Overview
Alamogordo is a small city in southeastern New Mexico. The town is the county seat for Otero County and supports two major nearby military installations, Holloman Air Force Base and the White Sands Missile Range.
6 sights · 6 things to do · 2 places to eat · 4 bars & cafés · 6 places to stay
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about Alamogordo
Alameda Park Zoo
The oldest zoo in the Southwest. It was established in 1898 by the railroad. The zoo contains about 300 animals of 90 species. The zoo has a playground area and shaded picnic tables that are included in the entry fee.
Flickinger Center for Performing Arts
A premier venue for international music, theater, and dance. Most performances are $10-25.
New Mexico Museum of Space History
A surprisingly large complex of museums and displays including the International Space Hall of Fame and a piece of moon rock. The museum hosts a well-regarded youth camp in the summer. IMAX movies require a separate admi…
Tularosa Basin Historical Museum
It is adjacent to the Alameda Park & Zoo and has a large display of articles and photos of the history and early days of the area.
Holloman Air Force Base
Holloman is home to the F-117 Nighthawk and the F-22 Raptor.It has static displays of the F-117 Nighthawk on the third Thursday of each month. Every two years they put on a large air show. The Northrop Grumman Lunar Land…
Trinity Site Tour
Departs from Tularosa High School Athletic Field. The Trinity site (where the first nuclear bomb was detonated) is open once a year for tours. The tours begin at 6:30 AM and cost $35. They happen on the first Saturday of…
Plan your trip
Best time to visit & weather
Most comfortable: Apr–May, Oct. Summer highs reach about 97°F; winter lows dip to about 22°F. Very hot (Jun, Jul, Aug) — plan outdoor time for mornings. Wettest: Aug and Jul. (climate data from nearby White Sands National Park)
Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- LRU Las Cruces International Airport, Las Cruces — 70 mi away. Directions
- ELP El Paso International Airport, El Paso — 79 mi away (major hub). Directions
U.S. Route 54, 70 and 82 all go through Alamogordo. U.S. 54 meet El Paso about 90 miles to the south. U.S. 70 & 84 meet Las Cruces and I-25 about 70 miles to the southwest. U.S. 54 North goes through La Luz, Tularosa and Carrizozo where it meets U.S. 380. U.S. 380 west meets up with San Antonio, NM and I-25. U.S. 70 heads northeast to Ruidoso. Finally, 82 east will meet Artesia and U.S. 285 after 110 miles. From there it is 40 miles north to Roswell and 35 miles south to Carlsbad, two popular tourist towns.
Full “Get in” guide ↓Budget & where to stay
- Places to stay listed here: about $36–$90 a night (typical $70), from 6 listed prices.
- Estimated daily budget per person (room, two meals, local transport and an activity): budget ~$80, mid-range ~$140, comfortable ~$260.
See the Sleep guide ↓ for places to stay.
Sample 3-day itinerary
Day 1
- Morning Alameda Park Zoo, Flickinger Center for Performing Arts, Tularosa Basin Historical Museum
- Lunch HI-D-Ho Drive In
- Afternoon New Mexico Museum of Space History, The Toy Train Depot
- Dinner Casa de Suenos
- Evening The Western Bar
Day 2
- Morning Holloman Air Force Base, Oliver Lee Memorial State Park
- Afternoon Kids' Kingdom, Sidney Paul Gordon Shooting Range
- Evening The American Legion
Day 3
- Morning Trinity Site Tour
- Afternoon Desert Lake Golf Course
- Evening The Veterans of Foreign Wars
Stops are grouped by area so each day needs little backtracking. Check opening hours before you go.
Food for you
There are plenty of restaurants to suit your tastes around Alamogordo, including Chinese, Mexican, Thai, almost everything. Most restaurants are centered around downtown or White Sands Boulevard.
Typical fast food restaurants like McDonald's, Arby's, Subway, Sonic, Quizno's, and Burger King are available throughout the city.
Cuisine (tap to filter)
What to ask about, for your diet
Diet labels come from each listing's description and cuisine; “likely” means the cuisine usually has good choices, not a promise. Check with the restaurant. Open the food finder
Photos
Map
Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.
Understand
Originally a small hamlet for ranchers and farmers due to the railroad passing through town (the name is a Spanish word meaning "fat cottonwood"), the town has become associated with military and secretive activities, first gaining notability for being the closest substantial settlement to the first nuclear bomb test in 1945.
Alamogordo has also gained a quirky sort of infamy among video game enthusiasts as the site of the Atari video game burial, when Atari buried thousands of unsold video games, most notably copies of the poorly-received E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
Get in
By car
U.S. Route 54, 70 and 82 all go through Alamogordo. U.S. 54 meet El Paso about 90 miles to the south. U.S. 70 & 84 meet Las Cruces and I-25 about 70 miles to the southwest. U.S. 54 North goes through La Luz, Tularosa and Carrizozo where it meets U.S. 380. U.S. 380 west meets up with San Antonio, NM and I-25. U.S. 70 heads northeast to Ruidoso. Finally, 82 east will meet Artesia and U.S. 285 after 110 miles. From there it is 40 miles north to Roswell and 35 miles south to Carlsbad, two popular tourist towns.
