Park Essentials

Accessibility

All of Death Valley's visitor centers, contact stations, and museums are accessible to all visitors. The campgrounds at Furnace Creek, Sunset, and Stovepipe Wells have wheelchair-accessible sites. The grounds at Scotty's Castle are accessible to the mobility impaired and the guided tour of the main house has provisions for a wheelchair lift to the upper floors. Highway 190, Badwater Road, Scotty's Castle Road, and paved roads to Dante's View and Wildrose provide access to the major scenic viewpoints and historic points of interest.

Admission Fees and Permits

The entrance fee is $20 per vehicle and $10 for those entering on foot, bus, bike, or motorcycle. The payment, valid for seven consecutive days, is collected at the park's entrance stations and at the visitor center at Furnace Creek. (If you enter the park on Highway 190, there is no entrance station; remember to stop by the visitor center to pay the fee.) Annual park passes, valid only at Death Valley, are $40.

A permit is not required for groups of 14 or fewer, but if you're planning an overnight visit to the backcountry, complete a registration form at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center. Backcountry camping is allowed in areas that are at least 2 mi from maintained campgrounds and the main paved or unpaved roads, and ¼ mi from water sources. Most abandoned mining areas are restricted to day use.

Admission Hours

Most facilities within the park remain open year-round, daily 8-6.

ATMs/Banks

There is an ATM at the Furnace Creek Ranch Registration Office.

Contacts

Automobile Service Stations

Contacts

Furnace Creek Gas Station (Hwy. 190, Furnace Creek, CA, 92328. 760/786-2232.)

Stovepipe Wells Gas Station (Hwy. 190, Stovepipe Wells, CA, 92328. 760/786-2578.)

Cell-Phone Reception

Results vary, but in general you should be able to get fairly good cell-phone reception on the valley floor. In the surrounding mountains, however, don't count on it.

Post Offices

Contacts

Death Valley Post Office (Hwy. 190, ½ mi south of the Furnace Creek Visitor Center, Death Valley, CA, 92328. 760/786-2223.)

Restrooms

Flush toilets are available at many of the campgrounds throughout the park and at Scotty's Castle. There are public restrooms at Furnace Creek Visitor Center and Stovepipe Wells ranger station.