Death Valley National Park

3 min readDec 23, 2022

1 day itinerary

This itinerary covers death valley national park for a day with night stay close by so that you can stay late inside the park for amazing start gazing experience. People visit death valley for sand dunes, badwater basin (lowest point in NA), artist’s drive and stargazing.

Pro-tip: Most spots can be accessed only by a dirt road and even though most people recommened a SUV, we drove around in a sedan without any issues. Also, there are a no parking entrance booths like most national park and you need to pay entrance fee either at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center or at electronic booths installed at few spots across the park.

Places to stay: Stovepipe wells (inside Death Valley), The Ranch at Death Valley (inside Death Valley), The oasis at Death Valley (inside Death Valley), El Portal Motel, Beatty (outside Death Valley, cheap option)

1 Day itinerary:

Start your day with a nice walk at Mosaic canyon trail. Its a 4 miles out and back trail but doing 1 mile back and forth is good enough. The parking spot is 1–1.5 miles off road and can be accesed by a dirt road (across from Stovepipe Wells Campground)
Next head to Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes parking (walk as much inside the dunes for better view/pictures) — This part of the park has sand dunes and will make you feel like you are in a desert
Next head to Furnace Creek Visitor Center (opens at 8am) — pay your entry fee here at the visitor center and grab some light snacks
Zabriskie Point — short walk from the parking lot but this one has amazing views. Do not miss this one.
Optional —Dante’s view — we skipped this one as its a long detour and quite off from other spot but if you have time, please do this.
Devils golf course — this one is off the road, accessed by a dirt road
Badwater Basin (this one is on the road with parking lot) — lowest point in North America, 282 feet below sea level.
Artist’s Drive & Artist’s Palette — scenic 1 way, 9-mile drive through beatiful canyons and colorful mountains. Most famous spot to get down is Artist’s Palette
Optional — Natural bridge hike (1 mile) — may be depending on the weather
Stargazing at Harmony borax works (near visitor centre Furnace creek) — this is one of the finest spot for stargazing inside the park. Also, there are some historic structures to check out at this spot so make sure you reach 30mins before sunset.