Rocky Mountain National Park

The Rocky Mountains climb along the backbone of the Continental Divide. The soaring peaks that make up The Rocky Mountain National Park stretch from the lowest valley to the top of 14,259-foot-high Longs Peak. A thick blanket of snow drapes across the mountains and can be seen from just about any vantage point within the park and beyond.

Trail Ridge Road is the park’s signature drive, winding 48 miles along the Divide with hairpin turns and scenic vistas at every mile.

Places to Stay When Visiting The Rockies

There is no lodging inside the park. Estes Park is the gateway city to the park, so you’ll find a lot of amenities there. Denver is 65 miles away to the south, and there are plenty of cities in between to find great VRBO/Airbnb options.

The driving distances below are to the main entrance of the park in Estes Park. There may be smaller entrances to the park, but they would be a secondary option to the main entrance.

• Loveland, CO (30 miles away)
• Ward, CO (30 miles)
• Longmont, CO (33 miles)
• Boulder, CO (38 miles)
• Fort Collins (41 miles)
• Nederland, CO (42 miles)
• Denver, CO (65 miles)

VISIT Rocky Mountain National Park:

Park Details

Rocky Mountain National Park was established in .

Address
Phone	970 586-1206
Hours	Open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, weather permitting
Entrance Fee	$25, single day vehicle pass

When to Visit: Weather vs. Peak Visitation

We crunched 30 years of historical weather and/or park service data to find the best months to visit Rocky Mountain National Park. We looked for the optimal temperatures, the least amount of snow and rain, and stayed away from peak visitation months if we could help it. All this data then helped us paint a picture as to what the absolute best time to visit Rocky Mountain National Park is.

Our data shows the best months to visit Rocky Mountain National Park are April, May, September & October.

Temperature values in °F; Precipitation in Inches

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Park Visits	140,715	133,771	155,819	183,792	335,060	671,232	904,767	746,343	521,233	352,736	164,992	124,388
Precipitation	16	20	32	51	48	38	45	37	30	29	22	20
Avg Temp	21	22	28	36	49	61	66	64	56	44	29	21
Max Temp	32	32	41	51	62	71	74	71	66	57	46	34
Avg Temp	3	3	10	16	25	33	39	38	30	21	11	4
Min Temp	-19	-18	-11	-2	12	21	30	29	16	5	-11	-18

Rocky Mountain National Park Road Trips

Many family vacations consist of stringing one or more national parks together during a week-long trip. Creating these types of trips is our specialty! Here are the road trips we've created where Rocky Mountain National Park is visited.

Trip Name	Trip Miles	Trip Days
Visit the Rocky Mountain National Park from Denver in One Day	240	1
Rockies, Colorado Monument, Black Canyon & Mesa Verde	636	8
Colorado Epic Pass Ski Trip	273	5
Great Sand Dunes, Mesa Verde, Arches & Canyonlands	792	7
Continental Divide National Historic Trail RV Road Trip	2,315	14
Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Black Canyon to Rocky Mountains	1,005	12
Rocky Mountains, Dinosaur Monument, Grand Tetons to Yellowstone	920	10
Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Arches, Black Canyon to Rockies	1,086	12
Rocky Mountains, Black Canyon of the Gunnison to Great Sand Dunes	791	7
Rocky Mountains, Arches to Canyonlands	716	9

Other Nearby National Park Sites

From national monuments, to historic sites to seashores and more, here are the other parks closest to Rocky Mountain National Park.