Reviews of Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument (Tourist Attraction)

jill sexton

nice archeological site but be prepared for dicey climb up mountainside to see it. wear sensible shoes and be in decent shape.

Starzell

Very interesting to think of people living in this place 3,00 years ago

kevin staamp

This was interesting but not sure it was worth a 90 minute ride down a snake path to get there. Seriously it took an hour and a half to get there. The whole hike took 30 minutes. You could spend as much time as you wanted looking around. The dogs were unreal. After hiking up to the cliffs we had a picnic and it was hard to enjoy the beautiful scenery with the dogs locked in the kennel. If you like long rides on 15-25 MPH roads then this is for you.

James Moser

It was well worth the $5 per person, and the drive up there was quite beautiful and winding. Approximately a mile hike to the dwellings, was beautiful and and you could just feel the history as you walked to the cave dwellings. The Gila River was also very picturesque flowing through the valley

Chris Adams

This was a really enjoyable hike and was really worth the drive they let you walk inside the monument really amazing

Brittany Lasseigne

Totally worth the drive. Amazing scenery and structures. Best NP rangers I've ever encountered too.

Tim G

A must see at least once in your life! Amazing site to visit and not terribly hard to get to.

Cassidy Villano

Lovely hike and informative historic monument. The staff are very friendly here. We will be back to camp overnight in the future.

Lydia Gentile

I was TOTALLY AMAZED! A must see in your lifetime. The hiking was part of the experience. It's a steep hard trail. If you have disabilities think twice. Absolutely no wheelchairs. If you can't walk for an hour don't do it. Very steep ! Breathing problems would be another reason not to visit. Go early in the day. I heard that admission is free NOW! It was $5 each. Double check. Beautiful scenery wildlife and knowledgeable rangers round out the experience. No camping on the grounds, not much close by. Prepare ahead bring food and water. Quite Isolated. Very long slow drive to get here, about 2.5 hours from Silver City which is 1.25 hours from Deming. Can access from other side of the mountain also. Visit the Elks Crossing restaurant which is about an hour out on way to Silver City. This is a very rural area not a tourist theme park. Must like driving and being in nature and roughing it. Views are spectacular. Not recommended for children under 6 in my opinion. I have left out alot of good photos because I don't want to spoil it for you. So here's your teasers. Hard to show the steepness also. Please my photos are not public or for reproduction

Criss Dizick

Interesting place, you can walk the loop and see how they lived. Parking is not the very best UT most go to the museum. Worth the trip

Eddie Luce

Our experience here was awesome. My husband and I visited the dwellings the first week in May 2017 .We got a late start coming out. The volunteer that day was Linda. She was very knowledgeable. She let my husband use her walking stick shared her water and helped us get to the bottom. I would like to nominate her for volunteer of the year. She worked at a local hospital

Bruchpilot1982

Nice place for a little hike also with kids.

J. Mark Coulter

Little bit of a winding road to get there, but the dwellings are spectacular. The guides know so much and kept the kids engaged. It's probably just a matter of time before visitors are no longer permitted to walk among the ruins due to how heavily worn they're becoming. Nice little hike to get to them from the ranger station.

Mark Boyer

Beautiful drive on a National Scenic Byway to the monument. Beautiful 1 mile hike for the cliff dwellings.

Ron Jones

Worth going to if only for the hour or so drive through some beautiful scenery. And the monument itself is fascinating. They let you go into the ruins and actually touch them. You can see things like hand prints in the clay. Absolutely wonderful place to visit.

Marco Ponton

This park is great! To be able to walk and visit homes where Mogollon people lived 700 years ago is quite a feeling. The trail to get there is also very nice. Rangers were super friendly and helpful as usual. Definitely recommend.

Clifton Floyd

(Easy)1 Mile Hike in, 1 Mile Hike Out. Awesome to see. There are other trails. I plan to go back to do the trail that follows the river. Beautiful winding road thru the forest.

Heather Furr

Beautiful hike. Stunning ruins. Plenty of park staff for questions and help on the trail.

