Texas and New Mexico National Parks Road Trip: Big Bend to White Sands

This is the road trip for people who like empty highways. Big Bend, Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, and White Sands make a loop of about 920 miles from El Paso, and none of the four look anything alike: a mountain range rising out of the Chihuahuan Desert, the highest peak in Texas, a cave you can walk into, and a sea of white gypsum dunes. What they share is distance. Gas gaps run long out here, and your phone won't be much help.

This post covers the road: the route leg by leg, the miles and drive times, where to stay, when to go, and how to deal with the things that don't come up on other trips, like missile tests. What to do inside each park is what my guides are for, and I'll point you to the right one at each stop.

Texas and New Mexico road trip at a glance

• Parks: Big Bend, Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, and White Sands.
• Start and finish: a loop from El Paso, Texas.
• Driving: about 920 miles, plus the driving inside Big Bend, which adds up fast.
• Time behind the wheel: about 16 hours, spread over the trip.
• How many days: 8 at the least, 10 to enjoy it.
• Best seasons: October and April, with March and November close behind.
• Pass: the $80 America the Beautiful pass covers all four, and it beats paying at the gates for two or more adults.

How many days do you need?

I'd take 10 days. Here's the math. The two long legs, into Big Bend and back north to the Guadalupes, take most of a day each. Big Bend deserves three days, because its three main areas sit far apart and the park says not to plan a hike on arrival day. The Guadalupes need a day, Carlsbad Caverns a day, and White Sands a day. Add the drive between Carlsbad and White Sands and the drive home, and you're at 10.

In 8 days, Big Bend drops to two days and you lose the slack. If you've only got 4 or 5 days, skip Big Bend and run the short triangle instead: El Paso to Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, and White Sands, then back to El Paso, for about 440 miles. Those three work in a long weekend. Big Bend doesn't.

Which direction to drive it

I'd go to Big Bend first. It's the longest drive of the trip, it's the park you'll want the most time in, and you'll do it fresh. After that, every leg gets shorter, and you finish with an easy 100 miles from White Sands to the El Paso airport. Since it's a loop, there's no one-way rental fee to worry about.

El Paso is the natural starting point for flights and rental cars. Midland/Odessa is the other option, about 235 miles from Big Bend's headquarters, which makes that first day shorter, though it doesn't sit on the loop. Driving the loop the other way works fine too; flip the legs below.

The route, leg by leg

El Paso to Big Bend: about 330 miles, 5.5 hours

Take Interstate 10 east to Van Horn, then US 90 southeast through Valentine and Marfa to Alpine, and Texas 118 south to Study Butte and the park's west entrance. Headquarters at Panther Junction is 26 miles past that. Fill up in Alpine, because there's little between there and Study Butte. You'll also lose an hour on the way: El Paso runs on Mountain Time, and Big Bend runs on Central.

The park warns that GPS and phone map apps may not work well in this area and may suggest unsafe roads, so carry a paper map. Don't try to do anything else on this day. Plan on the drive taking most of it.

Big Bend National Park. The high peaks of the Chisos Mountains rising above the Basin, with Casa Grande at right. Photo: National Park Service Digital Image Archives. Public domain.

Driving in Big Bend

Think of the park as one hub and three spokes, with Panther Junction in the middle. Gas is sold at Panther Junction and Rio Grande Village, with pumps open 24 hours by credit card in 2026, and outside the park in Study Butte. There's none at Castolon or in the Chisos Basin. The Chisos Basin Road climbs 6 miles on sharp curves with grades up to 15 percent, and the park doesn't recommend it for RVs over 24 feet or trailers over 20 feet.

Check conditions before you set your heart on anything. As of November 1, 2026, the park listed weather-related road closures that included the paved road between Cottonwood Campground and Santa Elena Canyon, plus Old Maverick Road, River Road, and Hot Springs Road. The two-year Chisos Basin closure that was planned for 2026 was called off in April, so the Basin stayed open, but the lodge's restaurant was closed, with a food truck outside instead, and the lodge had limited rooms. The entrance fee is $30 a vehicle, cards only. My Big Bend National Park guide works out how to split the park into days, with nine plans and backups for closures. See Big Bend National Park alerts for what's open.

Big Bend National Park. The sheer walls of Santa Elena Canyon frame the Rio Grande; Mexico is on the left and the United States on the right. Photographed in March 2014. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public domain. Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress.

Big Bend to Guadalupe Mountains: about 260 miles, 4.5 to 5 hours

Go back up Texas 118 to Alpine, take US 90 northwest through Marfa to Van Horn, then Texas 54 north for 62 quiet miles to US 62/180 and the park. Fill up in Van Horn. There's no gas in the park and none for 35 miles in either direction from the visitor center.

