• Persimmon Gap Visitor Center - Persimmon Gap is the northern entrance to Big Bend National Park, welcoming travelers into the vast Chihuahuan Desert. The visitor center offers maps, park information, exhibits, and an introduction to the natural and cultural heritage found along the road ahead.
• Dog Canyon - Devil’s Den guides visitors toward a striking limestone slot canyon shaped by centuries of erosion. The rugged desert approach reveals dramatic rock formations and offers an adventurous introduction to Big Bend’s remote northern wilderness.
• Fossil Discovery Exhibit - The Fossil Discovery Exhibit provides a fascinating look at the ancient creatures that once roamed this rugged desert landscape. Fossils, life-size displays, and educational panels reveal more than 130 million years of history, from enormous reptiles and dinosaurs to mammals that appeared much later.
• Panther Junction Visitor Center - Panther Junction is the main visitor center and administrative hub of Big Bend National Park. Its exhibits introduce the park’s geology, wildlife, desert ecology, and human history, while rangers provide maps, permits, and valuable trip-planning guidance.
• Dugout Wells - Dugout Wells is a historic desert oasis where early settlers built a small community supported by underground water. A windmill continues to nourish the surrounding vegetation, while the nearby nature trail showcases plants adapted to the harsh Chihuahuan Desert.
• Hot Springs Historic District - The Hot Springs Historic District preserves the remains of J.O. Langford’s early twentieth-century health resort beside the Rio Grande. Visitors can explore historic buildings, view ancient rock markings, and enjoy the naturally heated spring water along the riverbank.
• Ernst Tinaja - Ernst Tinaja is a dramatic limestone canyon known for its sculpted rock walls and naturally formed water pools. Reached by the rugged Old Ore Road, this remote destination highlights the powerful role of water in shaping Big Bend’s desert geology.
• Rio Grande Overlook - Rio Grande Overlook offers expansive views across the river valley toward the mountains and desert of Mexico. The viewpoint illustrates how the Rio Grande has shaped both the physical landscape and the international boundary running through Big Bend.
• Rio Grande Village - Rio Grande Village is a peaceful riverside area surrounded by desert vegetation, cottonwood trees, and abundant birdlife. It serves as an important visitor hub on the park’s eastern side, offering access to trails, scenic viewpoints, camping, and visitor services.
• Rio Grande Village Nature Trail - The Rio Grande Village Nature Trail crosses a wetland before climbing to a low ridge overlooking the river and surrounding mountains. Its changing habitats attract numerous birds and wildlife, making it one of the park’s most rewarding short nature walks. NPS Rio Grande Village information
• Terlingua - Terlingua Ghost Town preserves the weathered remains of a once-prosperous mercury-mining community. Adobe ruins, historic buildings, and the old cemetery tell the story of miners and families who built a settlement in this isolated desert region.
• Entrance Station - Maverick Entrance Station welcomes travelers arriving from Terlingua and serves as the western gateway to Big Bend National Park. Visitors can purchase their park pass and receive essential information before continuing toward Maverick Junction and the scenic park roads.
• Sam Nail Ranch - Sam Nail Ranch preserves the remains of a homestead established during Big Bend’s ranching era. Its working windmill creates a small desert oasis that attracts birds and wildlife, offering visitors a quiet glimpse into life on an isolated frontier ranch.
• Upper Burro Mesa Pour-Off Trailhead - Upper Burro Mesa Pouroff Trail follows a rocky desert drainage through colorful volcanic formations. The route gradually reveals the powerful effects of flash floods, ending above a dramatic dry waterfall carved into the mesa.
• Homer Wilson Ranch - The overlook provides a commanding view of Homer Wilson’s historic Blue Creek Ranch, once among the largest ranching operations in the region. A descending trail leads toward the preserved ranch house and connects with longer routes through the surrounding desert.
• Sotol Vista Overlook - Sotol Vista overlooks the sweeping western desert of Big Bend, with distant views extending toward Santa Elena Canyon. The elevated viewpoint is especially admired for its sunsets, mountain silhouettes, and vast panorama of the Chihuahuan Desert.
• Big Bend National Park - The Chimneys Trail crosses open desert toward a pair of prominent volcanic rock formations. Near the formations, visitors can discover evidence of Indigenous presence, including rock art and signs of people who traveled through this landscape centuries ago.
• Goat Mountain Observation Point - Goat Mountain Observation Point highlights the volcanic forces that shaped the western side of Big Bend. Layers of rock, desert ridges, and distant mountains create an impressive natural display of the park’s complex geological history.
• Mule Ears Viewpoint - Mule Ears Viewpoint is named for two distinctive volcanic peaks rising sharply above the desert. The viewpoint provides a memorable photo stop, while a nearby trail travels through the desert toward a secluded spring.
• Tuff Canyon - Tuff Canyon was carved through layers of compressed volcanic ash deposited by ancient eruptions. Visitors can observe its narrow walls from roadside platforms or descend into the canyon for a closer look at its unusual textures and formations.
• Castolon Historic District - The Castolon Historic District preserves buildings connected to military activity, farming, ranching, and border commerce. The area later became the headquarters of the La Harmonia Company, which supplied families living throughout this remote section of Big Bend.
• Castolon Store - Castolon Store reflects the district’s history as an important trading and supply center along the United States–Mexico border. It continues the tradition of serving travelers while preserving the character of this historic desert community.
• Dorgan Sublett Trail - The Dorgan–Sublett Trail explores the remains of early twentieth-century homesteads overlooking the Rio Grande valley. Adobe ruins and desert views reveal the determination of families who attempted to build permanent lives in this demanding environment.
• Santa Elena River Access - Santa Elena River Access brings visitors directly to the banks of the Rio Grande beneath towering canyon walls. It offers a striking perspective of the river as it enters one of Big Bend’s most impressive limestone canyons.
• Santa Elena Canyon Overlook - Santa Elena Canyon Overlook presents a sweeping view of the enormous limestone gorge carved by the Rio Grande. Its sheer walls rise approximately 1,500 feet above the river, forming one of the park’s most recognizable landscapes.
• Santa Elena Canyon - The Santa Elena Canyon Trail follows the Rio Grande before climbing above Terlingua Creek and entering the mouth of the canyon. Towering limestone walls surround the route, creating a dramatic finale to the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive.
• Lost Mine Trail - Lost Mine Trail climbs through forests and rocky slopes to expansive views of the Chisos Mountains and surrounding desert. Its name comes from a local legend involving a hidden mine whose location was supposedly concealed forever.
• Casa Grande Peak - Casa Grande Peak rises prominently above the Chisos Basin, forming one of the area’s most recognizable mountain silhouettes. Its massive volcanic slopes dominate the scenery and demonstrate the geological forces that created this isolated mountain range.
• Chisos Basin Visitor Center - The Chisos Basin Visitor Center sits within a natural mountain basin surrounded by towering cliffs and peaks. It introduces visitors to the area’s wildlife, geology, hiking opportunities, and the unique “sky island” environment found high above the desert.
• Window View Trail - Window View Trail is a short, paved route offering impressive views through the famous opening known as the Window. Mountains frame the distant desert like a natural picture, making this an especially popular location for viewing the sunset.
• The Window Trailhead - The Window Trail descends through the Chisos Basin toward a narrow opening between towering rock walls. At its conclusion, seasonal water has polished the rock into a smooth pour-off overlooking the desert far below.
• Chisos Basin Trailhead - The Chisos Basin Loop Trail travels through mountain woodland and open slopes surrounding the developed basin. Changing elevations provide excellent views of Casa Grande, the Window, and the contrasting desert landscape beyond the mountains.
• Laguna Meadows Trail - Laguna Meadow Trail climbs steadily into the higher elevations of the Chisos Mountains. Forested slopes, mountain wildlife, and broad desert panoramas make it an important access route toward the South Rim and Big Bend’s mountain backcountry. NPS hiking information

