If you're in Cortez, definitely go and visit and taste their chocolates with a fun magic history…read moreshow. Thank you so much for accommodating & making this happen for me at such short notice. To experience this intimate fun magic and delicious chocolate & truffle generous tasting. Bryan and Joanne are so creative & talented with all they have personally done inside, with the memorabilia they have collected and incorporated into their act. It's great for all ages. Make reservations, you won't regret it. No pictures of the magic show, that would be telling

Dotty Wampus is definitely worth the visit! I am visiting from Minnesota and my cousin took me as a…read moretreat. It was a GREAT way to spend the afternoon. When I come back to Colorado I will make another visit. The attentiveness of the hosts Bryan and Joanne immediately made you feel welcome. They had water, sparkling water, the kettle was going for tea and the ambiance embraced you with warmth. Bryan's showmanship and personality brought life to the show. I appreciated Joanne's thoughtfulness. She made sure that those of us who needed a chair had one. Thank you!! And of course there are the MAGNIFICENT chocolates! They melt in your mouth and you can taste the flavors as they explode in their grandeur! It was magical.

This is a huge, beautiful, and modern visitor center. On one end you can glimpse their archival…read moresection that preserves the artifacts found here and the research work going on. The other end has a bookshop and a small museum that gives context to the history of the area. Since the national park is so large, I had to ask a ranger for clarification to see what areas of the park were open. Wetherill Mesa is currently closed due to construction. There's also free wifi (you can use it to download the NPS app and get more information during your visit) and clean bathrooms.

Nice visitor center right at the entrance to Mesa Verde National Parks. Was pleasantly surprised by…read morehow large their visitor center was. Plenty of exhibits and information on the park and the Ancestral Pueblo culture. Perfect starting point to lay some foundation before entering the park. Everyone we interacted with here was so nice and friendly, more than willing to share what they know about the park and the culture. Nice little bookstore. Not the largest I've seen but has a nice selection. Plenty of clean bathrooms. Should definitely be your first stop when visiting the national park.

Wow, Cliff Palace completely blew my mind. I was amazed at the dwellings we saw, how well preserved…read morethey were, and our guide gave us so much information throughout the tour. You need to book a tour in order to get close to the dwellings at Mesa Verde. Otherwise you can only see them from the overlooks. I would definitely recommend a tour as it's impossible to get a feel for the dwellings without actually being in them. We had a short walk down to Cliff Palace and there were a few ladders to climb, but overall the tour was not strenuous and my out of shape 50+ year old self didn't have any difficulty. I would recommend a morning tour to beat the heat. We also toured Balcony House, and if I had to choose just one, I'm not sure which one I would pick. Be sure to book early on the National Parks website and don't miss an up close tour of a dwelling when you visit Mesa Verde.

I visited Cliff Palace on July 5, 2026. I was lucky that I was able to get tickets two days before…read morebecause I found a cancellation on the recreation.gov website. So if you are like me and did not know that you had to book them a couple of weeks ahead of time, then constantly check the website as there might be cancellations for some of the tours. I managed to also get tickets to the Long House tour. My tour of cliffs Palace was at 10:30 AM, and my tour of longhouse was at 1:45 PM. This was enough time to allow us to see the different overlooks near Cliff Palace and then drive over to the Weatherill Mesa. However, our stops were not long since the drive between Cliff Palace and Weatherill Mesa is long. Parking was very easy and there were also restrooms available, we met the Ranger at a shaded sitting area right at the entrance of the trail that takes you to the Cliff Palace overlook. The Ranger did mention that although she was sitting there and most people were gathering there, that the official meeting point is actually the overlook. So we headed over to the overlook a few minutes before the start of the tour to make sure that everybody else had found our group. The tour was informative and we also were able to watch another Ranger who played the flute at Cliff palace while we were standing at the overlook. It was a magical experience. The tour goes down some stairs, where there are some metal railings that can be a bit hot. The steps are carved onto the rock or made of rocks, so they are somewhat don't even and also high. Then we walked through a short trail and then up a ladder. All in all it was not as difficult as the signs made it to be, although you still need to be fully able to do all of those things in order to get in and out of the site. Also make sure that you have a backpack, hat and plenty of water as you need to have both hands-free and available for holding on to the ladders or rocks in order for you to be safe. The side itself was awe inspiring. And such a great way to learn about the ancient Pueblo inhabitants. After visiting Cliff Palace, we had to go through a different trail that went up more stairs that were carved into the rock, which can be narrow due to the Rocks around them, and although I am somewhat claustrophobic, I feel perfectly fine. Also, the Ranger told us to take our time and climb out safely. All in all it was a great tour and I highly recommend it.

