The Imperial Sand Dunes, also known as Glamis, is the largest mass of sand dunes in California. You can visit for the day, go ATV-ing, or even go camping here.
If you’ve ever seen pictures of the majestic sand dunes in Dubai and thought that you wish you could visit if it wasn’t so far away, then this post is for you!
Brea and I wanted to visit someplace new but still local (we are located in Los Angeles) and decided to visit the Imperial Sand Dunes!
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How To Get There
The Imperial Sand Dunes is about a 3.5-hour drive from LA and it was well worth the drive. We recommend leaving early if you plan to catch the sunset here. There are many areas to stop at or even camp – refer to the map that they will provide you!
Permits
Permits are required if you visit between October 1 through April 15. They can be purchased online for $35 per week or for $50 per week if purchased onsite. Season permits cost $150.
You can use this link to purchase your permit online or find local vendors. Keep in mind though that if you purchase your permit online, purchase it at least 7 days in advance. It will take about that long for them to mail it to you and you also need to put the first day of your visit when you purchase.
We bought our permit about 7 days before we planned to visit and on the day that we were about to drive to the sand dunes, I had still not gotten the permit delivered to me. I called the support number and they mentioned that they require a signature (USPS) so I had to go to the post office to pick it up. Luckily, it arrived just on time and I was able to pick it up before our drive.
Camping at Imperial Sand Dunes
There are campsites at the sand dunes and they are first come, first serve. There is also a 14-day limit for camping if you plan to stay that long. You can refer to the map they provide or this PDF version to see where all the campsites are at.
Brea and I decided to stop at Osborn Overlook (#3 on the map). We really liked this location and highly recommend it. There were not that many people, surprisingly. There are bathrooms here and it was a high point of view over the sand dunes.
This location is also a camping location and it was not full when we visited so we were able to get a spot for car camping.
Another great thing about this location is that there was great cell service (we have AT&T). We were able to stream Netflix the whole night haha.
Photography
We definitely recommend having a drone to take photos of yourself or whoever you are with so you can get that high angle to show the waves in the sand dunes. We also had our DSLR but preferred the pictures from the drone or our iPhone 15 Pros.
Sunrise vs Sunset
We usually like to visit destinations either at sunset or sunrise or sometimes when we are lucky – both.
The Imperial Sand Dunes look amazing regardless of the time you visit but there are slight differences.
For sunset, there were more people here compared to at sunrise. There were also a lot more ATVs during the day (be careful if an ATV is in your area).
We also didn’t have as much time during sunset since we got there just a little before sunset. If possible, go earlier so you have time to explore and check out your surroundings.
For sunrise, it was much colder but there was only 1 other group of people who wanted to take pictures. So we were able to find a good spot to take photos relatively easily. We also had more time since we could still take photos after the sun already rose.
Visiting the Imperial Sand Dunes took minimal effort but high reward in our opinion! The campsites were also easily accessible and being able to wake up to the sand dunes was a plus!
