Meteor Crater, Arizona: More Than a Massive Hole in the Ground

ByChristine Updated on

Meteor Crater, also known as the Barringer Crater, is an incredibly well preserved and massive impact crater in Arizona between Flagstaff and Winslow.

If you’re in the area or headed south from the Grand Canyon like we were, it’s only a few miles off the interstate and worth a side trip to go see it.

It’s not just a stop to see the crater, but I thought that in itself would be enough because it’s really impressive. Entry also includes two short movies, a presentation by a tour guide, the museum, a play area for kids, and viewing the crater itself.

DISCLAIMER: Never Stop Adventuring contains links to affiliate websites and is a member of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. When you click on and/or make a purchase through an affiliate link placed on our website, we may receive a small commission or other form of compensation at no additional cost to you. Please read our disclaimer for more info.

The Crater

The original crater was about 700 feet deep and 4000 feet wide. Now, the crater is about 550 feet deep. This has changed because of erosion and debris filling the crater some over time.

It was really interesting to hear how the crater was originally thought to be of volcanic origin kind of like Crater Lake in Oregon.

Thereafter, a mining engineer believed it was actually a meteor crater, but erroneously believed it was buried in the crater and that if it could be dug up could be mined for iron.

Finally, it was realized that it had disintegrated upon impact, but there are still mine shafts and remnants of the mining equipment used.

Scientific studies are still ongoing here, and the crater was even used as an astronaut training ground.

The Meteorite

The Holsinger Meteorite is the largest chunk found of the meteor that created the crater. It is estimated that the meteor was about 150 feet in length and weighed several hundred thousand tons.

It was really neat being able to stand right next to a rock from space. There are pieces of the meteor in other places in Arizona and around the world, like a meteor fragment in the Geology Museum at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado.

Included Attractions

  • Checkout the exhibits and displays in the Discovery Center and Space Museum
  • 4 lookout spots along the rim with telescopes to look through
  • 35-40 minute guided walk along the rim
  • The Blast Zone, an interactive exhibit and play area for kids
  • 4D Theater with the movie Collision and moving seats
  • Watch the movie Impact! to learn more about Meteor Crater history
  • See the Apollo 11 space capsule outside the Discovery Center

Fun Add-Ons To Do At Meteor Crater

You can pay a bit extra to add on some fun extras:

  • Every Saturday you can take a 2.5 mile guided hike over 2 hours, all the way around the rim
  • Grab a drink or some light food and snacks at the mining themed Coffee House
  • Buy a souvenir at the Gift Shop
  • Spend the night nearby at the RV park (& get a discount to Meteor Crater)

What To See Next

Northeast from here you can see another type of crater, a volcanic crater, at Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument near Flagstaff, Arizona. If you want to see some manmade craters used for astronaut practice, the nearby Cinder Lake Crater Field is incredibly fascinating.

Checkout Winslow, Arizona and stand on the corner if you feel so inclined! Just past Winslow are the petrified logs of Petrified Forest National Park.

If ancient peoples and structures are more your speed, the Montezuma Castle cliff dwelling and the Tuzigoot National Monument ancient pueblo are about an hour an a half south.

Christine is the co-founder of Never Stop Adventuring, and an avid traveler who started traveling the world as a child growing up in a military family. She even lived in Germany for numerous years. Since then she has been to 48 U.S. states, 17 countries, and traveled the U.S. in an RV for over 7 years.

With her 3 kids, the adventures continued family travel style. She has planned and coordinated travel with kids for the last 10 years and shares family travel tips and tricks, destinations, costs and even the mistakes so you can be empowered to take your own family trips with confidence!