The clock changes again. Guadalupe Mountains keeps Mountain Time, and the park warns that your phone will probably show the wrong time, which matters if you're meeting a tour or a campground check-in. No road crosses the mountains, so Pine Springs, Frijole Ranch, and McKittrick Canyon are all reached from US 62/180. Dog Canyon, on the north side, is about two hours away through New Mexico. There's no lodging, restaurant, or store in the park, and the entrance fee is $10 per person. My Guadalupe Mountains National Park guide has the plans for everything from a short walk to Guadalupe Peak, the top of Texas.

El Capitan, the limestone prow at the south end of the Guadalupe Mountains, rising above the banded slopes of the old Delaware Basin (photograph by ricraider, public domain). Photo: ricraider, Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

Guadalupe Mountains to Carlsbad Caverns: about 40 miles, 45 minutes

This is the shortest leg of the trip. Follow US 62/180 northeast into New Mexico to White's City, then take the Carlsbad Caverns Highway 7 miles to the visitor center. Parts of that road are steep, narrow, and winding.

The rule that catches people here is timed entry. Everyone who enters the cavern needs a $1 reservation from Recreation.gov, including kids and pass holders, and they open 30 days ahead. The reservation sets your earliest entry, and the last entry is 2:30 in the afternoon, so don't arrive late in the day expecting to get in. The $15 entrance ticket is separate and good for three days. Which way to go in, and how to fit the bat flight around it from about April through October, is in my Carlsbad Caverns National Park guide.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The Big Room Trail winds among stalagmites and hanging formations under the chamber's ceiling, January 11, 2021 (NPS photograph by Anthony Mazzucco). Photo: National Park Service / Anthony Mazzucco, Wikimedia Commons. Public domain (U.S. Government work).

Carlsbad Caverns to White Sands: about 190 miles, 3.5 hours

You have two ways to go, and I'd take the mountain road. From White's City, go northeast on US 62/180 to Carlsbad, north on US 285 to Artesia, then west on US 82 across the Sacramento Mountains through Cloudcroft and down to Alamogordo. The road climbs above 8,000 feet, so it's a relief in summer, and it can have snow and ice in winter. From Alamogordo, the park is about 15 miles southwest on US 70.

The other way goes back through El Paso: 151 miles on US 62/180, then north on US 54 to Alamogordo. It's about 250 miles and 4 hours, all easy highway, and it's the one to take if a winter storm's parked over Cloudcroft.

White Sands National Park. Low sun lights the crests of the dunes, with a mountain range on the horizon, September 2013 (National Park Service photograph; public domain). Photo: National Park Service, Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.

White Sands, and the missile range next door

White Sands Missile Range surrounds the park, and its tests can close Dunes Drive for up to three hours and block US 70 between the park and Las Cruces. The park lists upcoming closures on its Military Testing Park Closures page, sometimes with only 24 hours' notice. For US 70, call the range at (575) 678-1178. If a closure hits on your only day, the visitor center and gift shop stay open, so there's somewhere to wait.

Entry is $25 a vehicle. There's no fuel, lodging, or camping in the park, and the Interdune Boardwalk and a stretch of Dunes Drive between mile markers 3 and 5.5 were restricted as of fall 2026 (you can drive through but not stop). Fill up in Alamogordo. My White Sands National Park guide covers how to fit the dunes, the trails, and sunset into a day.

White Sands National Park. Sunset over the dunes and the mountains to the west, November 2016 (photograph by Doug Gates, CC0). Photo: Doug Gates, Wikimedia Commons. CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication).

White Sands to El Paso: about 100 miles, 1.5 to 2 hours

Take US 70 west over San Augustin Pass to Las Cruces, about 52 miles, then Interstate 10 south to El Paso. You'll pass a Border Patrol checkpoint on US 70 about a mile from the park entrance, so keep your ID handy.

A sample 10-day driving schedule

This is the driving skeleton only, so you can see where the miles fall. The park days themselves are in the guides.

• Day 1: Fly into El Paso and drive to Study Butte or the Chisos Basin (about 330 miles, 5.5 hours).
• Days 2 to 4: Big Bend, driving from your base to a different spoke each day.
• Day 5: Drive Big Bend to Pine Springs (about 260 miles, 4.5 to 5 hours).
• Day 6: Guadalupe Mountains, driving from Pine Springs.
• Day 7: Drive to Carlsbad Caverns (about 40 miles), and sleep in White's City or Carlsbad.
• Day 8: Drive over Cloudcroft to Alamogordo (about 175 miles, 3.5 hours).
• Day 9: White Sands, driving from Alamogordo.
• Day 10: Drive White Sands to El Paso (about 100 miles) and fly home.

