Bandelier National Monument has been on our to-do list for years, so we were thrilled to finally make the trip. We enjoyed everything about Bandelier, from the scenic drive through the scenic Jemez Mountains, to the history, and the ancient dwellings in Frijoles Canyon. The tour starts here, and we hope you enjoy it too! 
Where is it?
Bandelier National Monument is about 12 miles south of Los Alamos, New Mexico, a 17-minute drive via State Road 501 and State Road 4. There are a couple of scenic overlooks along the roads, so allow time to stop – the views are worth it. The park’s physical address is 15 Entrance RD, Los Alamos, however we do not recommend using GPS for directions to the park as we found the internet service to be very sporadic.
Features of the park include:
- Frijoles Canyon visitor center/park film/museum
- Bookstore/gift shop
- Picnic tables
- Bandelier CCC Historic District featuring historic park buildings.
- Periodic ranger talks
- Periodic ranger guided tours, walks, and hikes.
- Stargazing and periodic night sky programs
- 70 miles of hiking trails
- One family campground, one group campground, backcountry camping with permit
- Winter cross country skiing trails
Note: The only access to Bandelier during the summer months is via White Rock Visitor Center, 115 State Road 4, White Rock, New Mexico, where visitors can leave their vehicles and take a 20-minute shuttle ride to the park. Shuttles run every 20-30 minutes. Click here for the park’s website.
Bandelier CCC Historic District
President Woodrow Wilson declared Bandelier a national monument in 1916. Then, as with many other national park units, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) developed the park’s infrastructure during the 1930s. Today thirty-one of the park’s pueblo revival style buildings are collectively a designated national historic landmark and compose the historic district.
The main buildings, which included the administrative building, Frijoles Canyon Lodge, restaurant, and cabins, and staff residences, were designed to look like a southwestern village bordering a main plaza. All of Bandelier’s buildings are built of a stone called Bandelier rhyolite tuff, and the outsides of most of them remain as they were when they were built.
Another historical side note is that Bandelier’s lodge was used to house some of the Project Y scientists in 1943 and then construction crews in 1944 while the secret Los Alamos Laboratory was being built during the Manhattan Project. 
Frijoles Canyon
Upon entering the canyon, one can’t help but notice the pink and honey colored Swiss cheese look of the canyon walls. At first, we thought it was sandstone, but we quickly learned that it is volcanic ash that compacted over time called tuff, specifically Bandelier tuff.
Bandelier National Monument is located in an area where volcanic eruptions shaped the landscape. About a million years ago two huge eruptions in the Jemez Volcanic Field created Valles Caldera, a super volcano that is 14 miles northwest of Bandelier. The eruptions created enough power to cover a 400 square mile area with volcanic ash and other materials up to 1,000 feet thick. Additionally, the same violent eruptions formed the Pajarito Plateau, the geologic area upon which the city of Los Alamos and Bandelier are located. 
As we ventured farther into the canyon, we soon realized that the builders of the park’s historic buildings weren’t the first people to use Bandelier tuff as a construction material.
Tyuonyi
Several large ancient pueblos are located within the monument, but Tyuonyi (pronounced QU-whe-nee) is one of the few that has been excavated. Most of Bandelier’s other pueblos remain unexcavated at the request of current pueblo people who live in the area and can trace their ancestors to these sacred sites.
Cliff Dwellings
We took Pueblo Loop Trail which led us toward the spectacular cliff dwellings. Our first stop was Talus House.
Talus House is a 1920 reconstruction, built to show how the ancient dwellings may have looked. However, scientists today are of the opinion that the reconstruction is slightly inaccurate. After further studies, they now believe that the dwellings had no windows, and entry doors were located on the roofs. Nevertheless, we appreciated having some idea of how the Ancestral Pueblo people lived in the canyon. Next, we were off to see our first caveate.