Nicolas Martinez

Good place to visited

Robert Aberegg

Extremely interesting and well presented. It’s a nice, vigorous hike...but not a long one. I was pleasantly surprised at the cleanliness (lack of negative impact by the public) and the fact it wasn’t crowded.

Brian Holle

Amazing, amazing. The 700 foot hike up to the dwellings is beautiful along the spring fed creek. They let you walk around in the caves and some of the buildings. And the people that built this place only lived here for 30 years. Wow

Clara Kammann

Fun walk, takes 2 hours of extra driving off the main road. Some of the rangers are nice, others a a chore to talk too.

Emily Stanker

Thank you for such a once in a lifetime experience.Very well maintained

Vic Hanson

A fairly easy, short hike to the cliff dwellings, it is nice that you can actually walk through them and see them up close.

Izetta Morris

This place is a real gem in the Southwest. The cliff dwellings are an easy one-mile hike and the trail is easy for most levels of hikers. If you are in this lart.of the world, the cliff dwellings should be a stop on your itinerary.

Sally Schroeder

It was great. The Cliff Dwellings were great and the guide was very informative.

Christina Kemprecos

What an amazing, wonderful, spiritual place!!!

Krystal Genest

Amazing place! Very peaceful. You can feel and see God's work while you're walking up to the dwellings. There you see a masterpiece of time. It was worth the insane roads to get there, just to see what was.

patti triviso

First time i ever went there!!

David J Camarena

This is a must if you're in southwestern New Mexico! Ideal for a day trip with the family .

Scott Brockwell

This is one of the easiest Cliff dwelling sites to access in the National Parks system. And it is beautiful, and well worth it.

John Decoster

Awesome for kids

Holly Hargrove

Absolutely Amazing ❣️

Rebecca Curran

An amazing step back in time. The hike is beautiful, the cliff dwellings fabulous and the volunteers are extremely helpful! The road to get there is crazy but well worth it, r especially if you are not the one driving!

nigel jackson

What a place! A must see

Mah booty christen

My family and I came here on a Sunday and I have to say, I wish we would have come with more time to explore the immense park. It is worth the drive from silver city. I highly recommend this place .

Escobaria Gracilis

Very nice national monument. Very nice trails and the dwellings are great. These dwellings are not as grandiose as Mesa Verde but they are nonetheless very interesting and beautiful. The walk up to the cliffs is fairly easy and attractive.

S Go_KonG

A beautiful and scenic area that has amazing and jaw dropping views that you get to witness before getting to the park.

Norma Martin

Got good directio9

Greg Jackson

Worth the drive and the hike. Strenuous for some. People were doubling back short of breath. It's only a 600 ft elevation change over a mile; put down the Marlboros and move around a little!

Lex Patterson

Best one ...of all the Cliff Dwellings !!!

John Stansfield

A Beautiful place to visit with great and friendly staff to help you.

Toni Castro

HAD FUN GO WITH COMFORTABLE SHOES ITS A LONG HIKE ALSO HAT TO PROTECT FROM THE SUN BRING YOUR OWN WATER

Norma Ramirez

Had a great time..

M J

Clean. No grafitti. Great volunteers. Secluded. Beautiful

Vince Verdugo

It is so pretty over there me and my wife loved it

Jeremy Newton

INCREDIBLE!!! At first, we weren’t sure if we wanted to “waste” our time. Not a waste of time at all!!! $5 fee for adults. Well worth it. 14 and under are free. The trail up to it is about an easy half a mile. Spend some time talking to the Park Ranger up there about the history and timeline of it all. Absolutely amazing!!!

Eric Thatcher

And when you're two years ago it was fascinating.

Jazzy Ruvalcaba

Had so much fun, the staff was super nice and gave alot of information about everything, so green and pretty, so interesting about the tribes. Would highly recommend!!

Giles Gonnsen

Hundreds of miles of trails and Backcountry camping. If you just want to see the Cliff Dwellings, it is a small hike to the top, with knowledgeable Park Rangers able to educate you on the subject.

Jackie Silva

Just an amazing place to hike.