What a great tour historical and has some great ghost tours! I'd go again. Thank you!read more

What an outstanding way to learn the history of a city. The Cortez Ghost tour was fun, informative…read moreand filled with history / spooky tales of the city. This walking tour can be found by searching for things to do in Cortez. Our guide Helen, did a wonderful job keeping us all entertained. If you are looking for a group activity or something fun to do in the evening, this is a group walking tour that starts at 8PM and runs for 1.5 hours of light city hiking through the town of Cortez, check this out.

Not fully understanding the way to see Mesa Verde, we booked onto the 700 years tour. The website…read moreinsinuates that this is a great way to get to see the cliff dwellings up close and learn about the history of the place. We knew, going into it, that the cliff palace was closed for road developments. We were excited to see and learn all about the history of the area but it quickly became apparent that the 4 LONG hours on the tour would be driving around the (publicly accessible) Mesa Top road and stopping at places deemed photo worthy. The information we gleaned from the tour guide was no more substantive than the information available on the boards at each site. In fact, the boards had more detail. There was a definite tone to some of the nuggets of information shared by our tour guide, and an eye roll at using BCE and CE for dates (as is common nowadays in the world), which didn't really conceal the guide's opinion that this was "political correctness gone mad!" It isn't, it's an inclusive, globally forward way to talk about dates that isn't Christian-centric. Also, was quite disgusted when they described the accessible ramp to one of the overlooks as the "handicapped ramp", it wouldn't have killed them to say "easier access route". When it came to Spruce House, a cliff dwelling you can self guide around, we had 45 minutes to explore. But, with covid, access to it was closed, and the other trails options would have taken far longer than 45 minutes. So, knowing this in advance (along with cliff palace being closed) why did we spend 45 minutes there? In fact, why did we pay full price for a tour that knowingly had a big part of it closed? Why did we do spruce house and miss coyote village, and the sun temple (both of which were open and allowed walking around)? So you may be asking "Why did we do this tour at all?" Because we, incorrectly, thought you had to book a tour to see anything at MV. This isn't the case. And, in this particular case, skip the $80 price tag per person, and drive the loop yourself. If you can read the information boards, you'll glean lots more about the evolution of the MV culture over the 700 years. Avoid, avoid, avoid. Book early with the NPS for their ranger tours.

We signed up for the 700 year tour with the expectation of a tour guide to provide us hours of…read moreinformation throughout the park. Unfortunately, first our guide was late; then we were to meet her at another parking lot; when we found her the bus driver sent her home for an unknown reason. A while later, another bus driver joined us. We ended up with 2 bus drivers taking us on the tour, which they were not qualified to lead or prepared for. We would have just done the guided tour of the Cliff House by itself and drove ourselves around the park. We called and emailed Aramark to request some refund of the $150 we spent for the 2 of us for the tour - asking for just a partial refund. After several weeks - we still have not even received an email letting us know they received our complaint or to find out what happened. Don't go on the tour!

One of the big highlights of visiting Mesa Verde National Park are the tours of the cliff dwellings…read moreof the Ancestral Pueblo people, built around 800 years ago and still wonderfully preserved. Balcony House is one of the four locations you can book a guided tour for, and it was such an incredible experience. Our guide, Ray, is one of the NP rangers and gave us such a wonderfully informative and interesting tour of this cliff dwelling. Easily the highlight of our trip to the park. Definitely a more involved tour, though. It does involve climbing up multiple ladders and crawling through a small tunnel during the tour. And let me tell you, that wooden ladder can get hot in the sun. So if either of those things makes you nervous, I might reconsider doing this tour. The tours can be booked up to 14 days in advance for $8/person, and they do go quickly. So 100% plan ahead if this is a tour you're interested in. They do require you to have your ticket at the start of the tour, and there is no internet at the site. So make sure you've downloaded them in advance. We booked both Balcony House and the Cliff Palace tours. And while both were magnificent and culturally enriching, Balcony House was my clear winner between the two. If you only have the chance to book one tour, Balcony House is the one.