Caveates (pronounced cave-eights) are small caves that were dug out of the cliff and used as living or storage spaces. Stone dwellings were built in front of many of the caveates and attached to the cliff face. According to park information, there are over 1,000 caveates in Frijoles Canyon, some of which have multiple interconnected rooms.
As we continued on the trail towards Long House, the largest pueblo complex at Bandelier, we saw many petroglyphs and a couple of decorated walls.
Caveate walls and ceilings were usually covered with clay and then blackened with soot to help keep the soft rock from crumbling. Some of Bandelier’s caveates preserve painted images of animals and geometric designs.
Long House
Bandelier’s Long House is a large pueblo complex that was built along the base of the canyon wall. With the support of the canyon wall, the buildings could reach four stories tall.
Rows of small holes in the wall are where wooden ceiling beams called vigas were attached to the cliff face. Remains of some of the stone walls abut the cliff at ground level.
The Ancestral Pueblo people who lived in Frijoles Canyon were small in stature. Women were an average height of 5′ tall, while men were an average of 5’3″, and the average life span was 35 years. They occupied the canyon from 1150 CE to 1550 CE. The people of nearby Cochiti Pueblo are their most direct descendants.
Nature in the Park
Bandelier features additional sites to see, one being the popular Alcove House. We chose not to visit Alcove House because it sits 140 feet above the canyon floor, and getting to it involves climbing several ladders and stairways. Instead, we decided to take the nature trail back to the museum.
The Museum
Bandelier’s museum is an important part of the park that visitors won’t want to miss. Museum exhibits include life-size dioramas depicting how the Ancestral Pueblo people lived, as well as some beautiful pottery pieces, obsidian arrowheads, and ancient tools. We have featured a few of them below.
Obsidian is formed when lava cools rapidly making a very hard, glass-like rock. However, it chips easily and sharply, therefore the Ancestral Pueblo peoples used it to make arrowheads, spear points, and implements.
Thank you for visiting Bandelier National Monument with us! We’re going to close with a shot of a really cool rotting tree stump that we saw on the nature trail.
Need more road trip inspiration? Here are some other great destinations:
Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Petrified Forest National Park
Happy, safe travels, y’all!
Mike and Kellye
As always, we strive to be as accurate with our information as possible. If we made a mistake, it was unintentional. (Hey, we’re only human!) Our opinions are our own. ©2023
What a beautiful location, and the “Swiss cheese” caveates really are something!
A beautiful spot with lots of history Kellye. Love the shot of the cactus flowers. I imagine those homes in the caves were the best way to escape the elements in summer and winter. Thanks for sharing. Allan
Thank you, Allan!
Really interesting! Very pretty area. The people were so small! It reminds me of going to Salem, MA, many years ago where the buildings we toured had very small doorways. No standard sizing and average people much shorter than today.
Thank you for reading the post, Meg! We love that part of New Mexico.
A great place, thanks for sharing! I’ve always been excited about all sorts of signs on walls and the petroglyphs are very appealing. And the pottery of course 🙂
Those ancients were definitely artisans, and we love the pottery too. Thanks so much for reading the post, Fred!
Hello there. Fine article. I was at Bandelier in 2018. My brother and I climbed to the top of those ladders. At my current age, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t attempt to climb the ladders again!
Thanks for checking out the post! I have to admit that I was a little shaky climbing up the ladder, but coming down was harder for me. It’s such a great park!
What a fascinating place! I hope that we can visit it someday. I would love to take a guided tour or attend a ranger talk. We live fairly close to Cahokia Mounds, but it’s been quite a while since we visited. Your post was an excellent tour which will have to do until we can visit in person. Fabulous pictures and great information. Thank you!
Thank you, Betty. I hope you get to visit there one day, but you’ve got a big adventure ahead of you, and it’s going to be fantastic!
Oh my gosh. The canyon dwellings and the cliff overlook! I’m so glad you guys finally got to experience it. And share it with us. You da best!!!