Julie Arellanes

Absolutely a must see! It's a short hike that just leaves you amazed at how this group of primitive people build these rooms, windows and caves! We went 4/29/19 and the weather was PERFECT for the hike. It was only in the 70's with a nice breeze blowing. They have kennels for your pets. Take a camera, hat/visor, sunglasses and a bottle of water. It's $10 per person to get in and only takes about an hour or so, depending on how many pictures you take. Bring CASH only, they do not take credit cards. After the hike and in your way out on Lower Scorpion just to the right of the bathrooms you can find petroglyphs and then if you go to the left, you can find another mini dwelling.

Sam H

Make sure to bring your Parks pass, if you have one! The hike to and from the cliff dwellings was very easy, only a mile and about 150-200 feet in elevation change. The caves were so tall that a couple stacked Bigfoots could stand up in there. You can spend as much time as you would like in the large cave and either take a wooden ladder back to the trail, or backtrack and go down the stone steps.

Ned Garber

What an incredible place. Well worth the hike up to see first hand how the caves really look.

David Beaudoin

Visiting was awesome, Rangers and Volunteers were great and really hyped up the junior ranger process for my 7 year old. The site speaks for itself and is worth it, but be ready for dozens of miles of paved switchbacks and hairpin turns to get there. The roads are well maintained, but it was still hairy when travelling with said kids sitting awake in the back of the family van.

Papa Cruz

I was take here when I was young. Then I we started taking our son. And we’ve been taking our grandchildren there now. We love coming here. Right before we leave we all take a drive up to Doc Campbell’s post. And get everyone some homemade Ice cream.

Bonnie Davenport

Wow! Free camping, beautiful area, excellent access to ruins, caves and rivers.

someone else

Enjoyed the hike and exploration. Guides were very personable and informative as well. Very pretty area. Secluded and lost cell service half way there but it was fairly easy to find.

Michael Metz

What a wonderful place to visit. Full of history and views. Well worth the crazy drive to get there.

Helen Medina

So beautiful! I want to go back with my whole family to hike up to the dwellings.

Joey Pinili

Prepare for the steps steep hike. Lol! But after that you'll definitely love the view.

S H Rawe

Hiking up and back is easy

James McGowen

Cooler than expected. When I went, you did have to wait for a tour to go see the cliff dwellings in order to protect them. This is only a timing issue if you happen to show up right after a tour already left. You get to walk through a large partially recreated cliff dwelling which is really cool, especially if you've never seen them before. This is a good hour to two hour stop on a road trip, but a bit out of the way from other destinations.

Jim Alexander

From the visitor center to the staff in the cliff dwellings, every employee was helpful, professional, and knowledgeable. The history here is amazing and the displays see the visitor center and at the trailhead help to explain it all from the Anasazi to the Apache to conservators in the modern era. Beautiful scenery to travel through, lots of day use and overnight camping locations, and an education on the history of this enchanting area; don't miss it if you are in the area!

Marcia

Great place to visit, hike, experience nature. Friendly, knowledgeable staff. Long drive to get there but worth it.

Sue R

Beautiful place. It's about a mile long hike some of which is up stairs. The rangers there said equivalent of climbing an 18 story building. It didnt seem bad to us at all, and we are 70ish. It is so worth the climb up there. The views are spectacular. From Silver City it is about a 2 hour drive up to the ruins. Crooked, narrow road but all blacktop and in good shape. Beautiful drive.

Douglas Garner

Awesome. Never been in a 700 year old home before.

Edwin Gaines

Great place.Interesting guided tours.Many enjoyable hikes.

Chris Winnett

Very nice walk. A little off the beaten path but a beautiful drive to get there. Well worth seeing if you have time. You get a close up view and get to go inside some of the dwellings. Steep (in places) 1 mile walk involved.

Ryan Villano

Great historic location!

Tyla Heberle

Lovely place to visit. Bring water and your hiking shoes. Long, but pretty drive.

