Getting Around

Both Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well provide short trails. Drive to the Visitor Center or Contact Station and walk from there!

 
Visitors on the trail at Montezuma Castle
Visitors on the trail at Montezuma Castle.

NPS

Montezuma Castle

An easy 1/3 mile trail takes you through a glade of white-barked Arizona sycamores to the base of one of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in North America. Take your time as you stroll the paved sidewalk past the 900 year old legacy of the ancient Sinagua culture. The towering trees provide welcome shade during the hot summer months as well as valuable habitat for hundreds of native plants and animals. Rock squirrels, songbirds and lizards are easily spotted along the trails, even during the hottest parts of the day.

 

Montezuma Well

Exploring Montezuma Well along a 1/2-mile paved trail is an experience you aren't soon to forget. This unique geological feature is home to creatures found nowhere else on the planet. The trail around the well is paved, but hills, stairs, and rocks prevent wheel chair accessibility. However, the presence of so much warm, fresh water provides an oasis for a wide variety of wildlife, including mammals (muskrat, ringtail, rock squirrels, white-tail deer), over 100 species of birds, snakes, lizards, and a tremendous assortment of insects, arachnids and amphipods. If a Ranger or Volunteer are at the Contact Station, stop to see amphipods and water scorpions!

Montezuma Well also boasts a pit house! Stop to see this early dwelling on your drive to the Well Parking Lot.
Finally, drive a half-mile back to visit our lush picnic area. Tall cottonwood and sycamore trees provide shade while you eat your lunch and the kids play in the historic canal! We also have a new trail around the old pasture area, at the back of the picnic area. Take a stroll through nature and learn about how we are revegetating this area with native species.

Last updated: September 24, 2021

Park footer

Contact Info

Mailing Address:

P. O. Box 219
Camp Verde, AZ 86322

Phone:

928 567-3322

Contact Us