Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Reviews

Great day exploring and boarding. One of the most interesting camping spots I've ever been

Go during sunrise or sunset and you'll have an unforgettable experience! I went during sunrise at 5am and climbed the dunes. Magical.

The Great Sand Dunes is a national park in the United States, very spectacular and beautiful! ! ! ! I like it very much! ! ! ?

It was really hot. But once you got on the dried up lake that was wet underneath it wasn't so bad and the wind was blowing so that helped.

Absolutely amazing!!! They also have a lodging area, restaurant and welcome center!

Wow! What a unique place. Hiking and sandboarding on the dunes is phenomenal (if not also a little tiring!) Did a sunrise hike and it was beautiful. Great time to be out on the dunes almost alone. Super awesome if you can go in late May or early June for the rare ebbing river that flows right along the dunes. Nature/Visitor center has a great video and lots of informative exhibits. Definitely a place worth exploring more.

Biggest sand Dune in all of North America. What's not to like. As a photographer this place was incredible to shoot and hike thru. Will definitely come back to shoot the milky way or full moon here

We went on August 22 and there were no rivers to cross. Walk on the dunes quite challenging for the sand. With the Parks pass you enter for free.
You can swim only at the visitor center or in the parking lot of the dunes.

Always enjoy a trip there when the creek is running. Aim for a week day as on week ends it is full of others enjoying the dunes.

Like all National Parks (except one) these places are part of the system for a reason. This was amazing to see 750 foot high sand dunes in the middle of Colorado. It was worth the trip to visit. And the lady in the visitor center was an amazing fount of information. Very friendly and very patient.

Has the tallest dune in North America, the Star Dune, at 755 ft tall.

Beautiful; in a strange way. What are these dunes doing here anyway? Enjoyed the answers, discovery, being in the dunes, and hiking on riparian forests in the National Park

Another amazing National Treasure! The evolution of this park...the Great Sand Dunes is awe inspiring. The camp sites are well thought out. You will not regret your trek to the top of the Dunes.

It's a ton of work to get to the top, but more than worth it to sand board and hike deeper in the dunes rather than staying in the small dunes closer to the parking lot

A wonder to behold. Sledding on sand is more difficult than snow.

The sand wasnt as hot as I had expected to be, but the water was super cold, the park rangers were all very friendly as always. The park itself was very well kept! The sand mixed with the cloudy weather made it SUPER windy, but didnt take away from the experience one bit!

Awesome experience. Easy to drive around and explore.

This is a great park to visit. I so enjoyed the beauty of it all. Love Colorado and it's people.

Go early. One of a kind place to visit. Rent a sand board outside to take advantage of fun slopes.

It was very cool we loved it cept it was so windy in Colorado this weekend. We'll be back I want to walk to Zapata fall's. Ty

It's the Great Sand Dunes! If you were anywhere in the vicinity you should certainly visit.

This is a place everyone has to see. If you're in good shape you can climb to the top. Don't forget to stop at the store before you go into the park to rent boards to slide down the hill.

Cross the flowing creek(when they have had rain) and climb the huge sand dunes below the majestic mountains. Nice photo opportunities. Cool off in the creek after climbing to the top of the sand dunes. The distance is misleading. So take water, sunscreen, bug spray and comfortable shoes. I saw people playing with their dogs and children in the water. There were also people flying kites, and sandsledding/sandboarding.

One of a kind National Park. Well kept facilities. Amazing views. Make sure to climb star dune for sunsetThe mosquitoes are pretty rough in July. You've been warned!

It is an amazing overtime formation of sand dunes which reaches close to 14,000 feet.

Never experienced the surge as high as this year. Visited a few months ago but glad we took another trip to enjoy the water.

This is one of my favorite trails!! Medona pass! Very primative road with 9-15 water crossings- best not to go alone- and be careful in the sand- keep your momentum!! And HAVE FUN!!

Another Colorado must see.
Awesome campground with diversity in nature.
A little out of the way but worth it.

Very nice park worth a detour. Doable in one day though (I think). Park ranger wasn't to helpful. Campsite is small and fills up very early even out of season.

Amazing ! Incredible to see these huge sand dunes in CO! And such fun to slide down (and a great workout too!)

Impressive sand dunes. Be sure to take plenty of water and prepared to walk on the hot sand, barefoot is not really an option. Shallow river for kids to play in, about 4 inches of water.

No way to describe it's majesty in words. The walk to the first fine from the parking lot is much farther than it looks.

Amazing experience in all seasons-- definitely a must see!

Sand dunes, running stream. Lots of people skiing down the sand.

visit when sky is cloudy as sand can get hot too soon. May June has water running in Creek.

Heaven on earth if you ask me other than some of the costs. If you like sand, waterfalls, big valleys with big mountains, hiking, 4 wheeling, camping and more you can't beat this location!

Update September 2019

Here again and it's still just as amazing. Definitely more calm at this time of year. No water running at Medano Pass but it's staying in the 50s-70s all weekend! Alamosa has things to do and see/eat as well! That's where we go for the groceries and gas, though there is a place right outside the national park entrance, it's expensive which is to be expected.

Beautiful park! Hike the dunes and if you have time hike the back country.

