I've never seen anything like Death Valley before. The land is stunning, awe-inspiring and bleak all at once. For you Star Wars buffs out there, several of the movies were shot here and you can follow a self guided tour through the park using this guide http://www.panamintcity.com/exclusives/starwars.html
Absolutely beautiful. I've never seen any geology like this before. Reminiscent of the Cars ride at Disney's California Adventure, you'll drive through amazing vistas with colors unlike anything you've seen before. An added bonus is that parts of the Star Wars movies were filmed here and you can find the specific shots by following this self guided tour http://www.panamintcity.com/exclusives/starwars.html.
A quick drive leads to a landscape unlike anything you've ever seen. Snap a few photos and experience the silence around you and - if you're lucky - you may hear the salt crystals cracking and growing!
Lowest point in North America and visually stunning. Take a walk out onto the salt flats and see some amazing vistas preserved in time. Please stay on the trails though because footprints literally take decades to erode because this place is so dry.
A quick stop here will yield great views of the valley below. There's a short dirt road you can drive over to a nice overlook of the stunning landscape below.
Awe inspiring and stunningly stark and beautiful. Definitely worth the drive and - if you're feeling adventurous - a hike up the crater rim or down to the crater floor.
This place was SO interesting. We took the House and Underground tours and recommend them in that order if you can swing it. Though the opulence does not quite rival Hearst Castle, the story of this place is just - if not more - fascinating and definitely movie worthy. The rangers and tour guides also do a phenomenal job retelling it. There's sandwiches, snacks and a picnic area but no restaurant. Highly recommend it!
An oasis in the desert. The views and grounds are spectacular. The pool is amazing. The restaurant is decent but it's spendy. The room was clean, charming and the bed was nice. To be fair, it's a historic hotel so you're not going to get a big spacious room unless you book a suite. It's spendy as its one of the only games in town and you're paying for atmosphere and convenience. That said our family of 3 really enjoyed our stay.
Incredible rock formations! There's a great tour you can do of various old western movie set locations via car at http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/etc/medialib/blm/ca/pdf/pdfs/bishop_pdfs.Par.33502.File.dat/movie_road_tour_brochure.pdf
Charming, clean, very friendly establishment with lots of interesting local history. We stayed in the historic hotel NOT the motel. The room was small but well appointed and we had a private bathroom. The old bed, however, was uncomfortable and, sadly, some members of our party were sucked into the middle of the mattress, never to be seen again. Other than that we recommend it.