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Muir Woods National Monument
1 Muir Woods Road, Mill Valley, CA 94941
Visitor Information Line: 415-561-2850
Insiders Tip: If you want to visit the redwood groves at Muir Woods, buy your tickets early. During busy travel periods shuttle tickets and parking reservations will sell out days in advance.
Tickets
Muir Woods is controlled by a reservation system, similar to the one used at the National Park Service’s Alcatraz Island. We have updated all of our information to reflect the new policies and procedures.
Please click here for information on the reservations system
Calendar and Hours
Muir Woods is open every day of the year (yes, all 365) from 8:00 AM to sunset. (Click here to see the times when sunset takes place on the mountain at different times of year.)
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If you visit on a big holiday please thank the Rangers and other staff for working that day so the park can stay open.
Muir Woods Shuttle
Please click here for information on the shuttle reservations system
Location and Access
Muir Woods is nestled in a wooded canyon on the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County, just a few miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito and San Francisco. It takes about 45 minutes to drive here from the Golden Gate Bridge.
Insiders Tip: That 45-minute trip can be longer on sunny weekend mornings when Stinson-Beach-bound sun-lovers clog the roads at the base of the mountain. On weekends when it’s warm get an extra early start, and consider taking the Muir Woods Shuttle so you can relax while the bus driver hassles with the traffic.
Restrooms, the Visitor Center, a Gift Shop and the Cafe are all located next to the parking lot, where the Muir Woods Shuttle drops off visitors.
The video below gives you a great feel for the paths in the main area of redwood groves.
Planning Your Visit to Suit Your Schedule
Here’s the secret to enjoying your visit to Muir Woods:
Once you’re here it’s easy to lose track of time, and hard to tear yourself away from the beauty and majesty of the redwoods. Many people have to leave the park before they’ve seen everything they wanted to see because either a tour schedule or plans later that day limited their time.
The Secret: Allow extra time for your visit to Muir Woods. This is a calm and quiet place and having to rush through it is something most people regret.
Sometimes, however, you’ll just be stuck with too little time and there’s nothing you can do about it. If you’re on a bus tour (or have a dinner reservation in Sausalito) and have just an hour or so to walk around, we have directions below that will allow you to stroll and see Bohemian Grove, the closest of the special stands of redwoods at the park, and the Pinchot Redwood Tree, one of the most famous large old trees. The Bohemian Grove has been the site of many historic — and some sophomoric — events.
If you have a couple of hours you can walk the entire main “boardwalk” path on the valley floor, and you may still have time to look for something special in the gift shop. That route will also take you to Cathedral Grove, the more distant named stand of redwoods and the location of one of the first meetings of the United Nations in 1945. Once you get there you’ll understand why they say it’s like a cathedral.
Finally, if you love to hike and come up the mountain early in the morning there are many longer hikes that start in Muir Woods and lead down to the ocean or in loops through different micro-climates and environments on Mt. Tamalpais. Many of these hikes can also be started from trailheads outside Muir Woods, so you walk uphill in the morning and then have the easier return trip in the afternoon.
Insiders Tip: I’m friends with a former Muir Woods employee. He tells us that the Rangers love three things: helping visitors, preserving the redwood forest, and teaching people about this unique environment. You should always feel encouraged to ask questions when you see the Rangers on your visit, because talking with you is one of their favorite parts of the job.
The Heart of the Park
A stream called Redwood Creek runs through the middle of the wooded valley and several bridges cross it to offer visitors shorter and longer loops they can walk through the redwoods. When you’re ready to go back to the parking lot just cross the next bridge over the creek and walk along the opposite shore.
Although the terrain surrounding Muir Woods is steep — as are the access roads that lead to it — there are two miles of paved walkways leading from the parking lot and entrance that allow visitors to visit the major areas of redwoods. These paths have very gentle slopes and in many places are relatively level, so they are appropriate for a wide variety of visitors.
Other, steeper unpaved paths branch out at several points along the trail, and you can follow these outbound for 15 minutes and turn back or take a looping route that will take hours. Different kinds of landscapes and ecosystems surround Muir Woods, so on longer side hikes you’ll leave the redwoods and see coastal oaks, grasslands and even vistas of the Pacific Ocean.
You can even take The Dipsea Trail, a path that leads down to the Pacific Ocean, although the climb back up the mountain is long and strenuous.
Although Muir Woods has clearly defined boundaries, it borders other major California parks. Some trails from other parks run through Muir Woods and continue on the other side, although they typically involve steep climbs to reach the area. The major trails are not secured by gates.
Insiders Tip: On this page (and on our collection of Muir Woods topic pages) we give you a thorough introduction to prepare for your visit to Muir Woods. If you’re looking for an entire book about Muir Woods, I think the best guidebook to visiting Muir Woods is still the one written by Sausalito’s Susan Frank and illustrated by her late husband, the celebrated local cartoonist Phil Frank. Redwoods live to be hundreds of years old, and much of what Susan wrote in 1999 — apart from the new reservation, parking and shuttle systems — is fresh and accurate today when it comes to this wonderful forest, and Susan is a treasured part of the Sausalito community.
Muir Woods Webcam
There are no webcams inside the Park, but this KGO-TV webcam on a ridge above Muir Woods will give you a feel for the local weather.
What Can I Bring and What Can We Do (and Not Do) There?
You can get married in Muir Woods, but you need to make arrangements well in advance and follow some guidelines.
You cannot bring nor ride your bike at Muir Woods, though there are many popular mountain biking routes in the surrounding parks.
Dogs are not allowed, except for service dogs for the disabled. There are many areas in surrounding parks, however, where dogs are allowed.
There are not any traditional open play areas where you can throw a frisbee or kick a soccer ball.
Photography is allowed for personal enjoyment, but you cannot do a commercial photo shoot without getting a permit from the National Park Service (see our page on Weddings in Muir Woods). The paths and trails support lots of visitors, so any tripod used for photos has to be off the path and out of the way.
There are no picnic facilities in the park, since it is a long narrow valley with paths through a dense forest. There is a Muir Woods Trading Co. Cafe that serves food in a rustic setting, and many other picnic areas surround Muir Woods on Mt. Tamalpais.
Smoking is permitted only in the parking lots. Please use great care when smoking since this remote forest is vulnerable to fire.
There is no camping in Muir Woods, but (noticing a trend here?) there are many campsites in nearby regional, state and national parks.
Disabled Access
Muir Woods National Monument has 6 miles of trails through the redwood groves and surrounding areas. Of these, the two miles of paths in the central groves on Redwood Creek (the area with the largest trees and most majestic settings) are paved.
All 2 miles of paved trails are wheelchair and stroller accessible, although there are gentle slopes as you follow the creek up the hill.
Disabled parking is available in the main parking lot under the new reservations system.
Wheelchairs and strollers are also available on loan for visitors at no charge at the Visitor Center.
