White Sands National Park With Dogs

White Sands National Park is a great place to visit with dogs – it is one of the few National Parks that is dog friendly! From an 8 mile scenic drive to hiking and sand sledding, your pup can join you for it all.

Top Tips For Bringing Dogs to the Dunes

1. Bring lots and lots of water. The dunes are huge and you could be roaming for quite some time.
2. There is no shade once you venture out to the dunes so go early morning or later afternoon. Better yet, if you can get a day that is cloudy, that is perfect!
3. The wind can whip the sand around so I’d also recommend eye protection. We used our Doggles which worked just fine.

Dog Friendly

When White Sands National Park with dogs, dogs are allowed everywhere on the dunes as long as they are on leash and you pick up after them. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for cactus or snakes as both are common in the park. Dog are not allowed in the visitor center.

What to do

Dune Hiking

These gypsum sand dunes are very easy to walk on compared to other sand dunes. If you’ve been to Great Sand Dunes in Colorado, these dunes are MUCH easier to walk on. One recommendation is to find specific markers while exploring the dunes. After a while, every area looks the same and it can be difficult to find your car!

Sand Sledding

You can bring any sled for sledding but they do recommend that you wax the bottom. You can buy wax in the visitor center. They also sell sleds here if you don’t have one.

Picnics

There are many picnic shelters throughout the park. Back your lunch (and some snacks for your pup) and take a break from the dunes.

In Conclusion

As long as you come prepared for the sun and heat with protection for yourself and your dog you should be good to go. This is a very unique spot that is worth a day trip if you are near the area.

Check out our dog-friendly travel posts for more trip ideas and tips.