Shapeless Journeys

Long loopy drive(coming from the South) to this hidden gem. There's a bridge going over the river before the turn to the visitor centre, that leads you to the cliff dwellings. At the start of the trail to the Dwellings you can grab an envelope, write down the date/how many people you're with and the amount of USD on it, before depositing it in a box($5,- pp/$10,- per family). You'll receive a plastified A4 to take with you so you can do a bit of self guiding. It's a 1 mile easy walk through the cliffs, crossing over the river several times. and you're able to see the Cliff Dwellings from the outside as well as climbing ladders into the Cliff Dwellings to get a better view of the different areas. Well worth the entrance fee and very interesting to walk in and around.

Kenneth Labuskes

Amazing trip. The views on the way up here are breathtaking. Joan. The volunteer docent is a National treasure.

Richard PELLECCHIA II

Awesome!! Love the trail, the cliff dwellings are a wonderful sight. Worth the drive to cone here.

berta flores

beautiful

Brandi Sniffer

Beautiful. The staff and volunteers we're friendly and helpful. The trail was well done and walking through the dwelling was so amazing and humbling.

Todd Christensen

Love this place really neat place to visit.

Katie Wilson

Really cool spot. Only a 1 mile loop trail to the cliff dwellings, very well maintained trail. Friendly, knowledgeable rangers at the stations and at the top. I got to the park early and did a few hikes around the area before the actual cliff dwellings hike. Day pass was $10. You can pay with cash or credit card at the main visitor station but only cash at the trailhead.

Shaine Stevenson

Very cool place to visit. Great hiking trails, campgrounds, picnic areas and education experiences for adults and kids alike. Get away from the hustle and bustle and visit this area if you can.

Rhea Galati

One word...INCREDIBLE! Be sure to take the 1 pm tour! Ranger Blake is both highly informative and hilarious. The mystery of the structures and the people that created it will entertain 5-year-olds to 85-year-olds. Dogs are not allowed in the monument and when you get up there, you will understand. There are kennels, but we just left our dogs in our cabin. The climb to the dwellings is not bad and there are plenty of benches to rest if you need them. The altitude will probably be the bigger challenge -- 7,300 feet at the top. One half a mile up and one half a mile back. This monument is worth a hike 10 times longer.

Heriberto Herrera

Gorgeous place, there are a lit of little know petroglyphs in the area if you do some exploring. Please remember to respect the forest.

Matthew Butler

Realively easy hike. Cool site. Worth the drive.

Laura Dixon

Wow! I have seen quite a few cliff dwellings in the Southwest and these 5 caves are spectacular. 1 mile loop with a 185 elevation gain accesses the dwellings. Nice little visitor center with a fantastic book selection on the history and peoples of the area. Worth the 2 hour drive (one way) to get there. A few BLM campgrounds for tents and small RVs available and dispersed camping is allowed anywhere in the Gila National Forest on Hwy 15.

Sai P

Mogollons used these caves around 1200. Pretty awesome to explore this area and see how people lived under these very tough environmental conditions. While there was great progress in other parts of the Globe, for people here it was mostly food, shelter and survival.

Darryl Olson

The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument is located within the first wilderness area created in the United States under the 1964 Wilderness Act. The trail to the Mogollon-built cliff dwellings is well marked and shaded until it reaches the cliff containing the dwellings. The Park Service volunteers at the dwellings are great information resources.

Jason Vosler

Definitely worth the visit!

Claire Hendrickson

One of the few cliff dwellings you can actually go inside. Rangers are all about to answer your questions.

Shane Stephens

The views are amazing, but the trails are steep for people who have mobility issues.

Robert Stavros

Very investing place that was occupied for a couple of hundred years. Take the guided tour to get full appreciation. 900 + steps up to the dwelling. Not recommended for knee challenged individuals

Jerry Gilbert

This nice place to visit but be prepared to hike. Both ways (short and long) offer a bit of a challenge if you are not prepared. Also, bring a bottle or camelbak of water (non-flavored), especially on warmer days. There is a fee station ($10 per person) that is cash only. If you have a National Parks Annual or Senior Pass you do not have to pay the fee.

Brent Ross

A nice mile loop hike. Beautiful scenery. Well preserved ruins

Todd Bassett

Awesome National Park! If you love history and want to see our great American history and culture you should see this area.

