Best time to visit Great Sand Dunes National Park
June and October are the best balance at Great Sand Dunes: mild and dry for the park (average highs 60° to 77°F), with crowds from moderate to very busy. June is busiest, with about 87,000 visitors. November is the quietest, with highs near 46°F.
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Busy
- Very busy
- Few or no visits (may be closed)
- Best months
Month by month
- Station
- Great Sand Dunes NP & Preserve, CO USC00053541
- Lat / lon
- 37.73, -105.51
- Elevation
- 8,183 ft
- From park center
- 6 mi
- Normals
- 1991–2020
- Visits
- 2023–2025
| Field | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Junbest | Jul | Aug | Sep | Octbest | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High, °F | 33° | 39° | 49° | 56° | 66° | 77° | 81° | 78° | 72° | 60° | 46° | 34° | 57° |
| Low, °F | 11° | 16° | 24° | 29° | 38° | 48° | 52° | 50° | 44° | 33° | 22° | 12° | 31° |
| Precipitation, in | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 1.3 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 12.2 |
| Snow, in | 8.1 | 6.2 | 8.5 | 7.9 | 1.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.8 | 5.6 | 7.0 | 47.8 |
| Daylight, h:mm | 9:49 | 10:44 | 11:50 | 13:07 | 14:11 | 14:46 | 14:32 | 13:37 | 12:23 | 11:09 | 10:05 | 9:34 | |
| Visitors, thousands | 5 | 8 | 18 | 24 | 67 | 87 | 84 | 63 | 47 | 37 | 12 | 8 | 461 |
| Crowds | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet | Busy | Very busy | Very busy | Busy | Moderate | Moderate | Quiet | Quiet | |
| Weather | Cold | Cold | Cool | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Mild | Hot | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Mild | Cool | Cold |
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip., in | Snow, in | Daylight | Visitors | Crowds | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 11° | 0.6 | 8.1 | 9:49 | 5,400 | Quiet | Cold |
| February | 39° | 16° | 0.4 | 6.2 | 10:44 | 7,600 | Quiet | Cold |
| March | 49° | 24° | 0.9 | 8.5 | 11:50 | 18,000 | Quiet | Cool |
| April | 56° | 29° | 1.2 | 7.9 | 13:07 | 24,000 | Quiet | Mild, wet |
| May | 66° | 38° | 1.2 | 1.7 | 14:11 | 67,000 | Busy | Mild, wet |
| Junebest | 77° | 48° | 0.7 | 0 | 14:46 | 87,000 | Very busy | Mild |
| July | 81° | 52° | 2.1 | 0 | 14:32 | 84,000 | Very busy | Hot |
| August | 78° | 50° | 1.9 | 0 | 13:37 | 63,000 | Busy | Mild, wet |
| September | 72° | 44° | 1.3 | 0 | 12:23 | 47,000 | Moderate | Mild, wet |
| Octoberbest | 60° | 33° | 0.9 | 2.8 | 11:09 | 37,000 | Moderate | Mild |
| November | 46° | 22° | 0.5 | 5.6 | 10:05 | 12,000 | Quiet | Cool |
| December | 34° | 12° | 0.5 | 7.0 | 9:34 | 8,400 | Quiet | Cold |
| Year | 57° | 31° | 12.2 | 47.8 | 461,000 | |||
Year: average high and low, total precipitation and snowfall, total visitors. T = trace (under 0.05 in). – = not measured at this station. Updated .
- Hottest July, average high 81°F
- Coldest nights January, average low 11°F
- Source NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information; National Park Service
- Visitors a year about 461,000 (2023–2025 average)
- State Colorado
Closures, reservations and alerts: Great Sand Dunes National Park on nps.gov
Nearby
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