Aztec Ruins National Monument
View a slide shows of the Ruins

Aztec Ruins is a national monument preserving structures and artifacts left by Ancestral Pueblo. The buildings date back to 1100 and 1200's. The area was used by native from Chaco Canyon to the south and by people from Mesa Verde to the north. The visitors center is open all year from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm and Memorial Day through Labor Day, 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. It is closed Thanksgiving Day, December 25 and January 1. Aztec Ruins National Monument is located on Ruins Road about 3/4 mile north of U.S. Highway 516, just outside the town of Aztec, New Mexico.

There is no lodging available in the park but Aztec and Farmington, New Mexico and Durango, Colorado are all close by and offer lodging and dining. Weather at the park is relatively mild during the winter with occasional snow. The evening can get very chilly with temperatures dropping below zero. Summer temperatures range from the upper 80's to low 90's with cooler nights and the occasional summer thunderstorms.


When you visit Aztec Ruins make sure to take a self guided tour along a 1/2 mile trail through the West Ruins. These ruins are a pueblo that contains 450 interconnected rooms built from mud and stone. As you take the tour, you'll walk through rooms that still have their original roofs and through a reconstructed Great Kiva. Kivas were structures used for community activities. Rangers will occasionally give talks during the summer but there is a 25 minute orientation video that shows throughout the day in the visitors center.