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    White Sands Missile Range Museum

    3.9 (27 reviews)
    Closed 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
    Updated 2 months ago

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    Dani S.

    Fun place to spend an hour. Stopped by here on our way back from White Sands Monument. It is located on the military camp and so ID is required to get in. It's behind the military base security gates. There's a lot of old retired missiles and planes from decades ago. Very cool piece of history.

    The One pic I 'felt safe' taking.
    BOB A.

    Worst experience! The Officer at the gate was pleasant. He instructed us to the office where we had to register. That was the first and last pleasant encounter at this site. The two incompetents sitting inside the office probably used to work at Californias DMV. I GET IT, you have to check if everyone is cleared to enter the base. But UNTIL something negative shows up on your computer how 'bout making it a pleasant experience for your museum visitors? And how about informing your visitors on the museum status? Open?...Closed? Where NOT to point your camera... instead of 'You'll have to erase your picture.' As hot as it was getting I would've passed on the visit knowing the exhibit buidings were closed due to staffing issues. New Orleans has a Great WW2 Museum. Inside a cooled building with pleasant staff. Get some tips and hints from them on how to make a history venue an interesting one. First and last time here.

    Registration waiting room
    Courtenay O.

    When you approach the gate, park in one of the 14 spaces to the right (2 handicapped spots). Bring in your ID to the registration office. Take a number, sign-in, and wait to have your photo taken. A unisex bathroom is inside, and plenty of seats if you have a long wait. Our wait was short. It's better to walk to the museum as your vehicle will be thoroughly searched if you drive in. The museum is just a short walk away. It seems small, but it has plenty to offer. You can read everything or peruse the displays. A building next door houses the V2. Outside this holding is a large area of missile, rockets, and more. You can take photos, but remember to have the mountains, not the base, in the background.

    Christopher F.

    First, be warned. You have to go through security to get to the museum. Be sure to bring ID. We had no trouble and the whole process took 5 minutes. You do have to park outside of security and walk to the museum. It is a about a 5 minute walk. There is an indoor and outdoor section. The indoor section shows the history of the area and the military complex. The museum is not well organized. I enjoy military history, so I found it ok. But it is just so haphazard. The outdoor portion consists of old missiles and aircraft. There are some great photo ops here. I enjoyed seeing this, but there is limited information. While the subject matter is cool, the museum itself is lacking in organization. An average experience.

    Nike Hercules missile
    Peter G.

    This place was wonderful, I was like a kid in a candy store. A must for you V-2 rocket fans since here is one of the most complete in existence;the rocket lies horizontally w/i a protective bldg with certain panels removed so that one can observe the key internal components. This example was the range's last remaining example and so the rocket underwent a complete restoration in 2002. The paint scheme is that of yellow and black, like the one first tested here after WWII, 1946. Also heart stopping was seeing among other things a Pershing II ( one of six in the US) and launcher.

    Missile Rance Museum Yard
    Rowena B.

    Don't be put off by all the threatening signs on the way to the museum. We almost turned around thinking we were in the wrong place! Instead of driving right up to the security gate we pulled off to the right where there was a reception center. It was closed so my husband spoke to the the security guard. He was very nice. Told us to park in the little lot right where we were and took our licenses to run a security clearance. It was just around 4pm and the museum was closed for the day but they were happy to let anyone walk around the missiles just outside the museum. Gave us instructions on where to walk and what to/not to take pictures of and off we went. Most of the missiles had information boards. They were a great read with some cool history. We were there or about an hour and we partially know this because the reveille is played at 5pm. We didn't know the protocol till we noticed that cars were stopped right where they were driving & people were out of the cars standing to attention. So just a hint: if you hear trumpets playing at 5pm, just stop for a minute and take it in.

    The bigger museum.
    Barbara P.

    This museum took a little longer to get into since we are not active duty military. We did not know that prior to going. Basically we parked our car outside the gates and had to wait for a background check by the police on guard. It only took about 5 minutes. We could have driven on, but then we would have had to get our car and all the contents checked. No big deal, but since it was full of luggage it would have required more time. The officer was extremely friendly & helpful. We were happy we waited. A lot of history here. Besides the large outdoor area with missles and such, there are 2 buildings. One only holds a V2 missle but the other one holds tons of artifacts & pictures from before it even was a missile range to the Trinity site. JFK actually visited there in 1963. There is space dedicated to him.

