Best time to go
The lodge generally operates from mid-March through October, so check availability before planning a winter stay. Dogs are accepted only in a limited number of pet-friendly rooms, so arrange that with the lodge ahead of time.
Overview
About Great Sand Dunes Lodge
Why stop
- West-facing patios bring dune, valley and mountain views into the stay.
- Motel guests can park directly in front of their room.
Heads up
- Breakfast details are unclear enough to check before relying on them.
Map
Where it is
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Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
Best time to go
2 active Great Sand Dunes alerts
- CautionStage 1 fire restrictionsStage 1 fire restrictions are active throughout Great Sand Dunes; use fires only in designated steel fire rings or picnic-site barbecues.Official details
- CautionSwift, deep water on Medano Pass Primitive RoadMedano Pass Primitive Road is open, but heavy rain has created swift water up to 3 feet deep, especially at creek crossings 3, 4, and 5.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Sand Dunes Tour Guide
Your drive to Great Sand Dunes Lodge, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Great Sand Dunes National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this place
Great Sand Dunes Oasis0:00 / 0:28
“You're coming up on Great Sand Dunes Oasis, a useful stop for fuel, food and sandboard rentals just outside the park.”
Plays as you drive up to Great Sand Dunes Lodge in the Parkwolf Great Sand Dunes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Water Behind the Park
- The Campaign to Save the Dunes
- The Sand Beneath the Grass
- Great Sand Dunes Visitor Center
- 31 audio storiesacross Great Sand Dunes’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Elk, Pronghorn, Wild Turkey, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 17 trails, 29 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Great Sand Dunes Lodge
Stay by the entranceGreat Sand Dunes Lodge is a roadside motel just south of the park’s main entrance on Colorado…
Great Sand Dunes Lodge is a roadside motel just south of the park’s main entrance on Colorado State Highway 150. There’s no lodging inside the park or preserve, so this is a close base if you want to be at the gate early or head back to your room between visits.
Choose your unitAccommodations range from standard and deluxe motel rooms to rooms with kitchen facilities,…
Accommodations range from standard and deluxe motel rooms to rooms with kitchen facilities, campers and a geodesic dome. Motel guests can park right in front of their room. Those are different kinds of stays, so check what facilities come with your booked unit, especially for the dome and campers.
The patios face the dunesWest-facing patios look over the dunes and San Luis Valley, with the San Juan Mountains in the…
West-facing patios look over the dunes and San Luis Valley, with the San Juan Mountains in the distance and Sangre de Cristo peaks behind the lodge. It’s a view you can enjoy from the property without walking to an overlook. In summer, hummingbirds visit feeders around the patios.
Breakfast and nearby foodBreakfast is offered to lodge guests, but check what’s being served before you plan around it.
Breakfast is offered to lodge guests, but check what’s being served before you plan around it. The Oasis Restaurant is a separate business and the only restaurant within walking distance; its schedule is seasonal, so have another meal option in mind if it isn’t open.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Great Sand Dunes
16 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
21 sightingsPronghornMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
12 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
153 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
38 sightingsRavenMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
15 sightingsRed-tailed HawkMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Great Sand Dunes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
