long house

pweiss

This alcove dwelling was the best of the 4 we went to. I would recommend all 4 major ones, but this one had the best guides and the most varied types of features.Tip: Go to the visitor center to check out the ladders and other limitations on going to the various dwellings, and decide if you are physically able to do it. "Your safety is Your responsibility"

67emilt

It is incredible to see how they lived all those years ago. It looked amazing from a distance but when you got by it you tried to imagine living like it. It is well worth the trip.

GenevieveSongbird

Long House is really an amazing example "primitive" architecture. It is so incredibly fascinating to tour these dwellings and interesting to speculate on how they were constructed! Definitely pay the money for the tour - it's so worth it! We even saw a herd of wild mustangs on our way back to the Visitor's Center!

712kristam

I loved this tour the best of the tours and experiences we had at Mesa Verde. Our ranger guide (Paul) was awesome; he mixed in the perfect amount of discussion with spending time at the dwelling. Getting to the start of the tour is a little arduous (this road is long and windy) but ultimately it only took about 30 minutes. The tour itself involves a staircase (both down and up, you take the same trail both ways) and a couple of short ladders to actually get up on the dwelling. Really, I found that this tour allowed the most access to different parts of the dwelling. If you can only do one, I'd recommend this one.Coming back up was variably strenuous to different guests. If you're in reasonably good shape it's just fine. If you are not in good shape you're going to need to take the stairs and uphill portions slowly and you'll be out of breath (remember this is also somewhat high altitude) and may need to take a few breaks.We took our 5-year-old twins who did great on the tour and also liked this one best since they got the best access to the cliff dwelling. They loved the ladders!

husker78

Wasn't crazy about the road to this mesa, but really enjoyed the tour. You get to go back behind the ruins and see a seep spring.Give yourself plenty of time to get to this mesa, the road is step and slow going. There is only a small snack shop for food. I wish I had taken my own lunch so I could have stayed there longer.

dianem278

As with the other tours we did at Mesa Verde - this tour is very interesting. The Park Rangers are very nice and informative and the history and architecture very interesting.

ernieLoomisCa

did the first tour of the day at 10am. 1.5 hours. It was hot and a long ways down and then back up. First tour is cooler and no other tourists in your photos. Much of the information on the tours was similar, but that did not detract from the experience.

Stuthehistoryguy

Long House is one of the largest cliff dwellings in the park. I shows a remarkable level of development, with abundant surprises for even seasoned visitors. For example, I did not expect to see excavated 700-year-old wood piled at the site, nor did I think I'd see a child's handprint still clear in the cliffs above. Our guide pointed out how conducive the site would have been to gatherings like weddings, with its large plaza and great acoustics; the sound of a few people clapping can be heard all through the canyon, for example, and there is room for a gathering of hundreds. One face of the site is pitted as though several small things had been thrown at it over time; this pitting resembles the damage done by mud fights common at traditional Hopi weddings, suggesting one grand use of this incredible structure. It's hard to say whether one I would recommend Long House over Cliff Palace; it's kind of like choosing between your kids. Do yourself a favor and see them both if at all possible.

TravelerMJM

Well worth the price $4 each to get the park ranger tour of Long House. There are steep climbs and stairs but well worth the walk to see this amazing collection of stone structures. Do not miss this one.

clairecgl752

This was a great tour - very informative and you actually get to go into the dwelling. It's also a bit farther away, so our group wasn't as big. Leave enough time to be able to take the hike out to Step a House. We only saw it from a distance and were sorry that we didn't have time to do it.

edge8400

This was our first stop in Mesa Verde after checking in. The site is accessible only by guided tour but it is well worth the price. Ranger Joe Sindelar provided us with an excellent presentation and to top it off we had a gent along who played a native song using a flute. It was an great experience. It takes a while to drive out ~14 miles from the entrance so give yourself time. There is a snack shop, covered pavilion, restrooms and drinking water available with ample parking space. The site is accessed via a nice tram ride which also can be used to view the area around Wetherill Mesa. In addition, the trail for Step House is located at the same point. The hike down and back out can be somewhat strenuous but not as hard as that of Balcony House. All in all it is worth doing the tour.

Greg1976TN

This site you could not get to unless you took a tour, but was well worth the tour! It is a moderate hike, but you get to go through the dwelling, whereas other tours you can only see it from the front. This is a good combination of features from Cliff House and Balcony House and is a well-rounded tour.

mjrg59

Plan a whole day on each of the mesas. It takes about 25 min to get to your tour site from Far View Lodge. Wetherhill Mesa where Long House is located is less visited and thus more special. The walk to the site involves quite a bit of steps and ladders, the longest in Mesa Verde, but it is worth the effort. One can actually explore the interior of the site and see where the water supply comes in. Accessed by a tram, it requires a ranger and a ticket so get these at the visitor center or at the museum. Another site called Step House also requires a small walk. There is a great shaded dining area with some refreshments for sale plus great rangers to tell you about the on-off access to the tram that makes your visit so easy.

RobininABQ

This is a 90 minute Ranger led tour and worth the trouble to get there. Less crowds and more information from EXCELLENT Rangers with a world of knowledge to share. $4 tickets per person, buy ahead of time.

FlyingSmithy

I enjoyed the views on the hike and visiting Long House that isn't open except for the summer. I've visited this park several times in the past, but this was a first for me visiting Long House. I love the history here.I did not like the trams. The wait for one was long and I felt they took too much time away from visiting other parts of the park, plus the long waits are not kid-friendly and start stressing me as the parent telling them it'll come any minute (and then they don't believe me anymore after saying this several times). Plan extra time for trams if visiting Long House and bring entertainment for the kids. I would prefer a walking trail between the sites.Park entrance fee of $15 is too high for a one day visit. Ticket agent said it's good for entering the park for seven days, but you can see everything in 2-3 days according to their literature, so the seven day comment seemed gimmicky. I felt the tour guide went a little overboard telling our group not to do/touch this and that when the average age of our group was probably 50 and were pretty self restrained. The comments made me not feel very welcome in this site.