We will be traveling to Mesa Verde in mid-July. Has anyone had any experience obtaining tickets for the Cliff Palace and Balcony House tours? Will I be able to get same-day tickets? Also does anyone know how long it takes to reach out of park lodging in Cortez? Would it be worth it to book the Far View Lodge?

The drive from Cortez to the entrance gate is just 10 minutes, but the drive in to the various tour stars can be close to an hour, especially with summer traffic. The road in is very twisty and narrow and many people drive very slowly because it can be intimidating. There aren't really turnouts either, which can make for a long line of cars.

IF you can get a room at Far View, that is probably a good thing. It may be too late but call every day as folks do cancel.

You can buy same day tickets but you can buy them in Cortez at Colorado Welcome Center 2 days ahead.

Since you want to do 2 Ranger lead tours, they will be sure to sell you timed tickets that are far enough apart to let you get from one to another.

Here is an insider tip : 90% of visitors do those 2 tours. But if you are wanting a bit less visited spot, go to Wetherill Mesa. It is further down the main road, past Spruce tree, maybe another 30 minutes. Only 10% of park visitors go there. Aside from being less crowded, you get to do something that is pretty unique.

On the other tours, you stand in front of the cliff dwellings and look in. At Long House (at Wetherill, along with Step House) you actually go INTO the dwelling and get to look OUT. It is the basically same view that the Ancestral Puebloans sawalmost 1000 years ago!

Bring lots of water, it will be hot up there. Sunscreen too.

This is such a special, spiritual place; I never get tired of going there. I have been fortunate enough to have Mesa Verde as the view from my front porch for many years. Enjoy!

http://www.nps.gov/meve/planyourvisit/tour_tickets.htm

Another vote for staying in the park at Far View Lodge. Call every day for a cancellation as people do make reservations a year in advance and cancel when they find they can't travel when they had planned to. In the mean time make a reservation you can cancel in Cortez as a back up.

Thank you both for the great information! We are new to traveling to the National Parks and there is so much information! I appreciate it!

We are visiting this year as well, and based on your tips, I was able to score 2 nights at Far View. Thanks in advance for any additional suggestions

My hope is to also visit Canyons of the Ancients while using Far View as a base - is that practical with roads in that area, or should I try to add a 3rd night?

I would plan on spending a minimum of 1.5 days at Mesa Verde; 2 is better. It is a 45 minute drive in and out of park and then another 20 minutes to Anasazi Heritage Center in Dolores.

http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/nm/canm/...ge_center.html

Have you read about Canyon of the Ancients? It isn't like Mesa Verde, in that you can't drive it, there are few trails and has to be done on foot.

If you sure that is what you want to do, I would spend the 3rd night in Cortez and then head to Dolores.

The Anasazi Heritage is really nice, but small. It won't take more than 2 hours to visit. If you stay in Cortez, you should check out http://cortezculturalcenter.org/ before heading to Dolores. That should take you an hour to see.

Thanks, DebitNM!
If the hikes are 3 miles or so and not all climbs, we could do it, but I will double check.