Absolutely a blast. This park is so much fun! Absolutely stunning views of both the mountains and the dunes. We did not take the time to hike the highest peaks of the dunes however I can only imagine the views are even better from up there. Do not expect to be alone in this park As there are many visitors daily. Very family friendly environment especially in the lower part of the sand dunes where the sand surfing primarily takes place. From the parking lot it is about a 1520 minute walk just to the beginning of the dunes. At that point you Choose how far you want to go in to the dunes as there are endless choices and opportunities for different vantage points and hiking level abilities. You may want to consider a soft type of shoe as you were literally hiking in ankle deep sand and rocks the entire time.

Such an interesting place. Very diverse. Wish I could have spent more time there.

Awesome place! Pictures cannot express just how immense and beautiful..

Loved this place. Wear sand protective cloths and shoes. Hard to walk for long.

Glad we went on a cooler day - sand wasn t as hot! Had a great time. Be prepared to wait in the car for about an hour to get in unless you go early!

HIGHLY recommend early morning or late afternoon. Once that sun picks up, temperature jumps, pink necks happen, and the temperature of the sand itself becomes brutal for bare feet or paws.

That being said, the place is awesome!

This place is mind blowing. Beach sand in the middle of the mountains. High recommend going. Bring sunscreen and flip flops to walk through the water to get to the sand.

Rent the sled at store at the park entrance. It is a good walk to the dunes but so worth it to spend a couple hours sliding

Went sandboarding and had a blast. It was extremely windy the day I was there but definitely doable. Take a lot of water, long sleeves, big hat and maybe some goggles in case it's windy. The wind and the sand conspire to irritate your eyes. I also recommend having extra socks because it's best to walk barefooted but you don't want the tops of your feet to sunburn.

Has great views of dunes, excellent hiking and backpacking areas. Not setup for RV over 25 feet. Does not have electric or water at any sites. Needs upgrades badly. Over crowding for day passes, mile long lines to check-in common.

This place is awesome offers sledding amongst sandboarding

It is a bit of a drive but well worth it. They have campgrounds in case you want to stick around. Beautiful views.

This is a great place for a vacation. Whether it's for a week or a weekend, you'll have a great time. It's very affordable at only $3 per person for a week-long pass.

The campground in the park is typically full weeks ahead, so don't expect to show up and find open camping spots. Although, if you have a 4x4 vehicle you can take the Primitive Road within the park for approximately 5 miles to some free campsites. The drive is amazing, you drive over really loose sand, running creeks (they're pretty shallow so no worries), and rocky areas. My Jeep Wrangler (stock) did great. Definitely would do again...

Amazing views and a great place to hike through giant hills of sand. If you plan on hiking be sure to take actual shoes or st least closed toesd shoes. The sand gets very hot. We didn't know and wore flip flops. My feet were burning by the time we got back to the creek to cool off. There is a constant creek running through at the beginning of the trail that all the kids loved. Great place to build sandcastles. Also, at the main entrance from the parking lot it seemed quiet towards the left, but be warned that we were literally attacked by mosquitoes. I highly recommend you don't go over there and there should probably be some kind of warning sign about stagnant water and mosquitoes.

The dunes are amazing. If you try going to the top you will realize they are much higher than they appear.

I visited the Great Sand Dunes the first week of April 2021. The weather was perfect in the mid 60's, but the sun is still quite strong. The climb up the dunes is challenging, so you must be strong. Bring sunscreen and lots of water. Pace yourself and you should be ok. The views at the top are breathtaking. Sand as far as you can see. It's so cool to see so much sand going all the way to the foothills of mountains. Coming back down the dunes is a fun treat. It's so deep and the sand moves so fast. It's nice and soft on your joints and just fun to slide down.

absolutely amazing, don't take snow equipment as it won't work going down these hills... I tried to bomb over 10 and no lucky.... sand will be in places you never knew existed...... fun getting lost maybe dying...... :)

This park is a long distance from civilization but I have to say it was definitely worth the drive especially to see the dunes covered in snow.

Gorgeous park! This park offered stunning views of the mountains and a great hike up the dunes. A few suggestions, the wind may cause the sand to blow around so do dress appropriately! Sand hurts

An outerworldly experience, the dunes are always bigger than I remember. Proper footwear makes or breaks your experience and fun. The place is very popular with visitors, parking can be a problem.

One of the most unique places on earth. After you're a few dunes in you might as well be on Mars. Mandatory visit if you're within 500 miles.

Absolutely amazing place. You don't realize how big the dunes really are until you try to climb them. Make sure you have plenty of water and don't try to go too fast or you'll gas yourself before you even get close to the top. This is especially true if you're not used to doing physical activities at high altitude.

Beautiful. Went on a Monday morning and the crowd was minimal. Found parking easy. Highly recommend.

You would be surprised when you see mountains with snow behind and a creek in front of sand dunes..

Love this place, figured out why this will be on our Colorado Quarter! sand Dunes in the Rockies!

I first didn't believe there were any dunes just in front of the snow cladded mountains but when I saw it I was uttlerly out of words. They are amazing.

If you haven't been here, I definitely recommend it. Beautiful and serene if you don't follow the path most traveled.

Cool place to see during sunset. Lots of mosquitoes near parking lot but not near dunes.

The beauty of this park is spectacular with its' geological history.

The campground itself leaves a little to be desired if you're driving a larger unit. I believe all the campsites were originally for tents as it's almost impossible to put an rv in some of the sites. Some are too close to the road. The campground itself has beautiful views of the dunes and mountains.

Awesome place to visit! It was fun to hike the dunes.

Nice visitor center, great camp sites, helpful staff and programs (night walk / star gazing), easy access, clean, fun area.