Restaurant · Great Sand Dunes National Park
Rent a sandboard here before entering the park.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Great Sand Dunes Tour Guide
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 Oasis“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 Oasis in the Parkwolf Great Sand Dunes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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
Great Sand Dunes Oasis is a roadside store and restaurant on CO-150 just before the park entrance. It also sells gasoline and rents sandboards and sand sleds. Stop here first if you need fuel, supplies or dune gear; there isn't another rental counter once you're inside the park.
The rental shop is about four miles from the visitor center. From the main Dunes Parking Area, it's at least 0.7 mile to the smaller slopes and 1.25 miles to the first high ridge, so using a board or sled means a real walk across the sand. Rentals are seasonal, usually spring through early fall, and wet sand can make the gear unavailable. Rental equipment gets mixed feedback, so check your board or sled before carrying it up.
This is the last gas station before the park and the only restaurant within 20 miles. The restaurant typically operates May through September, making it a useful meal stop when it's in season. The menu includes pizza along with breakfast, lunch and dinner. The Oasis has been family-owned since 1985.
Wildlife
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.
Keep exploring
EasySand Sheet Loop Trail0.3 mi · 30 min · 3.4 mi awayA quick grassland loop with signs, dunes, and mountain views
ModerateMosca Pass Trail7 mi · 4 hr · 3.6 mi awayA shady creek climb with dune views through the trees.
EasyMontville Nature Trail0.5 mi · 30 min · 3.6 mi awayA shady creek loop with dunes views and a trace of Montville.
EasyWellington Ditch Trail2.2 mi · 1.3 hr · 3.6 mi awayA quiet foothill walk with dune views and a 1927 irrigation ditch.
ModerateDunes Overlook Trail2 mi · 1.8 hr · 4.5 mi awayA short foothill climb opens onto dunes and mountain views.
ModerateZapata Falls Trail1 mi · 45 min · 4.9 mi awayA mile round trip ends at falls tucked inside a rock cleft.
Sight · 0.1 mi awayGreat Sand Dunes Entrance SignA mountain-backed entrance sign makes a quick first photo.
Lodging · 0.2 mi awayGreat Sand Dunes LodgeA motel just south of the entrance, with west-facing dune views.
Campground · 0.4 mi awayOasis CampgroundA private campground for tents, full-hookup RVs and cabins by the entrance.
Entrance station · 2.7 mi awayGreat Sand Dunes Entrance StationGet your park pass at the booth when it’s staffed.
Visitor center · 3.4 mi awayGreat Sand Dunes Visitor CenterStart here for ranger advice, a dune film, and maps.
Picnic area · 3.6 mi awayDunes Picnic AreaShaded tables make this a handy break beside the seasonal creek.
Beach · 3.7 mi awayMedano CreekSmall waves roll across the sand below the dunes when it runs.
Sight · 3.9 mi awayWellington HomesteadA cabin remnant puts the dunes’ homesteading past in view.Parkwolf’s Great Sand Dunes ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