Thank you for the nice comment, Neal! I hope you and Robert can get out to New Mexico sometime. As much fun as you have on your adventures, y’all would love the mountains and historic places there.
Yes, we want to!
I’ve vaguely heard of the Bandelier National Monument, but otherwise don’t know what it’s all about. The cliff dwellings and petroglyphs are impressive and definitely worth a visit over! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Thank you, Rebecca. There are some amazing places to see in New Mexico.
Love the picture of you in the caveate! This looks like an amazing place full of history, ingenuity, and nature. Im so glad you marked off this long awaited visit and so glad to follow along with you to it 🙂
Thank you, Meg! It’s a cool place to see, but so is the entire area around it.
An excellent review of the Bandelier National Monument Kellye. My son also visited here when he was staying in Santa Fe.
Thank you, Marion! That entire area of New Mexico is fascinating.
I’ll definitely try and get there if my son needs to visit there for work again.
I hope he does so you can travel more of the area.
Most of Bandelier was closed when we were in New Mexico, we could only visit the Tsankawi section. That was fascinating enough (lots of caveates) but now I see how much we missed out on in the Frijoles Canyon area! Thank you for the excellent virtual tour 🙂
Thank you, Sarah. Interestingly, the Tsankawi section was closed when we were there. I wish you could’ve seen the canyon and the historic buildings in person, but I’m glad to hear you liked the post.
Wow, what another interesting spot. I absolutely love the views out over Frijoles Canyon, and I’d never heard of tuff before – it looks incredible with all the holes.
Thank you, Hannah. The area is gorgeous, and the ancient site is interesting.
That is a seriously interesting park, those volcanic rock formations and caveates are so interesting, must be great to see them in person. We would be all over climbing those ladders up into those caveates! Interesting history from a place we’ve never even been close to.
Thank you, guys! It is super interesting as is everything else around the area. I think the caveates were the world’s first closets!
The cliff dwellings are fascinating!
Thank you, Rose. They are very interesting.
What a neat park, glad you finally got to visit! There seems to be a lot to see. I would be afraid of living in a cave. I need to get out west and see some of these parks myself!
Thank you, Lyssy. I hope you get to visit some of these fantastic parks one day.
So interesting! Thanks for all the details. I can tell I’ll be referencing your site a LOT when we retire and start RVing more in a couple of years (that’s the plan, anyway)! I really appreciate all your informative posts. Great work!!!
Thank you so much! If you have any questions about the destinations, please feel free to contact us.
Wow, the caveats are very interesting – thanks for taking us through some of these dwellings. And it seems the parks in the USA are rich in petroglyphs (lucky you)! What lovely close up shots of the little lizards – they are usually so fast that one struggle to get a good photo. Kudos on getting two lovely pictures.
Thank you, Corna! We do like ruins and petroglyphs, but our last road trip doesn’t have any of those, and posts will be coming soon.
I’m looking forward to it Kellye 🌸.
Thanks for taking me to Bandelier National Monument Kellye. I do enjoy the “Swiss cheese’ description of Frijoles Canyon, very apt. Tyuonyi, wow, could you go walking within the ruins? Or just view from a distance? The black and white photo looks like a shot from the moon! Loved the rare shot of you and Mike crouched down in a caveate, would like to see more of you guys in articles;) Petroglyphs are always fascinating and these are certainly that. I hope you are both well, have you finished Museum of Innocence?
Thanks so much, Leighton! We took a lot more photos of ourselves on our last road trip – coming soon. I haven’t finished the book, but I just have a few chapters left. My poor mother has been admitted to the hospital and I’ve been doing a lot of running back and forth, so I’m behind on everything else.
Such an amazing site in New Mexico. I love these images. Anita
Thank you so much, Anita!
What a fascinating area!
Thank you, Joy. It is an interesting area of New Mexico. Lots to do around there.
So interesting. Thanks ☺️
Thank you!
Amazing views! I would have liked to see these places when they were still inhabited.
