Big Bend National Park - Food & Lodging - Choosing the best area for you

Lodging Options

Terlingua Chisos Marathon

There are plenty of camping and RV options too, but I’m only considering cabins, rentals, and hotels here.

Terlingua

Pros:

Close to the park entrance
Multiple dining options (be careful, many a lunch only)
Multiple accommodations available
Non-park activities and night entertainment available
Grocery store (small)

Cons:

Somewhat far from the major park attractions
Small town (no AT&T cell coverage in March 2018)
Many restaurants are only open for lunch

Chisos

Pros:

Right in the heart of one of the most popular areas of the park
Sometimes free ranger walks and programs are available (these are available free to everyone but easier to access if you are staying right there)
Food available in the restaurant

Cons:

Must be reserved months ahead of time
Limited accommodations with fixed prices
No cell coverage in March 2018
Only one dining option
About the same distance to Santa Elena Canyon as Terlingua
Dangerous roads at night

Marathon

Pros:

Multiple dining options
Multiple accommodations available
Non-park activities and night entertainment available
Grocery store

Cons:

Far from the park, at least an hour and a half drive for most attractions

Where did we stay?

We were way too late making reservations for Chisos to be an option and Marathon was too far for us so we found a B&B in Terlingua.

Wifi in the kitchen, private cabin with electric, a/c and heat, and shared outhouse/shower. It was rustic but cute, with all the basic amenities and reasonably priced. Usually we would opt for a place with a private bathroom but this place was fun. Felt like it could be a movie set.