. My personal opinion.

Jacob Hanson

Super fun!! Great stop on the the way to Las Vegas, definitely worth the 12 dollar entry. Take the trail to the ice caves and to the volcano, awesome hike!

Brian W

We hiked the lava falls trail and lava bowl with a dog and a 4 year old. Had a great hike and thoroughly enjoyed the terrain and different lava formations. It's a short hike, but memorable. Will be back

Geoffrey Johnson

Beautiful !

Sean Bakke

Gorgeous area. A must see if traveling in NM

Michael Williams

Fantastic views if you like this type of thing

Martha bosley

Beautiful!

Fred Clause

Beautiful Visitors Center and practically unlimited trails. The landscape is outstanding and it's not as hot as you'd expect.

Linda Quintana-Martinez

Beautiful scenery!

HuskerMagna

Very interesting rock formations here.

Joe Gomez

Absolutely Beautuful

Terrie Bolinger

Beautiful place. High desert.

Ann Brooks

Some of the narliest trees ever. Spectacular views.

Gary Bearden

Good place to hike. Large lava bed.

Leo saldana

Beautiful

Luigi Blackfoot

Who knew there was a huge lava field right in the middle of New Mexico? Unless your from the state or have driven through you probably didn't. We were advised of El Malpais by some locals and decided to check it out. We only planned on driving through but ended up spending the whole day there. The views from the overlook are spectacular and walking in lava tubes 3000 miles outside of Honolulu was not anything I ever thought I would do! This is a must visit local if you find yourself in New Mexico. If you found my review helpful or informative, please click the like icon!

Cyndie Hogg

We loved

mary

So cool to see!

Michael Strong

Natural beauty! Wind and water worn sandstone cliffs. I could hear the drums of my ancestors calling to my soul. I didn't see it all this time but, I will next time. Wow!

tom jackson

Bring a humming bird feeder for a lot of action!

Kathleen Loepker

Just beautiful! SO different.....especially since I'm from the Midwest!

Berry Langford

Great day trip!

David Sun

Lots of varied terrain to hike and sightsee in. Check out th visitor center to learn about all the options.

Jatin Agrawal

Whole region is pretty good with lava formations. Quite a few trails with some being tough. There are quite a few caves as well

Patricia Bonilla

Beautiful

N R

Neat place to see if you haven't.

Carolyn Meritt

Bring your flashlights the lava caves are so fun!!!! Don't forget to get your free permit at the visitors center.

Billy Bowling

Great little campground

Vernon Garcia

Please drive safe out this way

Darryl Olson

Sandstone Bluff is a very scenic outlook over the El Malpais monument. A trail runs below and parallel to the Bluff.

Dawn Gibson

Awesome place

Kris Edwards

Very interesting place to hike. Lots of sights

Karen Krawczyk

This is really something to see. It's a beautiful place. We were there July 2016 and stayed in Joe Skeen Campground which is free dispersed camping. It rained every day late in the afternoon but was sunny for most of the day.

jim mcdonell

A lovely national monument just off I-40 near Grants, NM. The park is a large lava field with the youngest lava in the continental United States, the product if a large number of new extinct volcanoes. The are several hikes in the monument, including a short trail to an arch and a longer trail across the lava field. There are no campgrounds in the monument but back country camping is available. The town of Grants is nearby.

Omi S

My favorite recreation spot in New Mexico so far. Nice easy touring roads, tons of hiking and lots of scenic spots. Bring your camera and plan to add 2 days to any trip so you can fit in extra sightseeing

Cin Guardian

Beautiful Hiking and Beautiful scenery.

Jim Crosby

Spectacular views of the lava flows.

Andrea Gold

I highly recommend getting off of I-40 and checking out at least part of this very special park. I had no idea it was there. The volcanic formations are amazing and go for miles and miles. The sandstone formations are just as fascinating. No cost to visit this park.

Stephanie Ehat

New Mexico’s best kept secret! The visitor center is beautiful and the staff is very helpful. We’ve taken two large groups threw the caves and everyone has loved it. The ages of the hikers have ranged from 3-70 and everyone has been able to do it. Wear pant and get a headlamp and enjoy your time down under! So fun!

Adam Graham

Just got finished with this place. Awesome. Make sure to get a permit and go caving. It is dangerous getting down to a lot of them, but so fun. We really enjoyed big Sky Cave and 4 holes. The road to get there, cr 42, does indeed require a 4x4 especially during monsoon season. An AWD vehicle like a subaru could have some issues when the raod is wet. You def dont want to get stuck out there. We took our FJ and there were some real muddy spots. only ran into one group of people the entire time at the park, and it was a group of NASA scientists deep into a cave. The arch was a fun thing to see if you are just driving through and don't have time to explore....but this place is all about the caves

Sue Vess

Very unique park. I was on the BLM side. Free campground that was very very nice. Small visitor center with ranger to answer questions. Interesting geology, hiking trails for all levels and lengths. The lava field trail takes you out into lava mounds that look so desolate yet there are small trees that manage to survive. Or climb up the bluffs and get a birds eye view for the lava flows.

