Home / National parks / White Sands

When White Sands is busiest and quietest

White Sands draws about 630,000 recreation visits in a typical year. March is the peak, with 13.7% of the year's visits. January is the quietest month that still draws a normal share, at 4.8%.

MarchBusiest month
JanuaryQuietest open month
2.9xPeak month visits vs the quietest open month
87,090Visits in a typical March

Share of the year's visits, by month

White Sands: share of yearly visits by month4.8%Jan5.9%Feb13.7%Mar10.3%Apr10.1%May9.2%Jun10.3%Jul7.4%Aug7.1%Sep7.4%Oct6.8%Nov6.9%Dec

BusiestQuietest open monthOther months

No month falls under 4% of the yearly total, so crowds here are spread fairly evenly. The quietest month overall is January. Quiet does not mean pleasant: check weather and heat for that month before you book.

Typical visits per month

MonthTypical visitsShare of year
January 30,811 4.8%
February 37,316 5.9%
March 87,090 13.7%
April 65,466 10.3%
May 63,427 10.1%
June 57,532 9.2%
July 63,861 10.3%
August 46,232 7.4%
September 44,466 7.1%
October 46,849 7.4%
November 42,849 6.8%
December 44,519 6.9%

How this was worked out

We averaged 9 years of National Park Service recreation visitor counts (2015 to 2025, leaving out 2020 and 2021). Each month is shown as its share of that year's total, then averaged. The counts are monthly, so this cannot tell you about holiday weekends or a specific week. It is history, not a forecast. Full details are on the methodology page.