    Patriot Missile Launcher

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    5 months ago

    Very interesting and well put together museum. Lots of history. Take your time and you'll be fascinated by all the artifacts.

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    We went to the commissary on post Has a very small commissary you had 3 Check out line. The cashiers were friendly bought a couple things

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    Ask the Community - White Sands Missile Range Museum

    Review Highlights - White Sands Missile Range Museum

    Pro tip: Make sure to bring a backpack with water, a hat, sunscreen, sunglasses and a snack!

    Mentioned in 3 reviews

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    Space Murals Museum And Gift Shop

    Space Murals Museum And Gift Shop

    4.7(12 reviews)
    8.2 mi

    What an amazing hidden gem this is, way off the beaten path in America! On the edge of nothingness…read morein tiny Organ, New Mexico, you aren't far from Las Cruces. But it's also the final stop on eastbound Highway 70 before emptiness, the longest span on one of America's longest roads without any population (48 miles of nothing). Exiting the highway here gives travelers one last point of interest before making the lonely drive to White Sands National Park. And what a worthy stop this is! Driving up a narrow road between weeds and brush, you might wonder if the place is abandoned. And judging by the name, you'd think Space Murals Museum was a tribute to artwork. Nope, that's just a reference to the painted water tower that started the whole journey in 1990. After painting several pictorials of space accomplishments on the tower, so many passersby were interested in this quirky stop that they walked around the tower looking for an entrance. But it only held water. This wasn't a museum. So the owner decided to give the people what they wanted, opening a small museum in 1992. Today, it's blossomed into a multi-room collection of NASA-donated space memorabilia and collectors' contributions. These aren't murals. They're relics of space travel! Highlights include the actual fuel tank that allowed the Apollo 11 Lunar Module to detach and land on the moon! You'll also find leftover astronaut food from a Space Shuttle mission and an early model of the space capsule that allowed John Glenn to become the first American to orbit the Earth. NASA even donated the original model for the space station to the museum, making quite the centerpiece! There are so many amazing space relics to see here, so don't let the name fool you! They also have an outdoor display and a nice little gift shop. It's a wonderful museum. And boy do I love a good freeze-dried mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwich!

    I have to admit I wasn't sure about this place when we first pulled up, but it ended up being an…read moreinteresting stop. It's dog friendly and the volunteer working when we visited was quite gregarious and offered our dog some treats that she makes herself to bring in for the pups that visit. Our dog is very picky so she didn't eat it, but it was very sweet and thoughtful. You could tell that the volunteer genuinely loves the museum and was super excited to have visitors to share it with. She chatted with us quite a bit and it was almost like a personal tour where she was giving us information on everything inside. During our visit only one other couple stopped in, they had a dog also, and she was just as warm and friendly to them. It's nice to hear stories from someone who really cares about the history and is clearly knowledgeable. For me, the highlight was getting to touch things that had been on the moon and returned to Earth. How many people can say they have touched something that has been on the moon? My husband thought seeing all the old astronauts food in toothpaste styled tubes was interesting. There's something about vintage space travel that's kind of fascinating and almost funny; it's interesting to see how far we've come. The murals were fine, but the museum and artifacts were probably more enjoyable to me personally. It's not a huge place but there's definitely a lot to see. We got a souvenir coin on our way out which serves as a nice little memento. It's definitely worth stopping in even if you just have a mild interest in space because the price of admission can't be beat, it's free!!

    Photos
    Space Murals Museum And Gift Shop
    Space Murals Museum And Gift Shop
    Space Murals Museum And Gift Shop - NASA-donated model of the original space station idea

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    NASA-donated model of the original space station idea

    Branigan Cultural Center - Ofrenda

    Branigan Cultural Center

    4.8(5 reviews)
    18.1 mi

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    Photos
    Branigan Cultural Center - Papel picado - my note to my son

    Papel picado - my note to my son

    Branigan Cultural Center - June 1 2023 - Branigan Cultural Center (Las Cruces, NM) - Entry

    June 1 2023 - Branigan Cultural Center (Las Cruces, NM) - Entry

    Branigan Cultural Center - June 1 2023 - Branigan Cultural Center (Las Cruces, NM) - Sculpture

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    June 1 2023 - Branigan Cultural Center (Las Cruces, NM) - Sculpture

    White Sands Missile Range Museum - museums - Updated June 2026

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