Ami Buczek

This is a truly amazing place that should be visited. It should be noted that while it is close to Silver City it took us about an hour and a half to drive out because the speed limit is 25mph and the road is skinny and windy. Be prepared for a slow but scenic drive. Once you arrive be sure to allow for an additional two hours to hike out to and around the cliffs it is a breath taking sight. At the dwellings there was a ranger who was able to answer any additional questions. I suggest watching the video in the visitor center before going out to the site to get some background information.

Troy Squillaci

The cliff dwellings and the surrounding area in the Gila are stunning. Out of all of the cliff dwellings in the Southwest that I've been in, these are probably my favorite. Accessing them and getting back to the parking lot is a one mile easy hike. You can go into these dwellings, they are quite impressive. There is also a ranger station at the bottom with great history documented there. Highly suggested!

Dallas Thompson

Nice walk to some terrific dwellings

Harris Rosenberg

This was a great place to go on vacation if you like the wilderness Hot Springs and to get far away from civilization. There is no Wi-Fi or mobile data available. You drive 50 miles north of Silver City it takes two hours on some really cool mountain roads going into the Gila wilderness. It is a beautiful drive on Highway 15. In the valley. There is the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. The Middle Fork of the Gila River with natural Hot Springs very primitive. There are several free Gila National Forest Campgrounds within 5 minutes of everything. The roads are in great condition and paved. There is a little private General Store snack shop with Wi-Fi and souvenirs. There is a small private pay Campground with camping 8 bucks a night and natural Hot Springs hot tubs and I think cabins for rent. And there is a very small RV park nearby and I think there is an emergency gas station at the General Store. These are all very small and non-intrusive businesses out in the middle of nowhere. The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument to be honest with you I enjoyed the garden and trickling stream once inside the National Monument on the way up to the cliff dwellings it's just a little trickling stream with a lot of delicate plants growing along it and beautiful trees and Rising natural rock walls on the way up to the cliff dwellings really special like under Botanical Garden all natural nothing is cultivated or man-made except the path and the bridges are crossed the trickling stream The cliff dwellings are nice I spent about an hour in them you can go in and there are several rooms and it is very casual and laid-back it is not fantastic but it is special sweet and nice. And there are beautiful views from within the cliff dwellings and it is fun taking photographs inside the cliff dwellings towards the views and the ridges and the pine trees The cliff dwellings feel more like kind of small caves with big openings it was fun talking to the park ranger about the history of the Mogollon Indians who inhabited the dwellings I had a really great day I got there the night before and camped out and spent the entire day in the valley a couple hours of the cliff dwellings really enjoyed the little Garden at the base of the cliff dwellings special neat far out Really enjoyed hiking up the Middle Fork a half a mile to very primitive Hot Springs that had three or four makeshift Rock pools built that were only about 9 in deep but it was private and I was alone yes I wore a bathing suit there are people that go back there and it seems very calm not weird So had a really great time hiking back the Middle Fork. Really great time at the entrance to the cliff dwellings where the little trickling stream is and there's such wonderful delicate plants growing along it and the cliff dwellings were found that was more like being in a museum I mean it was very natural and they did not mess with it much but it wasn't so much an outdoorsy thing as an educational thing being in the dwellings themselves. If you like the wilderness and a lot of variety and no big deals but lots of fun interesting little things to do this is a really great place to go you will probably not have any cell phone service or web or Internet or mobile data or anything back there at all unless you go to the General Store gift shop emergency gas station snack shop where they do have Wi-Fi if you are a customer and probably the RV Park and private little pay Campground I am guessing more than likely would have some Wi-Fi access. But nowhere in the National Forest and nowhere in the National Monument is there any cell service of any kind I was going to stay for a week but I nearby forest fire made me leave due to some smoke in the air the next day so I just left really looking forward to going back someday great place I got tons of pictures if I can figure out how to load them into this review

Kelly crowe

Volunteers to explain things inside the dwellings. Very cool place to visit.

Raul Molina

It was legitness.

