Rainbow-colored fossil logs and Painted Desert badlands, right off Route 66.
Photo: daveynin · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
Two hundred and twenty million years ago, this corner of Arizona was a humid floodplain of towering conifers. The trees fell, were buried in volcanic ash, and slowly turned to stone — wood replaced molecule by molecule with quartz and jasper until the logs became jewels. Today Petrified Forest National Park protects one of the largest and most colorful concentrations of petrified wood on Earth, scattered across the high desert like a spilled treasure, alongside the banded badlands of the Painted Desert.
It's the rare national park built to be driven straight through. A 28-mile road runs the length of it, linking the Painted Desert overlooks at the north end (off Interstate 40) to the densest petrified-wood fields in the south (off US-180). You can enter one end and exit the other in a couple of hours, or take half a day to walk the short trails — Blue Mesa's loop down into blue-gray badlands, the Crystal Forest's path among glittering logs, the petroglyphs at Newspaper Rock and Puerco Pueblo. It's also the only national park that historic Route 66 ran through, marked today by a line of old telephone poles and a rusting vintage car.
A few practical notes: the park closes and gates its entrances at night, so there's no camping or lodging inside (base in Holbrook, on Route 66). And the rule everyone learns — it's illegal to take even a pebble of petrified wood, a temptation so persistent the park is famous for the 'conscience letters' thieves mail back with the stolen pieces and tales of bad luck. Buy a legal piece from a shop outside instead, and leave the park as colorful as you found it.
A string of rim overlooks above banded badlands glowing red, pink, lavender, and gray — anchored by the 1930s Painted Desert Inn, a Pueblo Revival landmark with Hopi murals.
Insider tipGo at sunrise or late afternoon — low light makes the colors pop, while midday flattens them. Kachina Point behind the Inn is a standout.
Plan a trip to this spot →The park's most striking close-up badlands — a short paved loop trail that descends right into blue-gray, mineral-banded hills.
Insider tipThe best short hike in the park: easy, about a mile, and the only trail that puts you inside the painted layers rather than viewing from a rim.
Plan a trip to this spot →A paved loop through one of the densest fields of colorful fossil logs in the park, quartz and jasper glinting inside the petrified wood.
Insider tipIf you only do one petrified-wood walk, make it this one — short, paved, and maximum log density per step.
Plan a trip to this spot →An overlook above a boulder cluster carved with 650-plus petroglyphs, some over 2,000 years old, left by ancestral Puebloans.
Insider tipUse the fixed viewing telescopes at the overlook — you view from above, so the scopes are how you pick out individual figures.
Plan a trip to this spot →A 100-room ancestral Puebloan village with a solstice-marker petroglyph — and nearby, the preserved roadbed of historic Route 66, marked by old poles and a rusted vintage car.
Insider tipPair the two adjacent stops; the Route 66 marker is a quick, photogenic pull-off that anchors the park's road-trip story.
Plan a trip to this spot →An overlook above a broad basin scattered with petrified logs — the larger of the two main wood concentrations, with a historic road grade descending into it.
Insider tipThe overlook alone delivers the panorama; the old road route below is a longer, quieter walk for solitude.
Plan a trip to this spot →High-desert Colorado Plateau at around 5,400 feet: hot summers (July highs in the low 90s), cold winters (December–January lows in the low 20s), and very dry — under 8 inches of rain a year, most of it in the July–August monsoon. Expect big day-to-night temperature swings and serious wind, especially in late winter and spring.
It's a drive-through park — enter one end, exit the other, no backtracking — and the gates close at night.
Off I-40 about 26 miles east of Holbrook, at the Painted Desert Visitor Center — the north end's badlands overlooks. The handy stop for I-40 travelers.
On US-180 about 19 miles from Holbrook, at the Rainbow Forest Museum — nearest the densest petrified-wood fields. Drive the 28-mile road one-way between the two.
There's no lodging or developed campground inside the park, and it closes at night — stay in the Route 66 gateway towns.
The closest base, about 26 miles west — classic Route 66 motels including the iconic Wigwam Motel, where you sleep in a concrete tipi.
Booking tipHolbrook is the natural overnight; the Wigwam Motel is a Route 66 experience in itself.
Winslow (~50 miles west, the 'Standin' on the Corner' town and the historic La Posada Hotel) and Gallup, NM (~70 miles east) are the other Route 66 lodging hubs.
Booking tipWinslow's La Posada is a destination hotel worth the stop for westbound travelers.
The only in-park overnight is wilderness backcountry camping by free permit, obtained at a visitor center before the gates close.
Booking tipThere are no drive-up campsites — this is for backpackers willing to hike in.
What does it cost?
$25 per vehicle (good for 7 days), $20 motorcycle, $15 per person; a park annual pass is $45 and the $80 America the Beautiful pass works. The park is cashless — card only.
What are the hours — can I visit at night?
No. The park gates close at night — roughly 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with extended summer hours — and it's open year-round except Thanksgiving and Christmas. Arrive before closing or the gates are locked. Confirm seasonal hours before you go.
Can I camp or stay inside the park?
There's no lodging and no developed campground inside, and no overnight parking. The only in-park option is backcountry camping with a free wilderness permit. Otherwise stay in Holbrook, Winslow, or Gallup.
Can I take a piece of petrified wood?
No — it's illegal to remove any petrified wood or other natural object, with fines. (The park is famous for the 'conscience letters' people mail back with stolen pieces, blaming their bad luck.) Buy legally collected wood from a shop outside the park instead.
How long does a visit take?
Plan two to four hours for the drive-through with overlook stops, or a half-day if you add the short trails — Blue Mesa, Crystal Forest, and the Painted Desert Inn.
Where does it fit on a road trip?
It sits right on I-40 between Albuquerque and Flagstaff/Grand Canyon, so it's an easy drive-through detour — enter at the north (I-40) end, drive south, and exit on US-180 toward Holbrook.
Pick your vehicle, line up the stops on the way in and out, and carry the whole route in your pocket.
