The hottest, driest, lowest national park in the country, with salt flats, sand dunes, and colorful badlands stretching across the California-Nevada border.

Park Pass

Join the National Parks Club

1 to 2 days covers the main overlooks and dunes, while 3 to 4 lets you explore more remote corners of the park.

No special permit is required to enter.

Furnace Creek is the park's own small hub, with Beatty, Nevada as a nearby alternative just outside the park.

The entrance fee is $30/vehicle (7-day), or purchase a National Parks Yearly Pass.

Why Visit?:

Death Valley holds the extremes — hottest, driest, and lowest point in the national park system, with a landscape of salt flats, towering dunes, and colorful badlands that feels almost lunar. Badwater Basin, at 282 feet below sea level, is the lowest point in North America, and Zabriskie Point's badlands are some of the most photographed scenery in the entire park system.

Because of the extreme heat, timing matters more here than almost any other park — visit outside the late fall-to-early-spring window and you're genuinely risking your safety, not just an uncomfortable hike.

Things to Do:

Badwater Basin's salt flats and Zabriskie Point's badlands overlook are the two essential, easy stops — both require minimal walking for a big payoff. Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes are best visited at sunrise or sunset, when the light and shadows make the dune ridges pop.

Artists Drive, a one-way scenic loop through multicolored volcanic hills, is one of the most underrated drives in the park — don't skip it just because it's not as famous as Badwater or the dunes.

Get the Full Itinerary

Closest airports: Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) is the most practical option, about 2 hours from the park with far more flight choices than any regional alternative.

Nearby Attractions:

The ghost town of Rhyolite sits just outside the park's Nevada side, and Las Vegas itself makes a natural pairing if you're combining Death Valley with a broader Southwest road trip.