How Crowded Is Colorado National Monument in May?

May runs about 1.3× Colorado National Monument's average month, which makes it a busy month here — roughly 11% of the park's yearly visitors come in May.

In a typical May the park sees about 49,000 recreation visits, based on National Park Service monthly counts from 1979 to 2025.

It is the single busiest month of the year at Colorado; February, the quietest, runs only about 0.6× the average — a 2-to-1 swing between high and low season.

On our Best Time to Visit score May rates 21/100 ("Poor"), versus the top-rated February at 81/100 — the best overall balance of crowds and daylight.

Because June, July and August together draw about 32% of annual visitors, choosing May instead steps outside that summer crush — the single biggest lever on how crowded the park feels.

You'll have about 14.1 hours of daylight in May to explore — between the 9.3-hour midwinter low and the 14.7-hour summer high.

Park-wide, 2025 drew 483,436 recreation visits, down 0.9% from 488,038 in 2024.

Across the past decade overall visitation has risen about 23.5%, so a May visit is likely to feel busier than it did a few years ago.