By plane
The closest major airport is El Paso International Airport (ELP) 90 miles to the south.
Go Alamogordo-White Sands Regional Airport (ALM)
New Mexico Airlines provides service from Albuquerque and Ruidoso on a Cessna 208 Grand Caravan.
By bus
By train
Although the railroad goes through Alamogordo, no commuter service is available and Union Pacific ceased stopping there in 2006.
Get around
Alamogordo is a small city and one could easily walk most of the city.
There are two taxi services available:
- Dollar Cab, +1 575 434-8294
- T-N-T Taxi Service, +1 575 437-2292
Public transportation is provided by Z-Tranz +1 575 439-4900.
See
See New Mexico Museum of Space History
A surprisingly large complex of museums and displays including the International Space Hall of Fame and a piece of moon rock. The museum hosts a well-regarded youth camp in the summer. IMAX movies require a separate admission and combo tickets are available. The parking lot contains the grave of Ham, the first chimp in space.
See The Toy Train Depot
The Toy Train Depot has a small-scale train ride departing every 30 minutes from the depot, circling Alameda Park. Hundreds of model train and toy trains are on display inside the 100-year-old depot, including a 1,000-square-foot HO layout depicting Alamogordo in the 1940s. The Toy Train Depot houses the smallest scaled working train in the world. Hours are noon to 5 pm Wednesday through Sunday.
Do
Do Desert Lake Golf Course
Desert Lakes Golf Course is a true “desert” beauty with the Sacramento Mountains in the background. This is quickly emerging as one of the finest 18-hole golf courses in southern New Mexico. It has been renovated to make it a more challenging and beautiful course. Open 7 days per week weather permitting.
Do Holloman Air Force Base
Holloman is home to the F-117 Nighthawk and the F-22 Raptor.It has static displays of the F-117 Nighthawk on the third Thursday of each month. Every two years they put on a large air show. The Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge occurs at Holloman. Put on by X-Prize, teams compete for a chance to will $2 million for completing a series of challenges in a competition designed to find technology for the next generation of lunar landers. Oktoberfest also takes place at Holloman, on the last weekend in September, hosted by the German Air Force.
Do Trinity Site Tour
Departs from Tularosa High School Athletic Field. The Trinity site (where the first nuclear bomb was detonated) is open once a year for tours. The tours begin at 6:30 AM and cost $35. They happen on the first Saturday of April. Individual arrival to the site is also possible.
Do The Tularosa Basin wine festival
Each fall, usually the weekend before the Balloon Fest in Albuquerque.
Buy
There are many shops, gas stations, banks and other amenities located going through Alamagordo along White Sands Blvd (US 70/54). If shopping is your specific goal then you won't want to miss the following area.
Shop Historical New York Avenue
The Old Town of Alamagordo. The buildings are all early 20th century and it contains a variety of specialty shops.
Eat
There are plenty of restaurants to suit your tastes around Alamogordo, including Chinese, Mexican, Thai, almost everything. Most restaurants are centered around downtown or White Sands Boulevard.
Typical fast food restaurants like McDonald's, Arby's, Subway, Sonic, Quizno's, and Burger King are available throughout the city.
Eat HI-D-Ho Drive In
This is the best burger in town, specifically, the Tiger Burger with double meat and great tasting fries.
Drink
There are few establishments in the city specifically focused on drinking (that is to say, bars). Besides the Chili's and Applebee's, the two most popular places to drink are:
Drink The Western Bar
In Cloudcroft remains a popular place to visit and drink for people from Alamogordo, especially on Saturday nights, which feature karaoke.
Note also the following private clubs which have establishments in the city. As private organizations, they are subject to different laws than public restaurants and bars. The VFW, for example, legally allows smoking indoors.
Drink The Elk's Lodge
Near the Desert Lakes golf course.
Sleep
Go next
- White Sands National Park makes a nice day excursion from Alamogordo, it is about 45 minutes southwest by car.
- Ruidoso is an hour away and Cloudcroft is less than 30 minutes away, both are great mountain retreats.
- The Inn of the Mountain Gods is a hotel and casino, along with golf, horseback riding, and a hunting lodge on the nearby Mescalero Apache reservation. It is accessible by road between Alamogordo and Ruidoso.
- The Three Rivers Petroglyph Site is about 30 miles north of Alamogordo on US 54, on the east side of the road.
Nearby
Cloudcroft
City / town · 25 listings · 13 mi away
Lincoln National Forest
Park · 1 listings · 16 mi away
Ruidoso
City / town · 20 listings · 34 mi away
Lincoln
City / town · 1 listings · 53 mi away
Las Cruces
City / town · 38 listings · 62 mi away
Hueco Tanks State Historic Site
Park · 68 mi away
Truth or Consequences
City / town · 16 listings · 77 mi away
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