Mesa Verde National Park guide · 2 min read
Cliff Palace and Ranger-Led Cliff Dwelling Tours
Cliff Palace is the best-known of the more than 600 Ancestral Pueblo cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde and the largest known cliff dwelling in North America.
Its rooms are tucked into the biggest recess in the middle of the Great Mesa, and its walls face south and southwest, so the winter sun warmed them. The Ancestral Pueblo people built it between 1190 and 1280, using mortar, sandstone, and wooden beams. Many of its rooms once carried bright paint, and a viewpoint along the walk offers a good look at the structure.
Entry to Cliff Palace, Balcony House, and Square Tower House, a site in the backcountry, is only possible with a ranger-led tour. Tours are booked on Recreation.gov and often sell out, so reserve early. A Cliff Palace tour runs about an hour and covers roughly 400 meters, or a quarter mile, round trip, with four ladders to climb. Expect rough footing, uneven steps, and steep drops.
Balcony House perches on a high ledge that faces east. The site has 45 rooms and two kivas, and winters there would have been bitter. On the tour you climb a 32-foot ladder and squeeze through a 12-foot tunnel, then leave by a set of toeholds cut into a crack in the rock. Researchers believe that single route in and out made the village easier to defend. You will need both hands free for the wooden ladders.
Square Tower House is a quieter choice. Rangers lead groups of no more than 10 people into the backcountry to reach it. Guided bus tours offer a half-day outing, with rangers pointing out short trails and overlooks and a stop at Cliff Palace. The Mesa Verde Visitor and Research Center sits just before the park entrance, and staff there can help you plan your trip. Its exhibits show what everyday life was like for Ancestral Pueblo families.