Wouldn’t that be something to see? Thanks so much for checking out the post.
Interesting post Kellye, your posts are always so well researched. I don’t think I’ve ever seen rocks like those. Amazing how old they are. It’s good that the wall art is now protected.
Thank you, Alison. It’s a very interesting park.
I have figured out that you have a better to-do list than I have! My wife and I stumbled onto Carlsbad Caverns by accident decades ago when driving across the country on a move. But I had not even heard of Bandelier until today. You do such a thorough job that in a few years I will be describing Bandelier as If I actually visited it!
That’s one of the nicest compliments we’ve ever received, Geoff! Thank you!
This is a beautiful place to visit with so many interesting things to see. The volcanic rocks are incredible. Thanks for this virtual visit ☺️.
Thank you, Melodie!
Have to admit, never heard of Bandelier National Monument before – thanks for taking us through what they have to offer. Will definitely add it to our stops next time we are in the area!
Thank you for checking it out, Brian!
You find the most beautiful and historical places to tour. I can’t believe you were allowed to climb the ladder to the cave. I would have been there in a heartbeat. Just to think about what it was like all those years ago and know you stood where they did.
The Frijoles Canyon looks fascinating with all those holes. It’s incredible to think how these cliff dwellings and caveats were built before modern technologies and tools. And wow, hard to believe that the average life span for the ancestral Pueblo people was 35 years!
Learning about the people was a highlight of this park. Thanks so much for stopping by!
This place looks amazing! I can’t imagine how vast it must be. Everything in America seems so big to me.
Some parks are so huge that it literally takes days to drive around/through them.
Oh wow that is crazy!!!
I love all the cave dwellings in Frijoles Canyon, it reminds me of Cappadocia in Turkey that we recently visited. So fascinating ! Maggie
I cannot wait to read your Cappadocia post, Maggie! Thank you for reading ours.
Fantastic. This is truly one of my favorite parks of our indigenous people. And once again you did a great job at showcasing our beautiful country through your lens and your words.
Thank you for checking out the post and for your sweet comment, Donna!
You are welcome.
This must have been such a great experience. I like so much of the place from your pictures. Those honeycomb walls and you looking out from a cave. The flowers and the ‘ lizard’ . Thank you so much for such an interesting share. I think you are going to get two comments. I tried yesterday too. Your post didn’t come up on my reader , got it in my e- mails. So sorry I didn’t see this earlier.
These parks are so large compared to anything we have. Do you have to travel for days and stay over to get to these places ?.
We live one hour to the New Mexico (our neighbor to the west) border, so it’s not a long drive for us to get there – and that state has a lot to see and do. However, if we go to our eastern neighbor, Louisiana, it takes about seven hours of driving to get there. We plan our road trips so that we can visit as many sites as possible in one trip. Luckily, we have a lot of wide-open spaces, so road trips are easy and relaxing. Thanks for reading.
Seven hours driving in the UK and you fall of the edge
😂
Very interesting post! I learn so much from you. Awesome photographs!
Thanks for much, Linda!
Absolutely intriguing. My imagination goes wild thinking about a day in the life of a previous cliff dweller as well as seasons living in a small city made of rock… You make me want to put that place on my list!
Thanks so much for this tour of Bandelier. We’ve traveled through New Mexico a few times and somehow missed seeing it. The cliff dwellings are fascinating!
Thank you, Beth!
What a nice trip! I went into New Mexico for a trip that lasted maybe 4 days several years ago. I remember seeing some cave dwelling areas, but we did not get close enough to climb in. So cool you were able to do that.
Thanks, Sharon! Bandelier was definitely a great park.
More things to add to my bucket list!
I hear you. My list is very long, and my traveling years are getting shorter.
Yes, but may you folks have many more! Enjoy every trip!
Thank you, Sharon.
So much to explore! Great post!
Thank you, Robert.
Such a fascinating place. Thank you for this post.
Thank you for reading!