Deming NM to Tucson AZ drive: Distance, time & best stops
The distance from Deming NM to Tucson AZ is 218 miles, with a 3h10m driving time. The best road trip stops on the Deming to Tucson drive are Fort Bowie, Tombstone and Colossal Cave Mountain Park.
Planning a Deming NM to Tucson AZ road trip itinerary
The Deming NM to Tucson AZ drive takes you from south-eastern New Mexico into Arizona.
If you want to know more about the backstory of life in the Chihuahuan desert, the Deming Luna Mimbres Museum is pretty good as local history museums go. But Deming NM’s best attractions are two state parks. The City of Rocks State Park is to the north-west, with giant, wind-sculpted, volcanic ash boulders the main lure. The Rockhound State Park is to the southeast. Based around the Little Florida Mountains, it’s a better bet for hiking and camping.
You can also stop for wine-tasting at the Luna Rossa Winery.
Tucson is often used as a base for exploring the Sonoran Desert. But it’s a proper city with an arty streak, a Spanish-tinged history and excellent Mexican food.
Top Tucson experiences include exploring the city’s many murals, taking a self-guided audio tour through Saguaro National Park and canyoneering at Mt Lemmon.
There are also several good bike tours you can do in and around Tucson. Choose from a history-focused ride through the city, e-biking in Saguaro National Park and taco-tasting on two wheels.
For resort-style accommodation in Tucson, take a look at the impressive Casino Del Sol Resort. To stay downtown, within walking distance of several restaurants, try the Leo Kent Hotel.
Deming NM to Tucson AZ distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Deming NM to Tucson AZ is 218 miles. That makes for a driving time of around three hours and 10 minutes. The best stops to add to a Deming NM to Tucson AZ road trip itinerary are Fort Bowie, Tombstone and Colossal Cave Mountain Park.
Deming to Tucson drive: Fort Bowie National Historic Site
Near the town of Bowie AZ, the Fort Bowie National Historic Site offers beautiful scenery. You caould easily come here just for the walking, birdwatching and wildlife-viewing.
However, it’s the history that really makes Fort Bowie. For 30 years, it was the centre of ongoing conflict between the US Army and the Chiricahua Apaches. Get more of the story at the Visitor Center before walking among the ruins.
Best stops between Deming NM and Tucson AZ: Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone, Arizona, is a fabulously silly place that buys whole-heartedly into Wild West mythology. The Boot Hill graveyard has comic epitaphs, and the streets look as they would back in the days of the Earp Brothers. Costumed actors stage a gunfight at the OK Corral, blacksmiths work the forge and there’s a bizarre collection of mini-museums and attractions
It’s also possible to do a series of themed walking tours that bring Tombstone even further to life. Choose from ghosts and gunslingers or bullets and bordellos.
- For more suggestions, see the guide to the Tombstone to Tucson drive.
Deming NM to Tucson AZ road trip attractions: Colossal Cave Mountain Park
Near the town of Vail, Arizona, Colossal Cave Mountain Park offers two rather different cave tours. The first is a 40 minute guided walk, which gives a family-friendly version of the cave’s history, albeit including ghosts and robbers. There are 363 steps to tackle, but the reward is flowstone, stalagmites and stalactites.
The more challenging take on Colossal Cave includes squeezing through narrow passages, clambering on rock bridges and ascending ladders.
More Tucson road trips
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