How I Saw 3 National Parks For Under $300!
Carlsbad Caverns, Guadalupe Mountains, and White Sands National Parks
2 nights, 3 days, shared costs with 1 other friend
Day 1: Leave Denver at 5:30 am, drive 8 hours down to Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
Stop for gas once: $45
Ate food from our pantry, mostly snacks, veggies, fruits, crackers, canned tuna, and cliff bars.
Arrive at Carlsbad Caverns national park and use park pass to enter. Pay for a tour $15. https://www.nps.gov/cave/planyourvisit/tour_schedule.htm
Wait for the evening bat flight program and hope to see the bats nightly exit from the cavern! https://www.nps.gov/cave/planyourvisit/bat_flight_program.htm
Stay local at motel in Carlsbad, New Mexico *good reviews for cleanliness $79 per night divided by 2 = $39.50 per person. Eat soup and crackers at the hotel for dinner.
Day 2: Drive to Guadalupe Mountains National park at 7am, use park pass to get in.
Hiked Devil's Hallway trail, which took most of the morning. https://adventuremorefamily.com/devils-hall-trail-guadalupe-mountains/
Picnic lunch with snacks and sandwiches
Fill up gas tank: $45
Drive to Alamogordo, New Mexico stay in a motel * cleanliness and good reviews a must. $90 divided by 2 = $45 per person
Heat up dinner in microwave, could be soup, leftovers, TV dinners, etc.
Day 3: Drive to White Sands National Park for sunrise!
Park pass to enter: $0.
Most epic part of the trip was seeing the sunrise here; the sky was pink and the sand was sparkling! https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/new-mexico/sunrises-park-worth-waking-up-early-nm/
Drive back to Denver in the afternoon. $45 fill up gas tank.
Splurge on a good place for dinner $20 per person.
Total Cost: $254 per person.
I know many of you don't live nearby, however, if you can book flights to El Paso, TX for free using your southwest points, then rent a car on Turo.com, and make a well-planned trip to the grocery store, you too can do this trip cheaply and quickly!