Kenny Dillingham

There is more to this place than most will ever figure out. So many hidden jewels. Arches, lava tubes, ruins sites and lots of solitude to list a few things. You could spend weeks here and still not see everything. Rangers typically helpful too

Michael Ratcliff

The best part was the arches in the narrows. Beautiful geological feature. Forgot to get pics. :(

Sue Raichle

Great place. Very nice and informative staff

Chris Philbrick

Too much to see and do here .... But so worth the time

Akif Zaman

Got to stop here on my way to the Bisti Badlands. Landscape wise, this place is as pretty as the Arches National park minus the Arches. (This place has just one).

Conrad Castellino

the area is very rugged and primitive. unmarked trails that u can get lost. use GPS on hikes. part of the INDIAN RESERVATION LANDS. the views stretch for miles.

Valerie Rogers

Very interesting geology in the area and always a pleasure. Depending on which route - 53 or 117 - it's different worlds, so depends on what I'm in the mood for. I prefer the El Calderon trail for hiking.

Chris Sanfino

Sandstone bluffs is impressive especially after a hail storm. So are the lava caves.

Cetan Wakinyan Cetan

Beautiful country trail of lava flows and desert landscapes. A little rough but definitely worth the trouble to see this unique place.

Susann Mikkelson

Beautiful!

Sara Loly

Great Place. As a ornithologist, this is a great place to see birds of the American Southwest (for example: the great bald eagle or peregrine falcon)

Dominic Blaze

Bought land out here it's gorgeous!

Brad Davis

Great hikes from beginner to some more advanced trails. Going down in the caves and out on the lava flows was a blast and the information center staff was extremely helpful and informative. El Malpais is a must-see.

jimmy graham

Very nice hike. A must do at least once in your life.

Heather French

So beautiful. We were driving down the highway and at first glance it looked like there was a wildfire here. But after a bit of research, we found out that a volcano used to be here almost 1000 years ago and we were actually seeing harden black lava. One side of the highway was a black abyss of rock and the other was huge rock cliffs!

Osprey Flyer

Enjoyed hiking and birding the area.

Michael Crabtree

They honor our Second Amendment rights! You can open or conceal carry anywhere in the National Monument except for the visitors centers which are federal buildings. They have clear signs on front doors to remind you. I feel like the staff @ Visitor's Center off the I-40 must be super lonely because everytime I call with a question, they are begging me to come visit, or sometimes telling me to make a long unnecessary trip there for a permit or something else that I could easily get at El Morro. I recommend this place for camping, caving and hunting. I also recommend not going to the Visitor's Center just because the staff tells you to on the phone. Those staff are full of it and maybe they have to hit a quota per month which is why they always try to trap you into going there. But their current building is so far off the beaten path. If you're camping in El Malpais, it's impractical to drive back to the 40 and then back to El Malpais wilderness again. They need to re-open the Visitor's Center that is between El Morro and the 40 and the MAYBE I would visit. Anyways, that's my only beef. The wilderness is very nice. Everyone should do it.

Wendi Smith

A really cool place to visit.

M Wait

Absolutely amazing place, so much interesting history, the last true deadzones, lava as far as you can see and cliffs too tall to scale, im glad i took that wrong turn before grants and stumbled upon this place, warning no gas station for almost entire road off freeway, refill at the exit, or you will be stranded in the most beautiful place ever

Laura Lewis

Nice, peaceful, scenic route.

Larry Barney

Beautiful scenic drive pretty colors

Deems Family

Amazing beautiful place. I would recommend stopping here to anyone traveling through.

Jackie O

Should I stay or should I go? Well I went. This place awesome. Hiking in the lava area is amazing. Although hard on your body as the terrain is very uneven. Don’t even think about falling, but if you surrender your self as you fall. I took a couple of tumbles as I was exiting the tube. I am ok. I am a avid hiker, so this a sort of an easy hike if you are in shape. Wear long pants and long sleeves in case you happen to fall. Be sure to bring a headlamp and heavy duty gloves, they are helpful when giving on to sharp rocks. Should you find yourself with some free time, step back in time to the lane tubes. It’s about 1:45 to the trail head from Albuquerque. Early Spring the roads can get very messy and muddy. AAA won’t make here, so check with the park office before heading there. The drive is really very beautiful. I saw lots of beautiful cactus during my visit there. Go out and. explore, but be prepared with all the usual stuff for safety.

Collin Hoffman

Truly incredible. There were lots of hiking trails and easily accessible lava tubes that you could climb in and explore. The area around it was real strange because it was almost like a mix between a forest and a desert and God just couldn’t make up his mind on what it should be so he just made it both. The weather was perfect, at least when I visited. The cinder cones themselves are amazing, even the smallest one is over 1000ft across and when you’re in the crater of it, you can really feel it’s size. Definitely worth visiting.

duane mousseau

I always enjoy the El Malpais. It's part of the ancestral homeland of Haak'u, the Pueblo of Acoma!

Ariana Bingell

Absolutely beautiful!

DJ's Travels

Great free campsite. Windy this time of year.

