Death Valley's crowd calendar, month by month.
Each bar is a calendar month's average recreation visits over the last five years (2021-2025), shown as a share of Death Valley's own busiest month. The full numbers are in the table below, and available month guides are linked.
| Month | Avg visits (5-yr mean) | Share of peak | Crowd level |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 93,132 | 58% | ModerateJan |
| February | 118,305 | 73% | BusyFeb |
| March | 161,109 | 100% | PeakMar · busiest |
| April | 141,152 | 88% | PeakApr |
| May | 106,362 | 66% | BusyMay |
| June | 73,735 | 46% | ModerateJun |
| July | 82,523 | 51% | ModerateJul |
| August | 75,918 | 47% | ModerateAug |
| September | 61,474 | 38% | ModerateSep · quietest |
| October | 88,753 | 55% | ModerateOct |
| November | 109,121 | 68% | BusyNov |
| December | 115,548 | 72% | BusyDec |
Reading the shape of the year.
The highest visit count comes in March. April follows at 88% of the peak. The curve falls toward September, then rises again through the end of the year.
Winter is not one uniform crowd level. January averages 93,132 visits, February 118,305, and December 115,548. That makes January the lowest of those three months in this five-year window.
A park-wide total cannot tell you how busy one stop will be. It does not measure parking space, trail traffic or queues. A low monthly count also says nothing about which roads are usable.
Compare lower-count months
January, June, July, August, September, and October each sit at 30% to under 60% of the peak. October sits at 55% of the March peak; November rises to 68%. These are lower-count months, not a weather or access recommendation. For the full "so when should I actually go?" verdict, which weighs crowds against weather and road access, see the Death Valley best-time-to-visit page.
What these numbers measure
Each figure is that calendar month's mean recreation visits for 2021–2025, from the NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025. Share of peak divides each month's mean by this park's highest monthly mean. Visits are not unique people.
Monthly averages cannot predict a holiday weekend, a time of day or a specific parking lot. Unusual years remain part of the average; this is not a forecast. We are independent of the National Park Service.
Common questions.
What is Death Valley's busiest month?
March, averaging 161,109 recreation visits across 2021–2025. The chart compares whole months; it cannot identify the busiest day.
When is Death Valley least crowded?
September has the fewest average recreation visits: 61,474, or 38% of the March peak. Check the best-time guide before turning a low visit count into a travel plan.
How busy is Death Valley on a holiday weekend?
This monthly dataset cannot answer that. It does not separate Presidents Day, Memorial Day or other holiday weekends from the rest of their month. Use the chart for month-to-month comparisons, not a date-specific forecast.
Independent site. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Data comes from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025; editorial analysis is ours. The NPS Arrowhead and other NPS marks are not used.