Hovenweep National Monument
Hovenweep preserves six prehistoric sites built between 1200 and 1300 CE which may have served as ceremonial centers. Explore a variety of structures, including multistory towers perched on canyon rims and balanced on boulders. The construction and attention to detail will leave you marveling at the skill and motivation of the builders.
Alerts
- InformationVoicemail not functioning
The voicemail for the main park phone line (970-562-4282) is not functioning reliably. People are advised to call during business hours in order to speak with a ranger.
- InformationNPS ↗Hovenweep has gone cashless
The park now accepts only mobile or electronic payments for entrance & camping fees. You can reserve campsites and buy entrance passes on Recreation.gov, or only use debit/credit cards to pay in person.
Fees & passes
| Type | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Private VehicleEntry fee is valid for 7 days and grants entry for driver and passengers in one private vehicle. Does not cover camping costs. | $20 | |
| MotorcycleValid for 7 days. Admits up to 2 private, non-commercial motorcycles with up to 4 total passengers. | $15 | |
| Per PersonAdmits one individual with no car. This fee type is typically used for bicyclists and pedestrians. Youth 15 and under are admitted free. Entry fee is valid for 7 days. | $10 | |
| Passes | ||
| Annual Entrance - ParkValid for one year through the month of purchase. Admits one (1) private, non-commercial vehicle or its pass holder to Arches and Canyonlands national parks, and Natural Bridges and Hovenweep national monuments. U.S. residents only. | $55 | |
Entrance fees (or valid park pass) are required to visit beyond the visitor center and/or camp overnight. Entrance fees are good for 7 days from date of purchase.
Hours
| All Park Hours | Daily · All Day |
When to go
May draws the most visits here and January the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Campgrounds
| Hovenweep Campground | 31 sites | |
| $20 a night · Hovenweep Campground is open year-round. · 31 reservable | ||
Every campground here has its own page on Campsite Atlas, with site counts, hookups, rig limits and booking windows. All of them on one page → How park camping works
Visitor centers
- Hovenweep Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
You can visit Hovenweep even when the visitor center is closed. When it is open, rangers or volunteers can answer questions and sell bookstore items. Restrooms and exterior exhibits are available 24/7.
Explore
Things to do
- Stargazing Events in Southeast Utah1-3 Hours
Rangers occasionally lead stargazing programs and events at parks throughout southeast Utah. Learn about what to expect and check out a schedule of stargazing events at Arches and Canyonlands national parks and Hovenweep and Natural Bridges national…
Opens on the Park Service site - Hike the Holly Trail4 Hours
The Holly Trail (8 miles, roundtrip) offers the chance to explore away from roads and busier trails and stretch your legs with a longer hike.
Opens on the Park Service site - Hike the Square Tower Group Loop Trail
Explore the ancestral Pueblo world with a hike around the Square Tower Group. Follow the two-mile, primitive loop trail along the canyon rim to see the famous Square Tower, Hovenweep Castle, and eight other standing structures.
Opens on the Park Service site - Walk to the Square Tower Group Overlook10-30 Minutes
Take a paved trail to this canyon overlook and see what Hovenweep has to offer! Sweeping views of sage country and ancestral Puebloan structures are just yards away from the visitor center.
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Events
- Cory Ahownewa: Hopi Carver10/1509:00 AM · free
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Historic landmarks nearby
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for Colorado's national parks
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthGreater Roadrunner 2× · Gray Fox 2× · American Badger 1× · Bobcat 1× · Coyote 1× · Kit Fox 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 134 birds, 48 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Cooper's Hawk · Ferruginous Hawk · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Northern Harrier · Northern Saw-whet Owl · Peregrine Falcon · Prairie Falcon · Red-tailed Hawk · Rough-legged Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Swainson's Hawk · Turkey Vulture · Western Screech-Owl
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Coot · Blue-winged Teal · Canada Goose · Cattle Egret · Cinnamon Teal · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Green-winged Teal · Northern Pintail · Ruddy Duck
Shorebirds & seabirdsKilldeer · Lesser Yellowlegs · Long-billed Curlew · Spotted Sandpiper · Wilson's Phalarope
Gamebirds & dovesGambel's Quail · Mourning Dove · Scaled Quail · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersHairy Woodpecker · Northern Flicker · Red-naped Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsBlack-chinned Hummingbird · Broad-tailed Hummingbird · Rufous Hummingbird
