Experience Cliff Dwellings
Spruce Tree House (see below) is the third largest and best preserved cliff dwelling in the park. It is viewable from two overlooks near Mesa Verde Museum. Previously, visitors could enter this site. Read more about the current closure of Spruce Tree House and future repairs.
Cliff Palace, the largest cliff dwelling in North America is seen from the Sun Point View and Sun Temple (see below) stops along the Mesa Top Loop Road, which is open all year. Once snow is cleared from Cliff Palace Loop Road visitors can look into the cliff dwelling (see Cliff Palace Overlook below).
Step House is part of the Wetherill complex. The access is via a one-mile steep hike. This self-guided tour is available on most days during the summer, when a ranger is present.
Self-guided tours to cliff dwellings include driving, walking, or some combination of both. Many of these, such as (Oak Tree House, see below) are found along the Mesa Top Loop (see info above). An audio tour of all the sites on this loop is available for download from the NPS App. The Cliff Palace Loop includes multiple cliff dwelling overlooks and one trail. This loop road is not open during winter months. Additionally, brochures are available for both tours.
Ranger-guided tours to select sites, such as Cilff Palace and Balcony House, require advance reservations made on-line through recreation.gov. Get all the information about these tours on the Cliff Dwelling Tours webpage.
