About El Malpais National Monument
The richly diverse volcanic landscape of El Malpais (el-mal-pie-EES) offers solitude, recreation, and adventure. Explore incredible geologic features such as young lava flows, cinder cones, lava tubes, and sandstone bluffs. While some may see a desolate environment, people have been adapting to and living in this extraordinary terrain for generations. Come visit the land of frozen fire!
Plan a Visit
Core visitor information on this page is sourced from the National Park Service. NPD proximity sections use NPS reference coordinates and straight-line distance. Local source bundle updated Sep 27, 2026. View the official NPS page.
Weather & Conditions
As a general rule, daily temperatures swing roughly 30 (F) from night lows to afternoon highs. Summer is sunny and hot with monsoon rain storms and an average high of 80 (F). Winter is cool, sunny, with potential snow storms and an average high of 45 (F). Spring and fall…
NPS Reference Location
Park state / territory membership: New Mexico. This map uses the National Park Service reference coordinate. It may represent an administrative or reference point rather than a park entrance, trailhead, visitor center, or the nearest access point. Use the official NPS directions below when planning travel.
Operating Hours
El Malpais National Monument is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with the following exceptions: - Sandstone Bluffs Overlook and the West Zuni-Acoma Trail parking lot are open from sunrise to sunset. - El Malpais Visitor Center and parking area is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Winter hours may vary. The visitor center is closed on Thanksgiving Day, December 25th, and January 1st. - El Malpais Emergency Operations Center is currently closed to the public.
Activities
Current Alerts
The El Calderon Trail and parking area are closed from August 2025 through November 2026 for a major improvement project. NPS Road 100 will remain open for local traffic only, and the Continental Divide Trail will remain open for CDT thru-hikers.
NPS 300 to Big Tubes is wet from ongoing rain. A high-clearance, four-wheel-drive vehicle is required to attempt this road. The road past Big Tubes is very rough and only accessible to high-clearance, four-wheel-drive vehicles.
Getting There
No roads exist through El Malpais National Monument. To explore the east side of the park, take exit 89 off I-40 and head south on Highway 117. To explore the north side of the park, take exit 81 off I-40 and head south on Highway 53. To reach the visitor center, take exit 85 off I-40 in Grants, New Mexico. After you exit, head south on Santa Fe Ave and continue straight over the freeway overpass. Take a left at the entrance sign for El Malpais Visitor Center and continue 300 yards to the parking lot.
View Official DirectionsContact & Address
The NPS-listed address may be an administrative office, visitor center, mailing/contact location, or other park facility rather than a park entrance.
Topics & Themes
Things To Do
See a Bat Outflight at Bat Cave
On warm summer evenings, Mexican free-tailed bats burst from a lava tube known as Bat Cave for a night of…
Hike the El Calderon Trail
El Calderon Area at El Malpais National Monument offers easy to moderate difficulty hiking past lava tube caves, over ancient…
Traverse the Lava Falls Trail
Take a hike on the youngest lava flow in El Malpais National Monument and in New Mexico. You will encounter…
El Malpais Night Skies
Explore the Milky Way, countless stars, and planets any time of year! You don’t have to travel far into El…
Explore Sandstone Bluffs Overlook
Gaze across one of the youngest lava flows in the continental U.S. from the vantage of a high sandstone bluff…
Visit La Ventana Natural Arch
La Ventana Natural Arch is a beautiful natural arch formation located just off Highway 117 in El Malpais National Conservation…
More Things to Do
Additional activities and experiences from the National Park Service.
Hike the Narrows Rim Trail
Spectacular panoramic views of the lava flows at El Malpais and surrounding landscape are the main attraction of this hike. You may…
Follow Ancient Footpaths on the Zuni-Acoma Trail
Hike across a historic trail that connects the pueblos of Acoma and Zuni. This strenuous 7.5 mile hike is an El Malpais…
Visitor Centers
El Malpais Visitor Center
Located on exit 85 off I-40 in Grants, NM, the El Malpais Visitor Center is staffed by park rangers from the National Park Service. Stop…
Nearby National Park Service Sites
These sites are ordered by straight-line distance between NPS reference coordinates. This is useful for comparison, but it is not road mileage. Trails, parkways, rivers, and distributed units may extend far from their reference point.
Nearby Cities for Trip Planning
These cities are ordered by straight-line distance from the NPS reference coordinate. They are comparison starting points, not official park gateways or road-distance estimates. Trails and other distributed units may extend far beyond this reference point.
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