Interesting, quick stop if you're in the area. We stopped by The Little Mermaid sculpture garden before this and it was on the way back to the highway.
Fun spot to check out! Not only is it the Toms Flagship store, but there's also a coffee bar inside with a really cool outdoor space! A local favorite for yummy coffee and a hidden outdoor area to get some computer work done. Can get pretty crowded though, and customer service could be better.
Now called Burro, not Firefly. One of my favorite places to go for gifts, clothing, accessories on Abbott Kinney! Good range of prices, customer service just ok.
Stopped just to take a picture of being in four states at once. It was way too hot to stay longer. There are craft booths located around the center if you're looking for a gift. The Navajo people were very friendly, quite talented and lovely to talk to.
**Actual location is about 10 miles further down the road than listed**
I unfortunately, thought this was located much closer to the highway (due to the address listed here and google directions) and ended up getting in very late at night, exhausted and frustrated at how far out of the way it was for just a one night stay. I should have stopped in Durango for the night now that I know better. The views from the hotel rooms were not as spectacular as depicted on the website, and I payed to have an "upgraded room"... I was fine with not having a tv in the room, and having the "upgraded room" the beds were nice and plush. The rooms were much smaller than I was expecting, and there were doors that would connect our room to the room next door that were incredibly flimsy and poorly put together. When we first entered the room, we opened the door thinking it had to be a closet due to the size of the room. We quickly found out it was the first of two doors you could open to get into the next hotel room. While trying to shut the door, we discovered how easily you could hear the people next door. The rooms are not sound proofed at all whatsoever, so it was incredibly frustrating having to whisper and watch your every step, afraid we were going to wake our neighbors again. I was a bit surprised at the condition of the "upgraded room", as it seemed pretty elegant and nicely kept online. The bathroom was a bit dirty, and the room looked like it could use an update and a paint job. Overall, I would recommend this location if you are planning on staying at the park for a few days to explore the cliff dwellings because of the location in the park. Otherwise, skip it and stay in Durango.
Beautiful drive!! A must see if you're driving through the area. Just make sure you know how to use the different gears to slow your car down instead of riding the breaks the whole way (if you have an automatic)- I could see some of the emergency ramps for runaway trucks to use if their brakes fail had been used!!
**Actual location is a couple more miles toward the mountains on road "GG", which is a dirt road**
I was aware of the fact that this was a clothing optional facility, however, thinking it was a bit out of the way I expected there to be less people and didn't think it would be a big problem. It is a very beautiful area with a surprisingly good view of the valley below (it really didn't feel as though we were that high up). They have a good number of options for soaking pools, so if you want a bit more privacy you can always hike a bit further down the trail and check out the next hot spring. I didn't attempt the Hot Spring at the top of the trail, as it was quite a steep climb, and being from much lower altitudes just a slight incline had taken quite a toll on us, which we hadn't expected because we are in quite good shape! So be prepared to take a couple breaks if you plan on checking out some of the hot springs a bit further down the trail. My favorites were the waterfall pond and the meadow pond. Only downside to the meadow pond was that the water was just about a foot deep, so you would have to completely lay down on the stone bottom to submerse your whole body. It is worth the extra couple minute walk to see the beautiful surroundings (there were two deer grazing right next to us in the meadow, and the scenery was gorgeous!). The waterfall pond was nice, a bit deeper and bigger than the meadow pond, but was pretty crowded when we were there. There are two restrooms that are accessible to men and women, so it was a bit uncomfortable to have a man walk in when I was changing to use the urinal in front of me... If you are comfortable with that sort of thing you'll have a blast! If you're a bit more modest, you might want to change somewhere else off of the property before and after, or go to a different spring that is not clothing optional. All in all, I would recommend Valley View Springs if you are looking for a very unique,relaxing hot springs experience in the middle of nature. It's not your typical hot springs being filtered into an olympic size pool that looks like a YMCA facility.
ABSOLUTELY AMAZING EXPERIENCE!! Staff was very friendly and knowledgable. Love that they really focus on educating people about fur farms, trying to keep wild animals as "pets", how important each species' survival is to our ecosystem, etc... Learned a lot, and had a blast! Only downside was the young kids in our group. It would be great if there were designated "kid friendly" tours throughout the day so adults could take tours without kids if possible. The wolves and other animals can be skittish and weary of kids moving all over the place and being noisy, so it would get frustrating at times when you could see the animals responding to them and keeping their distance a bit. Other than that, couldn't recommend this place more! At the end of the tour, your whole group gets to howl with all of the wolves at the sanctuary, which was kind of spectacular! I would also recommend adding on a photo session at the end of your tour. We did the "Alpha" and had a good 20 minutes or so in an inclosure with two wolves! Experiencing them one on one in person, and having some really cool pics to boot was awesome! Definitely worth the stop, once in a lifetime experience!!
Just had enough time to drive through, but it was pretty spectacular! Loved that there were so many different ways to experience it, depending on what you prefer or how much time you have. I imagine it would be really beautiful to experience at sunset with all of the red and orange colors. If you like Garden of the Gods you'll also love driving through Sedona (which we did later in this trip).
Interesting, quick stop if you're in the area. We stopped by The Little Mermaid sculpture garden before this and it was on the way back to the highway.