This is one of the top location suggestions we get. If you’re like us, you love exploring a gorgeous place you found online (and you love a convenient road trip) This is our Glamis Sand Dunes travel guide for photography enthusiasts like us!
Glamis sand dunes, often referred to as the Algodones or Imperial Sand Dunes, is an exotic landscape in Southern California with 40 square miles of sand dunes. Located just west of the chocolate mountains in Impeial county, this desolate landscape is an iconic place where dozens of couples decide to elope every year.
Getting to Glamis Sand Dunes from San Diego International Airport
If you’re heading to Glamis Sand Dunes from San Diego International Airport then you’ll want to rent a car and bump this desert EDM Spotify playlist for the 3 hour ride! There are not many public transportation outlets that head as far east as Brawley, California.
Thinking of using a ride service like Uber or Lyft to drive from San Diego international airport to Imperial Sand Dunes? Think again! According to TaxiHowMuch.com, it could cost you $200 or more each way! Rent a car or you could even rent a van and camp in the desert for the week!
What to Pack for Glamis Sand Dunes
When you go out in the middle of the desert and you’re 30+ minutes from the nearest gas station, you’ll want to ensure you pack the essentials! Here’s a list of what you might need at imperial sand dunes:
- your dog (if the weather is not too hot)
- sunscreen and a sunhat
- sunglasses (for you and sunglasses for your dog)
- water and snacks
- a full tank of gas
- a backpack to hold your shoes if you get annoyed of sand in your shoes and you want to walk barefoot lol
It’s no wonder why travelers and explorers from all over the world come to Glamis Sand Dunes to take engagement photos, elopement photos, landscape pictures, and more! We especially love coming to Glamis for adventure sessions!
Glamis sand dunes is absolutely gorgeous and we highly encourage considering it as a location to take your elopement photos or engagement photos!
Traveling to the sand dunes in the middle of nowhere comes with a few challenges, I must admit! That’s why we wrote this Glamis Sand Dunes travel guide – to help creative explorers like you get more content without having to do all the hard research!
WEATHER
Just because someone posts an instagram picture in August does NOT mean that photo was taken in August, most especially when it comes to Glamis! The average low in July and August is at least 75 degrees Fahrenheit and the average high temperature soars up to 106 degrees!
The winds can also get up to 40 miles per hour which does not feel good since the air is so hot. In fact, it just blows sand bits in your face so hard that it feels like thousands of needles stabbing you in the face!
For the best experience, you’ll want to plan around the cooler months. Many adventurers even decide to arrive at sunrise to avoid the wind! Morning are calm and less crowded.
GET YOUR PERMIT
According to the Glamis sand dunes government website, a $35 permit is necessary for each vehicle entering the park. For more info on permits, rules, and regulation in the park – go to their website: https://www.blm.gov/visit/imperial-sand-dunes/rules-and-regulations
CHOOSE YOUR PHOTO LOCATION
While there’s an infinite amount of locations you can take pics, we highly recommend staying close to the car because hiking the dunes is tiring! In all of our sand dune photos, we’re only 200 feet from the car…which takes 10 minutes to walk in the sand!
Osborne overlook is the best parking location because there’s plenty of spaces and you have a gorgeous vantage point! Make sure to wear a backpack with a tall flag so that off-roaders can see you on the other side of the hills…you don’t want to get run over!
TAKE THE SCENIC ROUTE
It’s no secret that Glamis sand dunes is in the middle of BFE. Take the route that goes on the country roads of Southern California – you will NOT be disappointed! budget an extra 30-45 minutes on your way to Glamis and you’ll grow a fonder appreciation for SoCal!
As you start to get closer, make sure all members of your party are following each other for the last 20-30 miles of the drive since there’s no service. It’s seriously in the middle of nowhere! No exaggeration, the closest gas station is 20+ miles away. But that just adds to the adventure, right?
BATCH YOUR CONTENT
Whether you’re going to Glamis for landscape photos, engagement photos, or an elopement, we suggest finding at least one extra piece of content to capture on your journey! this doesn’t just go for content creators and business owners, this even goes for couples planning their elopement!
how often will you go to an exotic place like this? probably not every week or even every month, so we suggest getting some behind the scenes from the journey that you can look back on or doing an outfit change so you can have photos for your Christmas card later in the year!
Thank you for enjoying our Glamis Sand Dunes travel guide! If you end up going, send us DM on Instagram, we’d love to see your gorgeous photos!
Love,
Bree + Stephen are adventurous entrepreneurs based in Salt Lake City, Utah! They’re pioneers of the NO BS Podcast and hosts of their YouTube channel where they share travel videos, business tutorials, and lifestyle content! They live with their German Shepherd, Sequoia and are usually chugging coffee while on their way to a hike! Please contact for business inquiries or questions about this article!
COMMENTS