A Guide to Death Valley

Photo credit: Aryan Bachu

By: Aryan Bachu

 I visited Death Valley over winter break, and this is my personal review of all the tourist attractions and their ranking. I recommend visiting Death Valley National Park in the winter or fall so you can comfortably be outside during the day, since it’s too hot otherwise. From the magical dunes to the beautiful basins, Death Valley is an interesting place with lots of things to do.  

My number one attraction was the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. Most of the other attractions were cool to look at, but you couldn’t interact with them. I think it’s way more fun to actually do stuff at an attraction instead of just looking at it.  During my time in the dunes, my sister and I climbed to the top of the highest dune and had an amazing view of the valley. One thing that I saw a lot of people doing was bringing sleds to slide down the dunes. I highly recommend you bring a sled since we didn’t bring one and had to walk down the dunes. 

My number two attraction was the Zabriskie Point. Zabriskie Point is a great place to watch the sunset at the end of the day. There are a bunch of multi-colored sedimentary rocks and huge structures that make the shadows look super cool. 

My number three attraction was the Artist’s Drive and Palette. This attraction was a multicolored part of a rock that was tealish and looked really cool. You are allowed to walk right by the stone, and it looks nice. If you are going, I recommend going when it is sunny, because that’s when the colors look the most vibrant. 

My number four attraction recommendation is the Badwater Basin. Typically, this is number one for many ranking charts, but I didn’t really find it that cool. It just looks like a lake in the wintertime, which is the time most people go. Even during the summer, it just looks like a bunch of cracks in the ground, and there’s not much to do other than take pictures. I prefer attractions where I can actively do something, not just look around.

Finally, my number five attraction was the Golden Canyon. It looks really cool because you go on a walk in between the canyons, which have their sedimentary stripes. The reviews said that they would be colorful and change hues from red to golden, but they’re really all just yellow. Don’t expect anything super colorful there.