El Malpais National Monument

Posted onAuthorRachele Tycksen

Please make sure to check for the most up-to-date information before planning your visit. 

(505) 876-2783
1900 E Santa Fe Ave
Grants, NM 87020-4014
US
nps.gov/elma/index.htm
El Malpais Visitor Center is open 7 days a week, 9:00am-5:00pm.
ALL PARK HOURS: El Malpais National Monument is open 24 hours a day.El Malpais National Monument Entrance Fee – $0.00
There is no fee to enter El Malpais National Monument.

Take exit 85 of I-40 in Grants, New Mexico. After you exit, head south on Santa Fe Ave, and continue straight over the freeway overpass. Take a left at the entrance sign for El Malpais Visitor Center. Continue 300 yards until you reach the parking lot.

Named by Spanish explorers as they detoured around forbidding and unrelenting flows of basalt, El Malpais is home to one of the most complete sequences of lava flows in the country. Preserved within this harsh yet starkly beautiful landscape are many lava tube cave systems, cinder cones, spatter cones, and other intriguing volcanic features. Exploring this surreal region can be done easily via scenic drives, overlooks, and short trails. Or immerse yourself in the volcanic mysteries of El Malpais on a rugged backcountry trek.