Dale Brayden

The 1 mile loop walk through the dwellings is definitely worthwhile. There is a stairway at one end and a ladder at the other, so if you don't like climbing down ladders you'll miss the rim trail. Which is fine since the trail along the river is much more pleasant. The visitor center is mostly gift shop, but there is a display of the archaeology, history, and geology of the area, as well as a 12 minute video about the cliff dwellings.

Shelley Pomeroy

What an incredible place to visit! We were worried about the hike in after hearing it was the equivalent of 18 stories, but it is pretty easy with lots of places to rest if need be. Loved the cave dwellings themselves. Beautiful piece of history!

Robbie Mullis

Awesome. Bring water time shoes

John North

Interesting history, watch the video at the ranger station. Knowledgable guides

AnnJanette Diaz

Great experience!

Tracey Carter

Very interesting! Loved the one mile round trip hike and the volunteers were quick to answer any questions.

Keya Hanson

Beautiful place to visit to learn about the ancient peoples who inhabited this area hundreds of years ago. Great natural history museum. I like the dispersed camping and hot springs along the creek. Easy drive from northern AZ.

Jim Smith

1 mile hike to the dwellings, lots of places to rest on the way. Park Rangers were great! Absolutely beautiful ❤️!

Luke Frerichs

This is quite a way off the beaten path, but as they say, "getting there is half the fun." The dwellings themselves are both impressive and accessible - the park lets you enter them, which is an awesome experience.

Liz Kamerer

I really enjoyed our day trip here. The hike is short - about 1 mile - but a little challenging for anyone with older knees. It is pretty marvelous to be inside the caves and ponder the decisions, experiences and lifestyles of the inhabitants. All of the volunteers and staff were incredibly friendly and knowledgeable. What a great stop!

Adam Chawla

Very neat stuff. Must see if your in silver. So much history and all-around great experience!

Jens-Uwe Walther

Nice and quiet. Wonderful explanation and discussion with rangers

Frances Hornback

Amazing,the hike to the dwellings is short but step can be a challenge if you have breathing difficulties, take your time,rest when needed and make sure you have water.

Roland Rau

Good example, self guided but make sure you are healthy enough to do some minor steep trail walking. Saw a daughter walking her frail mother at the mid way as I was looking down and told myself, never make it, they didn't. I'm not fit myself at 67 and I was a puffin pretty good, but you can do it. Oh, don't go without at least a quart of water and a snack for up top, I didn't and wished I did as it would have made it that much more enjoyable, take 2 hours. Do it, it is worth it! P.S. leave a trailer back at Silver City, it's a steep paved long slow down hill road, sometimes single lane many hairpin curves. Have perfect brakes and full tank of gas, food, water. There is a visitor center but could be closed. You can sleep in a parking lot, I did if you are too tired to get out of the park for free.. I wouldn't take a motorhome over 25 ft. Go super slow around the hairpin curves. There is a better road coming from i10 direction N. Towards Silver City maybe 10 miles before S C on the right, much safer. You will also pass by a huge deep copper mine on your right. It's active and you can see the huge trucks grinding out of the circle pit. Dont let me scare you, it's so worth it, just don't get in a darn hurry, you will then be safe.

Lisa Andresen

Incredible!!!!! Short walk. Wear hikers or closed toed shoes with good grip.

Daniel Lara

Really cool to see and nice hike up. The rangers were really nice and help kiddos become Jr. Rangers which the loved!

Mike Petty

Nice place. One of the staff members was a little rude. Didn’t like that. Kinda wanted to take the extra money I put in the box back.

k wolf

Come experience this for your self..

Tighe Burg

Definitely worth the trip. The dwellings are fantastic and the rangers here are very nice and knowledgeable.

Kelsey Lauder

So cool! Dogs are not allowed on the path but there are free kennels that you can leave them in, and a ranger at the beginning of the path that makes sure people know the rules, pay the $10 fee, and can keep an eye on the dog. Really amazing to see and definitely worth it, particularly if you have your America the Beautiful pass. Lots of free campgrounds nearby with vault toilets, pack your own water/trash.