Also on the checklistAmerican Crow · American Goldfinch · American Robin · Ash-throated Flycatcher · Bank Swallow · Barn Swallow · Bendire's Thrasher · Bewick's Wren · Black-billed Magpie · Black-capped Chickadee · Black-headed Grosbeak · Black-throated Gray Warbler · Black-throated Sparrow · Blue Grosbeak · Blue-gray Gnatcatcher · Brewer's Blackbird · Brewer's Sparrow · Brown-capped Rosy-Finch · Brown-headed Cowbird · Bullock's oriole · Bushtit · Canyon Wren · Cassin's Finch · Cassin's Kingbird · Chipping Sparrow · Chukar · Clark's Nutcracker · Cliff Swallow · Common Nighthawk · Common Poorwill · Common Raven · Cordilleran flycatcher · Dark-eyed Junco (Gray-headed) · Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Gray Flycatcher · Gray Vireo · Greater Roadrunner · Green-tailed Towhee · Hermit Thrush · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · Juniper Titmouse · Lark Sparrow · Lazuli Bunting · Lesser Goldfinch · Loggerhead Shrike · MacGillivray's Warbler · Mallard · Mountain Bluebird · Mountain Chickadee · Northern Goshawk · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Orange-crowned Warbler · Painted Redstart · Pine Siskin · Pinyon Jay · Plumbeous Vireo · Red-winged Blackbird · Rock Wren · Rufous-crowned Sparrow · Sage Thrasher · Sagebrush Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Scott's Oriole · Song Sparrow · Spotted Towhee · Steller's Jay · Townsend's Solitaire · Vesper Sparrow · Violet-green Swallow · Virginia's Warbler · Warbling Vireo · Western Bluebird · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · Western Tanager · Western Wood-Pewee · White-breasted Nuthatch · White-crowned Sparrow · Wilson's Warbler · Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-headed Blackbird · Yellow-rumped Warbler
Small mammalsBlack-tailed Jackrabbit · Botta's Pocket Gopher · Brush Mouse · Bushy-tailed Woodrat · Canyon Mouse · Crawford's Desert Shrew · Deer Mouse · Desert Cottontail · Dwarf Shrew · Hopi Chipmunk · Least Chipmunk · Merriam's Shrew · Mexican Woodrat · Mountain Cottontail · Northern Grasshopper Mouse · Ord's Kangaroo Rat · Pinon Mouse · Plains Pocket Mouse · Rock Squirrel · Silky Pocket Mouse · Spotted Ground Squirrel · Western Harvest Mouse · White-tailed Antelope Squirrel · White-throated Woodrat
PredatorsAmerican Badger · American Black Bear · Bobcat · Coyote · Gray Fox · Long-tailed Weasel · Mountain Lion · Northern Raccoon · Red Fox · Ringtail · Striped Skunk · Western Spotted Skunk
Hoofed mammalsMule Deer
BatsAllen's Big-eared Bat · Big Brown Bat · California Myotis · Canyon Bat · Fringed Myotis · Long-eared Myotis · Long-legged Myotis · Pallid Bat · Spotted Bat · Townsend's Big-eared Bat · Western Small-footed Myotis
Activities
Activity guides for this park Camping in the national parks · Hiking in the national parks · Stargazing in the national parks
Weather & climate
Hovenweep is part of the Colorado Plateau, a "high desert" region that experiences wide temperature fluctuations, sometimes over 40 degrees in a single day. The temperate (and most popular) seasons are spring (April-May) and fall (mid-September-October), when daytime highs average 60 to 80 F and lows average 30 to 50 F. Summer temperatures often exceed 100 F, making strenuous exercise difficult. Winters are cold, with highs averaging 30 to 50 F, and lows averaging 0 to 20 F.
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to enter Hovenweep?
Entrance is $20 per private vehicle, $15 per motorcycle, and $10 per person on foot or bike. Entry fee is valid for 7 days and grants entry for driver and passengers in one private vehicle.
Source: National Park Service
Which passes work at Hovenweep?
The $80 America the Beautiful pass covers the entrance fee here, and a Hovenweep-only annual pass is $55.
Source: Is the pass worth it
Can I pay the entrance fee in cash?
No. Hovenweep takes cards only at the entrance.
Source: National Park Service
When is entrance to Hovenweep free?
Next on October 27, Theodore Roosevelt's birthday. 2 fee-free days are left this year, for US residents only.
Source: Free entrance days
Do I need a reservation to enter Hovenweep?
No. There is no timed-entry or entrance reservation at Hovenweep. Camping and some tours have their own reservations.
Source: National Park Service
Is Hovenweep open year-round?
Yes. The grounds are open 24 hours a day, year-round.
Source: National Park Service
Can I camp in Hovenweep?
Yes. The Park Service lists 1 campground in Hovenweep: Hovenweep. 1 takes reservations through Recreation.gov.
Do any Hovenweep campgrounds have hookups or showers?
No. None of the 1 listed campgrounds report showers, electric hookups, or a dump station.
Source: Campgrounds
Do camping fees at Hovenweep include the entrance fee?
No. Camping is charged per night on top of the entrance fee or a pass; Hovenweep is $20 a night.
Source: Campgrounds
Is anything closed at Hovenweep right now?
2 active alerts as of October 14, 2026: Voicemail not functioning; Hovenweep has gone cashless.
Source: Alerts
How busy is Hovenweep?
26,616 recreation visits in 2025, number 313 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is Hovenweep good for stargazing?
Yes. Hovenweep is a certified International Dark Sky Park.
Source: Dark sky parks
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
