"Great activity! A feast for the eyes! We loved it (parents and children)"
Golden Hour · Mittens · From $78 (Oct 2026)
Monument Valley Sunset Tour
Three hours with a Navajo guide, timed so the last light turns the Mittens red: the Valley Drive's buttes, the backcountry arches, and a visit to a traditional hogan.
Originals by GetYourGuide
From
$78
per person · Oct 2026
Free cancellation
- 4.8 / 5 1956+ Reviews
- 3 hours Timed for the Light
- Navajo Local Guides
- Free Cancellation
The Experience
What the Sunset Tour Includes
A Navajo guide, the backcountry, a hogan, and the Mittens in the low sun.
Highlights
- Admire a colorful sunset over the Monument Valley
- Take iconic photos of the West and East Mitten Buttes with perfect lighting during the Golden Hour
- Discover the backcountry of the valley only accessible with a Navajo Guide
- Visit a Navajo traditional home
- Enjoy this small group tour for a better experience
What's Included
- Navajo guide
- Access to restricted backcountry of Monument Valley
- Visit to a traditional Navajo home
- Rug weaving demonstration (when available)
- Traditional musical performance
- 6% taxes and 3% operational fees
Good to know: The tour is operated on Utah Time (Mountain Daylight Time), which is one hour ahead of Arizona from March to November. If you are traveling from Arizona please be sure to leave one hour earlier (March 8th to November 1st, 2026) · During peak season (May to October), there’s usually a line to enter the Tribal Park. It can take up to 25 minutes to get in. Please arrive early! · The tour is operated in an open-air safari-style vehicle with a maximum of 12 passengers in warm weather and in an enclosed SUV vehicle with a maximum of 7 people in cold or hot weather · It is recommended to bring a bandana and sunglasses to protect your face from dust and sand · This tour is not suitable for infants aged 1 year or younger or women who are more than 5 months pregnant due to rough terrain · The Tribal Park entry ticket ($10) is not included in the tour price and can be purchased upon entry to the park · Car seats are required for children 2 years and under. Please bring it on tour. · Not suitable for: Pregnant women · Not Included: Monument Valley Tribal Park entry pass ($10 per person), Food, Tips
How a Sunset Tour Works
Book the afternoon departure, get through the gate early, and bring a layer for after dark.
Pick Sunset or Sunrise
Sunset lights the west faces of the buttes and is the busier departure. Sunrise puts the sun behind the Mittens and the crowds are thinner. Both run about three hours.
Arrive Early
Allow time for the gate, where summer lines can take 25 minutes, and remember the valley is an hour ahead of the rest of Arizona from March to early November.
Meet at The View Hotel
The sunset tour starts and ends at The View Hotel by the visitor center. Entry to the park, $10 a person, is paid separately at the gate.
Bring a Layer
The desert cools fast once the sun is down, and the vehicles are open in warm weather. A jacket and a scarf for the dust are worth carrying.
Photo Gallery
Monument Valley at Sunset
Photos from the sunset tour listing: the Mittens, the backcountry and the last light.
Book Your Experience
Check Availability & Prices
Select your preferred date and time. Instant confirmation — free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Sunset or Sunrise Tour?
The golden-hour departures compared. Prices as listed on GetYourGuide in October 2026.
| Feature | MOST BOOKED Sunset Tour With Navajo Guide | 3-Hour Sunrise Tour | Guided Sunset Tour |
|---|---|---|---|
| From (October 2026) | $78 per person | $80 per person | $80 per person |
| Light | West faces lit red | Sun rising behind the Mittens | West faces lit red |
| Length | 3 hours | 3 hours | 3 hours |
| Rating | 4.8 (1,956 reviews) | 4.9 (149 reviews) | 4.8 (280 reviews) |
| Check Availability | See the Sunrise Tour | See the Other Sunset Tour |
Sunrise and Sunset
More Golden-Hour Tours in Monument Valley
Another sunset departure, two sunrise tours, and a longer highlights tour for photographers.
SUNSETMonument Valley: Guided Sunset Tour
Marvel at the highlights of the Lower Monument Valley at sunset on a tour with a local guide.
SUNRISEMonument Valley: 3-Hour Sunrise Tour with Navajo Guide
Make the most of your trip and experience an unforgettable visual spectacle that you will remember for the rest of your life.
SUNRISEMonument Valley: 3-Hour Sunrise Tour
Depart from loading area outside The View Hotel and see the glow of the sunrise over Mittens and Merrick Butte. See the Totem Pole as the sunrises before heading to your next location.
FOR PHOTOGRAPHERSMonument Valley: Highlights Tour with Backcountry Access
Treat yourself to a 3.5 hour tour of Monument Valley with plenty of time at each stop to take the perfect picture and enjoy the views.
The Guide
Sunset or Sunrise, and Where the Light Falls
The two departures see the same buttes lit from opposite sides. Here is how they differ.
A Monument Valley sunset tour is a three-hour drive with a Navajo guide that ends as the sun goes down behind you and the buttes turn red. The most booked one is the Sunset Tour with Navajo Guide, rated 4.8 out of 5 from 1,956 reviews and from $78 a person (checked October 2026). It starts at The View Hotel, follows the Valley Drive past the Mittens, the Three Sisters and John Ford Point, goes into the backcountry to Moccasin Arch, Sun’s Eye and the Big Hogan, and stops at a traditional hogan where there is often a rug-weaving demonstration.
