Montezuma Castle National Monument + Montezuma Well – Arizona
Montezuma Castle National Monument is an historical place in Arizona where you can see an ancient cliff dwelling house built right into a tall cliff. It was made by the Sinagua people more than 800 years ago. This cliff dwelling has five floors, and it’s still standing strong today. So if you’re road tripping through Arizona and heading from Phoenix to Flagstaff and points beyond, you’ll pass right by Montezuma Castle National Monument on I-17 — it’s a quick stop and great place to stretch your legs! In this blog post, I’ll give you everything you need to know before visiting Montezuma Castle National Monument.
Where is Montezuma Castle National Monument?
This National Monument has two areas — the castle and the well. The majority of visitors just go to the castle and call it a day, but I highly recommend you visit both. I actually enjoyed the well much more than the castle.
Montezuma Well is a unit of this National Monument and is about 11 miles north of the castle.
How much time do you need to visit Montezuma Castle National Monument?
There isn’t a whole lot to do at this National Monument so it won’t take much time. Here’s an estimate:
If you’re just visiting the castle: 15 minutes
If you’re just visiting the well: 30 minutes
If you’re visiting both: About 1h 30 minutes – 1h 45 minutes, including the drive time between sites.
Montezuma Castle National Monument – Fees and Hours
Admission: The castle is $10 per person. America the Beautiful Pass is accepted. Entrance to the well is free.
Hours: Open daily from 8am – 4:45pm. Both the Castle and the Well have the same hours.
Dogs are allowed (leashed) on trails at both the castle and the well.
Visiting Montezuma Castle National Monument – The Castle
Montezuma Castle National Monument has a decent-sized parking lot and from there, it’s a short walk to the visitor center. You must enter through the visitor center before going to see the castle. This is so the ranger can collect your park fee. You didn’t think you were getting away without paying did you? Tsk, tsk!
From the visitor center, you can exit through the back and begin a short walk to Montezuma Castle viewpoint. The castle is 70 feet above the ground, nestled into the limestone cliffs . You cannot walk up to the castle. There are a few interpretive signs here to give you more background and insight to the castle and the Sinagua culture.
After viewing the castle — because, essentially that’s all there is to do — you can continue on the short, 0.3 mile loop trail. It’ll take you past another, smaller ruin called Castle A, and then through some white-barked Arizona sycamore trees and return along Beaver Creek, until you’re back at the visitor center.
All in all, this won’t take you very long, as there simply isn’t a whole lot to do here — so I definitely recommend spending a little extra time and head up to the well.
If you are going to the well, be advised that there is no gift shop / visitor center there! Get your souvenirs at Montezuma Castle! The well area also does not have a park entrance sign – take your park sign photos at the castle!
Visiting Montezuma Well
The well is a short drive (it’ll take you about 15-20 minutes) north of the castle and passes through the small town of Rimrock, Arizona. Montezuma Well is not as well-visited as the castle. There is a parking lot, and a few pit toilets. There is no visitor center or gift shop but there are a few rangers hanging out in the parking lot if you have questions.
The well itself is very picturesque and unexpected — this is a very dry region, so seeing this large sinkhole full of water is neat. In addition to being pretty, Montezuma Well is fascinating, in that every day, 1.5 MILLION gallons of water flow out of this sinkhole every day. The water surface temperature is always at 72 degrees. People have used Montzeuma Well for irrigation purposes for over 1,000 years.
The hike around the well is a one-way easy loop hike and is paved. There are a few spur trails that go down to the base of the well and one that goes down to the outlet.
I hiked down to the base of the well, but didn’t go to the outlet.
While hiking around the well, keep an eye out for small cliff dwellings on the sides of the well. They’re a lot smaller than Montezuma Castle but they’re pretty neat to see.
One other note about Montezuma Well — while the well itself resembles a beautiful swimming hole, no swimming is allowed — and you wouldn’t want to. The water in Montezuma Well is toxic – there are high levels of carbon dioxide and arsenic.
What’s Nearby Montezuma Castle National Monument?
Montezuma Castle National Monument is a great stop if you’re traveling between Phoenix and Flagstaff, but this is actually close to Sedona. When I visited Montezuma Castle National Monument, I was on my way to spend a few days in Sedona.
Here are some of my posts for things to do in the Sedona area:
Cathedral Rock Hike in Sedona Arizona – Guide
Arabella – Hotel Review
Devil’s Bridge Trail – Sedona, Arizona
Have you visited Montezuma Castle National Monument? What did you think?