Where to stay along the way

• Big Bend: Chisos Mountains Lodge is the only lodging in the park, and in 2026 it ran with limited rooms, so call before you count on it. The park's developed campgrounds at Chisos Basin, Rio Grande Village, and Cottonwood need reservations on Recreation.gov. Study Butte and Terlingua, just outside the west entrance, are the usual fallback, and Alpine and Marathon are farther out.
• Guadalupe Mountains: Pine Springs and Dog Canyon campgrounds, by reservation. For a bed, stay in White's City, about 35 miles northeast, or in Van Horn or Carlsbad.
• Carlsbad Caverns: White's City at the park gate, or Carlsbad, about 20 miles farther, which has many more hotels. There's no lodging or developed campground in the park.
• White Sands: Alamogordo is the closest, and Las Cruces has more. For camping, the park lists Oliver Lee Memorial State Park, about 24 miles away, and Lincoln National Forest campgrounds near Cloudcroft.

Best time of year to drive it

October is my pick, because it's the one month when everything lines up. Big Bend has cooled off, the bats are usually still flying at Carlsbad Caverns, and the maples in McKittrick Canyon start to turn. April is close behind, with bats back and spring color in the desert, though wind can be a real problem at the Guadalupes in March and early spring.

November through February is great for Big Bend, with January highs of about 59°F in the Basin and 70°F on the river, and it's the park's busy season. Nights get cold, days are short, and the bats are gone. Snow and ice can hit Carlsbad and the Sacramento Mountains.

Summer is the hard sell. Big Bend's river areas average above 100°F from May through July, and the rainy season brings afternoon storms and flash floods from May through September. If it's the only time you've got, get an early start, and carry more water than you think you need.

Road trip tips for West Texas and southern New Mexico

• Treat half a tank as empty. Your gas stops are Alpine, Study Butte, Panther Junction, Van Horn, White's City, and Alamogordo, and the gaps between some of them run past 100 miles.
• Carry a paper map and download everything. Cell service is extremely limited at Big Bend and the Guadalupes, and GPS has been known to send drivers down bad roads.
• Keep your ID on you. Border Patrol checkpoints are common on highways in this part of the country.
• Watch your watch. Big Bend is on Central Time, and everything else on the loop is on Mountain Time. Phones near the state line don't always agree.
• Do the pass math. Big Bend's $30 vehicle fee, White Sands' $25, and the per-person fees at the Guadalupes and Carlsbad add up to about $105 for two adults, against $80 for the America the Beautiful pass. At Carlsbad and the Guadalupes, the pass covers the holder plus three adults.
• Bring water and food. Nothing's close out here, and a breakdown in the heat is dangerous. Carry extra water in the car, not just for hikes.
• Check closures the day before. Big Bend's roads and White Sands' missile tests can both change a plan on short notice.

Plan your days inside each park

This post gets you from park to park. What to do once you're inside is what my guides are for: each one has nine itineraries for one, two, or three days at easy, moderate, and strenuous effort, each with a backup plan for bad weather or a closure, plus orientation maps, the park's history, and the animals you're likely to see. You get an EPUB and a printable PDF, so the day's plan can ride in the car with you.

• Big Bend National Park: nine itineraries, 14 animals to look for, 5 maps, and 29 photographs
• Carlsbad Caverns National Park: nine itineraries, 14 animals to look for, 4 maps, and 34 photographs
• Guadalupe Mountains National Park: nine itineraries, 15 animals to look for, 6 maps, and 37 photographs
• White Sands National Park: nine itineraries, 13 animals to look for, 3 maps, and 31 photographs

Short on time at one stop? Just an Afternoon is my free four-hour plan for every U.S. National Park.

Texas and New Mexico road trip FAQ

Can I do all four parks in a week? Yes, if you give Big Bend two days and keep moving, but you won't have any room for a closed road or a bad weather day. I'd do the short three-park triangle instead and save Big Bend for its own trip.

Do I need a reservation to enter? Only at Carlsbad Caverns, where everyone needs a timed-entry reservation for the cavern. Campgrounds at Big Bend and the Guadalupes need reservations too. Check Carlsbad Caverns National Park alerts and White Sands National Park alerts before you lock in your dates.

How far apart are Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe Mountains? About 40 miles, or 45 minutes on US 62/180, even though they're in different states. That's why people pair them, and why you can sleep in White's City and see both.

Can I take an RV? Most of the route, yes. The exceptions are the Chisos Basin Road for larger rigs, and RVs of 55 feet or longer at Pine Springs. There's no overnight RV parking at Carlsbad Caverns, and White Sands has no camping at all.

More road trips and park pages

• Visiting Big Bend National Park with kids
• Visiting White Sands National Park with kids

Before you go: roads, campgrounds, and visitor centers close for snow, fire, and repairs, so check each park's alerts and current conditions, updated daily: Big Bend, Carlsbad Caverns, Guadalupe Mountains, White Sands. For every park at a glance, see the park conditions dashboard.

Planning a different route? See all my National Park road trips.

This is an independent guide. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Driving times are estimates without stops, and conditions change; check each park's current alerts before you go.