Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Trip Assistant
How Much Time?
Time spent here almost entirely depends on what tours you want to take and ultimately what ones you’re able to reserve. I’d recommend them all, but Slaughter Canyon Cave and Hall of the White Giant were my favorites.
Need to Know
- To enter the park and complete the self-guided cave tour through the Natural Entrance you must secure a Timed-Entry Permit (it does not include the park entrance fee).
- Guided cave tours also require reservations.
- Reservations are not required for Bat Flight Programs, which typically begin in May, but it depends on the bats.
Highlights
- Carlsbad Caverns
- Slaughter Canyon Cave
- Walnut Canyon Drive
- Rattlesnake Springs
Favorite Trails
There are a few trails, but you’ll find more exciting hiking nearby at White Sands or Guadalupe Mountains national parks or Lincoln National Forest.
When To Go?
Weather
Visitation
Being an underground park, visitation is pretty steady. And the standard summer vacation surge is flattened out by hot weather.
Park Map Downloads
Road Trips
Helpful Tools
Below you'll see a Google Map to help plan road trips from the east (Hot Springs), north (Great Sand Dunes), west (White Sands), and south (Guadalupe Mountains). It’s a good start, but I’d highly recommend making your own. Google My Maps, Wanderlog, and TripIt are incredibly useful trip planning tools. Find what works best for you!
There’s much more to our country. Here’s another Google Map with points of interest across all types of public land.
For campers, here’s a Google Map with National Forest campgrounds. National Park campgrounds are difficult to reserve (there are about 200!). With nearly 5,000 national forest campgrounds, you can usually pull in and find a spot.
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