Heart

Nice escape from life, work and stress. This is not a huge site but there is still plenty to see. It's a small hike up a trail. There is a ranger onsite for questions and to help if needed. A small ranger operated museum at the entrance. Plenty of parking. Nearby campgrounds. Base spot for several hiking trails.

Michael Hatten

Another awesome place culturally and a fairly easy hike. Biting Flies were an issue. We were there in Mid June. Ranger told us to come in May and we should miss them.

Kendra Milligan

The Gila Cliff Dwellings are one of numerous dwellings within the Gila Wilderness. At the end of the monument parking lot you can access the West Fork of the Gila trail (Trail 151). Hike in on a well maintained trail brings you to the lesser known 3-Mile Dwelling (unoriginally named after how far it is located from trail head). Bring water and sunscreen as before you enter the West Fork Gila River canyon of incredible rock formations, there is a nice walk through open meadows and forest that is proposed to be designated Wild and Scenic River. Grapevines and wild raspberries abound. Hike in further to reach more dwellings in cliffs and Hell's Hole.

Ken Laue

It's a long drive on switch-backy mountain roads thru spectacular scenery to get there. They close @ 4:00 so don't start out from Deming, Lordsburg, or even Silver City (which is closer) mid afternoon and expect to get there in time. You can camp like I did in a forest service campground on the way there to put you in position to arrive at the Cliff Dwellings in the morning. They do charge a small fee. The hike to get to the ruins is only about a mile round trip. For seniors like me it gets steep so can be a challenge for creaky joints but I made it so you can. They do have ranger led tours check their schedule. My ranger was very knowledgeable and friendly and great with kids also.

Robert Bray

In Gila National Forest, easy hike up to Cave Dwellings, volunteer has plenty of knowledge and very helpful. Beautiful nature and views of mountains.

Bill Henning

Long drive on a super winding road. Very small cliff dwellings compared to Mesa Verde or even Canyon de Chelly. You have to be really into this stuff to get a charge out of this. Not much is known about the inhabitants. No movie as the solar charger was on the fritz.

Evedina Dominguez

A great learning experience for the whole family!!!

Lewis Moore

Out of the way (1.5-2 hrs drive from Silver City, NM), excellent site. Pretty, 1.1 mile RT loop trail from parking lot. Smaller than Mesa Verde, CO, but better as far as I'm concerned, if only because of few visitors. Caution: you must climb a 14-foot wooden ladder (see photo).

Rosario Placencia Cruz

The hike up was a bit rough to me because I picked the worse time to go, it was just about noon and it was extremely hot, plus I had my one year old on my shoulder. I know you can do better than me, pick a better time to hike up, when is not as hot, take your time and take a lot of breaks, there are a few spots along the trail with shade and a little bench where you can seat for a little while, please come prepared with water, a hat and sun screen and again try to do this hike when is not to hot. I think is absolutely worth it, once you make it to the top you can rest inside the caves that are refreshing, is crazy how cooler is inside. There is a shorter trail to go down, It'll take you 10 to 15 min depending oh how fast you walk, is a little steep but is worth it. There is a sign it says Return trail on it. I was almost running on the way back because I was carrying my son on my shoulders and there is not shade and as I said i pick the worse time to hike, 110 degrees, hot as hell. When I hike this trail, I was with my in laws they are 64 and 72 years old wearing cowboy boot yep and I took my one year old son, if we did it anyone can.

Bobby Jack Johnson

So awesome and you get to walk thru it!!

Jim Deal

It is about a two hour drive from Silver City, but very enjoyable one. Beautiful scenery all the way. The hike up to the cliff is short, about 15 minutes, all up hill. There is a park guide at the dwellings. The person that was there when we were there was very informative. It is well worth the visit.

MARY RENTSCHER

Beautiful! Rangers are helpful and friendly. Hike was easily done by two 65'ers.