For those of you who don't travel to southern CO often should check out Mesa Verde National Park…read more The location and methods of building by the Native Americans is incredible. This is a seasonal destination so try to come in the summer when the tours are running so you can walk and climb amongst some of the areas.

A wonderful and beautiful park!…read more Mesa Verde means 'green table'. This national park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan ancestral sites in the United States (nps) - it celebrates people. The snowy peaks in the background is San Juan Mountain. We visit multiple Mesa Top Sites, (900-1100, nps). MTS means top archeological sites within this park. We first stop at the Far View Terrace Cafe for bathroom break and also pick up our lady guide; then driving up north, stopping at the PitHouse, ending the tour at the information & research center in early afternoon about 2pm, that includes an hour lunch at Far View Terrace Cafe, with a wonderful view. Two other cafes are the Spruce Tree Terrace Cafe, and the Knife Edge Cafe. The Cliff Palace is impressive. But the tour didn't take us there - only viewed it from afar. I actually bought a mug that changes with heat and a pretty conch bangle from the gift shop. The information center is cool; the museum is ok.

If you're interested in the ancient cliff dwellers, definitely take this tour! This is a tour led…read moreby the local Ute Tribe & is only accessible with their guides. It's amazing!! The dwellings are on the back side of Mesa Verde. After this tour in September of 2011, it made my first trip to Mesa Verde seem more like going to Disneyland. This is the real deal - wild, undeveloped, & rugged. There's a lot of hiking, & a REALLY tall ladder climb to see Eagle's Nest ruin that is optional, but I suggest fighting through whatever fear of heights you may have to see this ruin!! I have a pretty healthy fear of heights & I'm so glad I was able to fight through it to see Eagle's Nest. It is beautiful & still has paint & plaster visible in the kiva. Smaller ladders are necessary to see any of the cliff dwellings, but they are short & easy. If you only have time for Mesa Verde or Ute Tribal Park, go to Ute for a more realistic adventure! Make your reservations in advance!

Came for happy hour and met the brewer for Mancos Brewery…read more The beer was great, as was the brewer sharing his history and stories! Wonderful views and simple all American menu. Why two stars? Way understaffed they need another two servers, the poor waitress was so overwhelmed feel bad for her. So happy we are before we came, can't imagine the wait. FWIW the bartender was great

Make sure to book in advance -- they fill up quickly, and it's easy to see why! The views and…read moreproximity to the park were a huge part of why we chose to stay here, and it absolutely delivered. While there was no TV in the room, it honestly wasn't missed -- the stargazing at night was absolutely breathtaking. Plus, having a café just down the street added a lot of convenience to our stay. Highly recommend!

All National Parks are amazing, but it's rare to find one that has such a a fascinating…read moreanthropological history as well as incredible views and landscapes. We visited in Late June, and although it was warm, the heat was very bearable. Definitely recommend registering for a tour (don't wait - they fill up quickly!) while planning your visit so you can get a better understanding of and a close up look at the cliff dwellings. Also, be aware that some of the tours are strenuous so read the descriptions before making your choices. I knew what they were before heading to Mesa Verde, but experiencing it first hand and getting to walk on in the ancient dwellings really made it come alive for me. The scenic drive was incredible as well. So many beautiful vistas and historical stops along the drive. We were here for one full day and saw quite a bit - Cliff Palace, Balcony House (Both guided tours - check the website before booking since you need to account for travel time in between), and scenic drive with stops along the way. Loved it here!

I'm already planning a second visit here just due to the sheer amount of things there are to do and…read moresee. Wetherill Mesa was closed due to construction when I visited, and the season for the pueblo tours was not open yet, so that's already on my to do list. Exploring Chapin Mesa took an entire day to drive the loop, do some hiking, and read about all the different artifacts that were uncovered. I liked how there were displays about the different stages of housing and the evolution to the amazing cliff dwellings that the national park is known for. Definitely bring your binoculars to get a better look at the structures!