• Toll free phone, chat and email support
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• Location-based stories, tips & directions that autoplay
• No time or date use limit or expiry
• GuideAlong (GyPSy Guide) Audio Tour with 125+ Points
• App-based self-guided experience, no in-person guide needed
• Flexible routes with suggested itineraries or create your own

• Entry Fees, National Park Passes, Reservations

Download GuideAlong’s self-guided audio tour of Big Bend National Park to explore its stunning landscapes, including vast deserts, majestic mountains, and striking canyons. Experience ancient history at the Fossil Discovery Exhibit, relax in the warm waters of Hot Springs Canyon, marvel at the towering limestone walls sculpted by the Rio Grande in Santa Elena Canyon, and enjoy sweeping desert vistas at Sotol Vista.

As you travel, listen to captivating stories of frontier history, hidden treasures, and wild landscapes while navigating this rugged and memorable terrain.

Experience the freedom to explore offline at your own pace.

• Stories, tips, and directions play automatically based on your location
• Travel at your own pace
• Tour offline using GPS. No cell service or WiFi is needed
• Suggested itineraries for half, full, or multi-day use
• No time limits or expiry, and free updates
• Like having a tour guide along for the drive

Purchase one tour per vehicle.

• How to Access: After booking you’ll receive an email and text with instructions (search “Download Audio Tour”). Click the link in the email/text to sign in with your preferred Apple or Google account and redeem your voucher code ahead of time.
• Download The GuideAlong App: Download the free app over WiFi or cellular data and sign in with the same Apple or Google account.
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• Start The Tour: Open the tour in the GuideAlong app to preview the start locations, tour route and trip planner, or start the tour.
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• Driving Tours: Group Savings: One purchase covers everyone in the vehicle, making it a cost-effective way to explore.
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• Bring A Charger: Pack a USB/C car charger for charging and easy sound connectivity, and make sure your device is fully charged.
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• The app’s audio will play through your car’s Apple CarPlay and Android Auto display, while the app’s map will display on your phone. You can connect your phone to the car via Bluetooth to listen to the commentary through the car stereo.

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.