One recent guest worried that “a three hour tour would seem long” and found it wasn’t. Another wrote that the guide “even helped us take photos at an amazing spot”. In warm months the vehicle is an open-air truck; in the cold it is an enclosed van.
Sunset or sunrise?
The Mittens and Merrick Butte stand east of the visitor center. At sunset the light comes from behind you and falls on their west faces, which is the red-rock picture on every postcard. At sunrise the sun comes up behind the buttes, so you get silhouettes, rays and colder air, and fewer people on the road.
Around late March and mid-September, a clear sunset produces the Mitten shadow: the shadow of the West Mitten climbs onto the face of the East Mitten for a few minutes. It needs a clear horizon, and the viewpoints fill early on those evenings.
| Tour | From | Time of day | Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunset Tour with Navajo Guide | $78 | Sunset, 3 hours | 1,956 |
| Guided Sunset Tour | $80 | Sunset, 3 hours | 280 |
| 3-Hour Sunrise Tour with Navajo Guide | $78 | Sunrise, 3 hours | 393 |
| 3-Hour Sunrise Tour | $80 | Sunrise, 3 hours | 149 |
Per person, as listed on GetYourGuide in October 2026, with the $10 park entry paid at the gate.
Timing it
Sunset departures move with the season, so read the start time for your date in the calendar rather than guessing. Two things shift it further. The valley keeps daylight saving time and the rest of Arizona does not, so from March to early November the tour clock is an hour ahead of Page and Flagstaff. And the gate can be slow in summer, so leave half an hour for it.
Sunrise tours mean a dark start and a cold one outside summer. If you are staying at The View Hotel or Goulding’s, you are a few minutes from the start; from Kayenta it is about half an hour.
For more of the day, the full-day tour covers the backcountry and Mystery Valley in daylight, and the jeep tour page compares the midday departures.
Guest Reviews
What Sunset Tour Guests Say
4.8/5
from 1956 verified guests
"Very good. The guide was very friendly and spoke fluently, articulating clearly to be understood by everyone. She even helped us take photos at an amazing spot!!!"
"Larry was excellent as our guide. Extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Scenery was out of this world! Best tour we have ever been on!!"
"I was worried a three hour tour would seem long but it was wonderful! Our guide, Jameson, was very engaging and shared insights along the way. We enjoyed seeing the backcountry and Jameson pointed out many sites. He also played his flute beautifully! Great experience on our first visit to Monument Valley."
"Essential. The vehicle could be better, but in general, all the excursions use the same van with seats in the back."
"I thought the route was just great! Unfortunately, the storm, including rain, but the guide did a great job nonetheless. He even offered to have a driver in an enclosed vehicle pick us up. The vehicle could fit 15 people, which meant the group wasn't too big. The guide also played the flute at two spots, which made the excursion unique and special. All in all, it was wonderful despite the weather."
"Our guide, Chandler, was incredible. He made the tour extremely fun. He even played music over a small speaker when he was driving from one point to the next. He also was an excellent flute player. Our group was also fun and seemed to really enjoy the tour. Chandler was very professional and considerate of everyone. Needless to say Monument Valley is breathtaking. I highly recommend this tour and especially our guide Chandler."
"Our guide, Chandler, was exceptional; he possessed extensive knowledge of the area and enhanced our experience by playing music at a scenic location. We particularly enjoyed visiting the authentic Hogan and meeting a native woman. The overall trip was delightful, featuring numerous stops for photographs. I highly recommend bringing eye protection and a face covering to mitigate dust and flying sand; our personal wind goggles proved very effective."
Read all 1,956 verified reviews
See All ReviewsThe Mittens in the Last Light
The Sunset Tour with Navajo Guide drives the Valley Drive and the backcountry in the golden hour, with a visit to a traditional hogan and a song from your guide. Rated 4.8 from 1,956 reviews, from $78 a person as of October 2026 (park entry $10 a person extra), with free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Starting from $78 per person · Oct 2026.
Check Sunset Tour DatesCan't Make These Dates?
Browse More Available Options
Find a tour that fits your schedule. Check each listing's cancellation terms: some dates are non-refundable.
Monument Valley Sunset Tour FAQ
What to know before booking a sunset or sunrise tour.
Sunset, for the red buttes; sunrise, for silhouettes and fewer people. The Mittens stand east of the visitor center, so the evening sun lights their faces while the morning sun rises behind them. Sunset departures are the more popular. Both run about three hours.
Two to three hours before sunset, so the time moves with the season; the calendar shows the start time for your date. Tours run on Navajo Nation time, an hour ahead of the rest of Arizona from March to early November. Leave time for the gate as well.
Around late March and mid-September, on clear evenings. The low sun throws the West Mitten's shadow onto the East Mitten for a few minutes before sunset, for a few days either side of the peak. Viewpoints fill early, and a cloudy horizon cancels it.
The Sunset Tour with Navajo Guide is from $78 a person for three hours, on GetYourGuide in October 2026. The sunrise tours cost about the same. The $10-a-person park entry is paid separately at the gate.
A warm layer, a hat, water and a scarf for the dust. The desert cools quickly after sunset, and in warm months the vehicles are open. The operators also list comfortable shoes and sunscreen.
Still have questions? Email us at info@monument-valley-tour.com