Marion MacDonald

Visitors should be aware that the fee has increased from $5 to $10 per person and ranger tours are no longer offered. There is no discount for groups. We came all the way from Tucson and had to turn back. I was also shocked that the guard asked us where we had been hiking and then immediately suggested that we had been “out gathering pottery shards” (absolutely not). I have been visiting the Cliff Dwellings for 20 years, and they are fantastic, but it seems that families, groups and people of modest means are no longer welcome.

L 47

Amazing view. Short hike which can be challenging for small children and elderly. Elevation can make it difficult for people who are not normally active.

Chris Bettencourt

The trail is challenging but it's worth it. On a lot of hiking apps this trail is rated as easy but I think an out of shape person would really struggle getting to the top. Luckily there were benches along the way. The ranger present at the top really made the experience for us. She was incredibly informative not just on the topic of the dwellings but also about local geology, biology, etc.

Shari Smith

I really enjoyed this park, the Rangers were very informative. The hike up to the Cliff Dwellings is steep, and could be difficult for young kids or for the Elderly. The Cliff Dwellings were amazing to see & walk through.

David Arnold

it is a really long drive to get there through little twisty turny roads basically you drive a 20-mile one-way road into the wilderness but it's pretty cool and the drive is very beautiful if you like that stuff. The cliff dwellings were pretty good, not the best but better than many. Nice hike!!

Elizabeth Zamudio

Nice place. Just be ready to climb.

Neil Campbell

First Cliff Dwelling ever visited. Amazing human ingenuity.

Christian Smedberg

Excellent cliff dwellings. Knowledgeable rangers. If you are going just to see the cliff dwellings you need to know the the road in is well over an hour and very curvy. I thought it was worth it.

George Morris

Awesome piece of history! Great guides on sight as well!

Tom Kelly

Amazing spot! Well preserved ruins accessible by a 1 mile loop trail in beautiful setting. Well worth the drive, which was an experience in itself.

Abe Long

Must do, fantastic adventure!

dee dixon

Every one that works there is great, super friendly and knowledgeable. Grant was very helpful and the history was over the top. Well worth the trip and the scenery both ways was spectacular.if you are in the area a must see.

Jon Sund

This is a remarkable place to visit, but it will demand at least half a days commitment or more depending on where you start your journey. The roads into the area are in good condition, but they are mountain roads that twist their way through the surrounding mountains and can be narrow at times. Start with a full tank because fuel is not available at the destination nor is food so take a lunch, dinner, or snack.

Deborah Naville

So interesting ....

Katie Jones

Fun and educational. Watch out for rattlesnakes though.

Celia Cortez, Artist

Amazing views

Prius Wanderer

The hike up and down to the cliff dwellings is as much a part of the experience as the dwellings themselves.

Brian B

Just an amazing glimpse into the past!

Kathy Anderson

It's quite a drive in so make sure you have plenty of gas. It's about a mile loop walking trail which isn't to bad.

Marcus van Winden

Informative and good knowledgeable Park Rangers

Bryan House

Awesome place! Very interesting to see.

Maria Medina

The only thing was that I didnt know about the pet policy so I had to leave my dog in one of their kennels instead of in my car because they wouldnt allow me leaving him in the car (even though my car was on). Beautiful place though

Monica Estefania Ruvalcaba Martinez

Nice views, easy to walk path and the dwellings were awesome.

Al Estrada

A nice easy to moderate hike for young kids or older adults. Great photo opportunities. It cost $10 per person and I think it's worth it. They could make the museum there at the entrance of the cliff dwellings a little bit more comprehensive. This place is a historical Wonderland and it would be nice if they further added to the displays they alreadyhave there. However, it is still a rather Nifty place and I'll stick with the five Star rating. If you are close by, you have to go see it.

Eric Elizalde

Amazing!! Hike is a total of 1 mile there and back. The views are awesome. Definitely would recommend it to anyone in the area.

Garrett Massey

An amazing place full of cultural significance for native people in New Mexico. Beautiful hike (approx 1 mile total, steep with stairs), and beautiful drive with plenty of campsites if you’re into camping.

anthony manzo

I don't know what was more enchanting, the drive there or the dwellings

Sherri Ross

More than 80% original from when buildt 700 years ago, can go inside