Latricia Meyers

This was a beautiful roadtrip.

Nancy Crocker

Great place, friendly people at the visitor center.

Paul Skelly

Great views, easy to drive on road running through it. Not recommended for young children, good for hiking or driving through. My favorite place in new Mexico

Richard Shackley

Picturesque.

S A

We hiked 2 trails. 1 was la ventana ..it was snowing and the other was the Lava rock trail. Both are less than a mile hikes. Easy and not dangerous trails. No services available at La ventana. 1 restroom available at Lava. You are on your own. Be safe. Its kid friendly.

Diana Brockington

Crazy stunning!

Delores Beckman

Great free camping , had toilets.

Joe Shmoe

Nice hikes.

Donna Caligiuri

This is off the beaten path but well worth the trip! Hard to believe the ice cave never gets above 31 degrees. It was 89 on the surface the day we were there walking down the steps the temperature difference between steps is mind blowing

Corry Jaramillo

Awesome place

eathan shelton

Hiking was nice

Stephanie Grenadier

As a photographer, I loved the landscape here. The volcanic rocks, unique flowers and little details of the light and shadows were beautiful to me. I did not get to spend enough time here and will return.

Jenifer McIntosh

Absolutely gorgeous!

Fred Van Haelst

Nice place alot of hicking trails

Peter Dutcher

It is very pretty out there. Suggest stopping at the Ventana Arc and the Sandstone bluffs. They are cool things to explore and the walls are short.

Jodineugenius

My very favorite destination in the area by far! I was amazed by the breathtakingly beautiful scenery. My only complaint is that we got a bit of a slow start and I could have easily spent many more hours exploring this magnificent area. Highly underrated and under discussed with the locals. If you love nature and photography this is an absolute must!

Ken and Alicia Lund

Beautiful lava flows surrounded by sandstone cliffs and mountains. Scenic destination well worth visiting in New Mexico.

Donald Nielsen

The view from the Sandstone Bluffs Overlook is breathtaking and is so quiet. You can climb on the rocks, but be careful and don't get to close to the edge because it's a sheer cliff a couple hundred feet high. Also, the road to the overlook is gravel/dirt that becomes impassible when wet.

Bruce Chapin

Beautiful, rugged scenery.

Clinton Justus

Beautiful place

Candee Brossman

So much to see if you're a rockhound and formations nut! Drive slow and take it all in.

Kinsey Cooper

This is a truly spectacular place. There are many great things to see with no or limited walking such as la ventana and the sandstone bluffs and there are also lots of opportunities for as long as a hike/walk as you like. Lava falls is about a mile and the there is a loop that is a little over three. Plus, the lava tubes are incredible but wear pants, long sleeve, gloves and closed toed shoes to go in far because they are sharp. And while dogs are welcome here, there are lots of places with lava rocks that can be sharp on their feet (lava falls and the tubes) so be aware of that. Also, if you have a little extra time, Acoma Pueblo is about 30-45 minutes away and is an interesting, educational trip and offers some great views and cool shopping opportunities.

Charles Burrier

Spectacular

Dee Larson

Helpful and very knowledgeable staff! Nice place, gained a lot of knowledge about the local geology quickly! A must see.

Diego Martinez

Simply a unique experience, and the most volcano-like volcano in the state

Rolanda Lahi

Beautiful scenery!

Clayton Dosier

Absolutely gorgeous

Spencer McBee

Very fun to hike around the park. The volcanic field is pretty cool, and so are the cinder cone hikes. Not very crowded.

Pratyush Gupta

One of a kind, off the road, beautiful hidden gem. Must visit for someone who loves natural formations.

Pete Hughes

Excellent park. Rangers quite helpful. Lava Tube hike awesome but diffucult. Go prepared!

timmy Klark

Great place.. I absolutely loved it...

Douglas Ettelson

Breathtaking! La Ventana Arch and Sandstone Bluffs...

Karen Lloyd

Always a great drive! Lava fields on one side on NM-117 and sandstone cliffs on the other side. Road goes from Grants to NM-36 and is 57 miles. South of sandstone cliffs is 1000s of acres of cattle ranch(s). Watch for Elk and Antelope! This area gets tons of rain in summer, too. There are a few stopping points, not in any specific order. (1) Ranger Station has great resources for hiking, geological and volcanic history, and camping areas; (2) Acoma-Zuni Trailhead: (3) Lava Falls (not too impressive); (4) Sandstone Cliffs-great view; (5) Natural Bridge had awesome photo opportunities, beautiful when sun shines through (a must see of all stops); (7) Campground; (8) Picnic Area; (9) Chain of Craters - long dirt road drive to get to off 117, have not gone to them, yet.

Christopher Loch

Definitely worth stopping for if you have an hour or two in your schedule.

Bavette Goes Mobile

Beautiful drive and view at sandstone bluffs and la ventana natural arch

Renee Chavez

Today was an absolutely beautiful day to be out exploring El Malpais and surrounding areas. I would highly recommend a day trip.

Greg Guerin

Fascinating geology.

Veronique Vanhooren

Cool national park . A lot of things to do .