Big Bend National Park Guide

I fell in love with Big Bend during our trip there in October and November of 2024. There is something so wild about it. Maybe it’s the fact that the Chihuahuan desert is unforgiving or how surprisingly green Chisos Basin is or beauty of the Rio Grande delicately carving a boundary between Mexico and the United States. If you want to read more about our trip, you can check out the blog post here!

The towns outside the park are small and quirky. We stayed in Terlingua and I adored it! It’s also a fairly quick drive into the park. Once you enter Big Bend, everything is pretty spread out as the park is very large and remote. Make sure you keep your gas tank full, bring plenty of water and download any maps you may have saved online (paper maps are also recommended!).

We were here for two days and didn’t get to see everything we wanted. When at the park you can hike, stargaze, birdwatch and recreate on the river. You cannot rent equipment from the park directly but there are many outfitters in town that offer tours on the Rio Grande (which I definitely recommend). There are also some historical sites in the park too. If you want to visit Mexico, there is an official port of entry in the park at Rio Grande Village. If you want to do this, don’t forget your passport!

𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝: October 2024

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: June 12, 1944

𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Terlingua, Texas

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 F𝐞𝐞: $15-$30, or use the America the Beautiful annual pass

Hike Recommendations:

Easy Hikes
- Santa Elena Canyon – This is a must do when visiting Big Bend National Park. Not only is it really cool to see where the Rio Grande leaves the canyon, cutting the border of Mexico and the United States, but the lighting during golden hour right before sunset is absolutely stunning!
  - Click here for AllTrails
  - 1.6 miles, 220 ft. elevation gain
  - Pit toilets available
- Window View – Super short, quick walk behind the Chisos Basin Visitor Center. It gives you a view of “the Window” without doing the full hike to it.
  - Click here for AllTrails
  - 0.3 miles, 16 ft. elevation gain
  - Wheelchair friendly trail!
Moderate Hikes
- Lost Mine – We loved this hike so much. It’s one of the prettiest National Park hikes that I’ve done. The views were stunning! Start early, the parking lot is small and space is limited!
  - Click here for AllTrails
  - 4.8 miles, 1,131 ft. elevation gain
  - As a note, this area will be under construction starting in May 2026
Hikes I want to do but haven’t yet
- The Windows
- Pinnacles Trail
- Basin Loop Trail
- Boquillas Canyon Trail

Things to see and do in and near the park

Get out on the river – I can’t recommend exploring the Rio Grande enough! We used Big Bend River Tours for our canoe trip and loved it. They offer different options which explore the iconic river in Big Bend Ranch State Park.
Big Bend Ranch State Park – We only drove through the state park and explored the river by canoe, but it’s supposed to have some wonderful hikes.
Sotol Vista – If you love sunsets, make sure to come here!
Do a scenic drive – Make sure to drive the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive and Chisos Basin Road! There are other scenic drives in the park but we weren’t able to fit them into our trip.
Soak in the Hot Springs – We weren’t able to make it out to this part of the park unfortunately, but you can visit the Hot Springs Historic District of the part and soak in the springs
Visit Rio Grande Village – Again, we didn’t get to make it out to this part of the park, but if you visit here and have a valid passport, you can cross over to Mexico at Boquillas Crossing Port of Entry. Spend a few hours at the small village of Boquillas del Carmen.

Lodging suggestions:

Big Bend Station – They have multiple lodging options – both lodges and a campground. We stayed at their Mission Lodge, which was across the street from their primary location. They have a gas station and deli/convenience store on site. It’s a quick drive from the park and other points of interest, like Terlingua Ghost Town.
Chisos Mountains Lodge – Located within the park within Chisos Basin and open year round. As a note, this area will be under construction starting in May 2026
There are multiple campgrounds within the park, plus some primitive camping as well. If you’d rather stay somewhere outside the park, there are many hotel, camping and glamping options in the Terlingua area.

Suggestions on food/drinks/shop:

DB’s Rustic Iron BBQ – We made a quick stop here after our canoe tour for BBQ and beers. It had a nice area for sitting outside
We only ate in town one time, so I can’t provided recommendations for too many places but there were quite a few options in town.

I fell in love with Big Bend and Terlingua, even after only being there for a few days. I already want to go back to explore all the spots we missed during our first trip. It’s one of the most stunning areas of our country and should be on everyone’s bucket list. Would you go here?

📍I acknowledge the lands mentioned in this post are the ancestral lands of the Chiso, Coahuiltecan, Lipan Apache, Mescalero Apache and Jumanos people.