When to visit Monument Valley?
To visit Monument Valley, fall is a season that we recommend because it is neither too hot during the day nor too cold at night. This way, you avoid the high season which runs from April to early October .
You can find in this blog article all our advice related to this road trip in the USA.
Visit the Valley of the Gods
After a 1-hour drive from Monticello, where we slept for $56 at the Rodeway Inn & Suites , we arrive at the Valley of the Gods via the 191 and then the 163. We pass through the charming village of Bluff and its red columns and mesas. Since we left Moab, we missed the red so much.
25 miles later on the 163, between Bluff and Mexican Hat , we really feel like we are alone in the world. Time has been flying by since we left on a road trip 13 days ago. It’s incredible! And suddenly, the landscape turns red (ochre landscapes). We arrive in Navajo land between monoliths and mesas. Welcome to Valley of the Gods where a 17-mile trail awaits us. A trail that should be avoided if it rains.
Prefer the East entrance and not the West to take advantage of the morning light and it is also the first half of the route which is the most interesting. We end on route 261 which joins route 163 a few minutes later.
We are in Navajo land, on a site that is one of the symbols of Native American beliefs . Each monolith has a name: Seven Sailors, Setting Hen Butte, Rooster Butte, Pyramid Peak, Franklin Butte, Battleship Rock, Castle Butte which is the most distant curiosity of this trail of the Valley of the Gods and finally Lady in the Bathtube.
What we love about the Valley of the Gods (unlike Monument Valley) is that since the natural site is less known, we have much more freedom to wander around .
Once we arrive at the West exit, at the intersection of 261 and 163, we are only 3 miles from Mexican Hat and 43 miles from Kayuta .
Please note that the bed and breakfast installed on the site mentioned in the paper guides was permanently closed when we visited at the beginning of November 2018.
So we arrive near Monument Valley, in the middle of an Indian reservation. The number of accommodations is extremely limited . The establishment that directly faces Monument Valley is called The View . We preferred to test the one that is located a little further but which also allows you to enjoy a beautiful view: the historic Goulding’s Lodge hotel . Where it all began.
Where to sleep in Monument Valley?
On this stage, we treat ourselves. Bye bye motels! We sleep in a historic establishment and more particularly at Goulding’s Lodge for $145 excluding tax or $160.62 including tax (10.77% tax) for a room with a king-size bed upstairs and a balcony with an incredible view of Monument Valley . If you have more money, the View Hotel is even closer to the natural site and has rooms of the same standard as Goulding’s Lodge but also cabins located directly at the entrance to the park . Goulding’s Lodge currently offers 87 accommodations .
It was after a long horseback ride from western Colorado that Harry Goulding (1897-1981) literally fell in love with Monument Valley. Back home, he shared this experience with his wife. Settling in the middle of a Navajo reservation was not so easy, but it was following the evolution of the law in Utah on property and a long relationship of trust with the Navajos that their story in this unreal corner of the American West was able to begin. After living in tents for a few years, in 1928 they opened a “Trading Post”, a restaurant and then the first lodges for travelers but also Hollywood directors who rushed to shoot their films in this enchanting setting.