The Wayro route from Las Vegas to Chihuahua is 538 miles (866 km), about 10 h 55 min of driving without stops. The U.S.–Mexico border is at about mile 309 on this route, near the El Paso port of entry.
| Distance | 538 mi (866 km) |
|---|---|
| Driving time, no stops | 10 h 55 min |
| Main roads, in order | I-25 → US-84 → NM 219 → US-54 → MEX-45 → MEX-45D |
| Border crossing | about mile 309 of this route, Texas → Chihuahua (near the El Paso, TX port of entry) |
| Mexican states on the route | Chihuahua (Level 3) |
| Toll roads | MEX-45D |
| Fuel estimate (car at 25 mpg) | about 21.5 gal; actual use varies by vehicle and traffic |
| Stops listed below | 8 |
Crossing into Mexico: what you need for Chihuahua
| Passport | Passport book or passport card to enter Mexico by land |
|---|---|
| FMM entry permit | Required for this trip: Chihuahua is well beyond the 12-mile (20 km) border zone where the permit is not needed |
| Temporary vehicle import permit (TIP) | Required for a U.S.-registered vehicle this far into Mexico |
| Mexican auto insurance | Required for all vehicles: buy a Mexican policy before you cross |
Sources: U.S. State Department, Mexico travel information (updated August 11, 2026); permits are issued by Banjercito.
Crossing at El Paso
El Paso and Ciudad Juárez are joined by several Rio Grande bridges, including Paso del Norte downtown for pedestrians and northbound cars, Stanton Street with a northbound SENTRI lane, and the Bridge of the Americas for passenger vehicles and trucks. Paso del Norte also has Ready Lanes.
Sources: [1]
What the drive from Las Vegas to Chihuahua is like
US-54 (209 mi) and MEX-45D (122 mi) carry about 62% of the 538 miles. The U.S. part of the drive runs through New Mexico, Texas for about 309 miles; after the border at El Paso you have about 229 miles left in Mexico. The Mexican leg uses MEX-45D, a toll highway (cuota). Of the 8 stops listed below, 3 are within a mile of the road.
The route from Las Vegas to Chihuahua, road by road
| Road | Route miles (from–to) | Length, mi | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| local roads | 0–1 | 1 | New Mexico |
| I-25 | 1–7 | 6 | New Mexico |
| US-84 | 7–48 | 41 | New Mexico |
| NM 219 | 48–64 | 16 | New Mexico |
| US-54 | 64–224 | 160 | New Mexico |
| local roads | 224–259 | 35 | New Mexico |
| US-54 | 259–308 | 49 | New Mexico, Texas |
| connecting roads | 308–309 | 1 | Texas |
| local roads | 309–321 | 12 | Chihuahua |
| MEX-45 | 321–391 | 70 | Chihuahua |
| connecting roads | 391–392 | 1 | Chihuahua |
| MEX-45D | 392–505 | 113 | Chihuahua |
| MEX-45 | 505–519 | 14 | Chihuahua |
| MEX-45D | 519–528 | 9 | Chihuahua |
| MEX-45 | 528–534 | 6 | Chihuahua |
| local roads | 534–538 | 4 | Chihuahua |
- Mile 289 of this route: New Mexico → Texas (state line)
- Mile 309 of this route: Texas → Chihuahua (international border)
Stops between Las Vegas and Chihuahua
- Right off the route (under 1 mile): Tularosa Original Townsite District (mile 209), Alameda Park Zoo (mile 222), Chamizal National Memorial (mile 309)
- Nature and outdoors: White Sands National Park (mile 232), Oliver Lee Memorial State Park (mile 232), Franklin Mountains State Park (mile 300)
- Museums and history: Tularosa Original Townsite District (mile 209), New Mexico Museum of Space History (mile 221), El Paso Museum of Art (mile 309)
- With kids: Alameda Park Zoo (mile 222)
Tularosa Original Townsite District
Laid out in 1862 by settlers from Mesilla and the Rio Grande valley, Tularosa's 49-block grid still has irrigation ditches feeding each block, small adobe houses and the adobe St. Francis de Paula Church of 1868–69.
New Mexico Museum of Space History
Home to the International Space Hall of Fame, this Alamogordo museum covers space flight and New Mexico's role in it, with a dome theater and planetarium plus outdoor aerospace exhibits in the John P. Stapp Air & Space Park.
Alameda Park Zoo
Billed as the oldest zoo in the Southwest, this 12-acre zoo in Alamogordo houses nearly 300 animals from about 90 species and serves as a Species Survival Plan facility for the Mexican gray wolf.
White Sands National Park
Wave-like gypsum dunes cover 275 square miles of the Tularosa Basin, the world's largest gypsum dunefield. The eight-mile Dunes Drive leads into the dunes, where visitors hike, picnic and sled down the white slopes.
Oliver Lee Memorial State Park
Set in Dog Canyon on the Sacramento Mountains escarpment near Alamogordo, the park has year-round springs, cottonwoods, a rebuilt and furnished ranch house of Oliver Lee, campsites, and the Dog Canyon Trail with views over the Tularosa Basin.
Franklin Mountains State Park
Covering about 27,000 acres inside El Paso, this Texas state park offers more than 100 miles of desert trails for hiking and mountain biking, plus rock climbing at McKelligon Canyon and the Tom Mays Unit, where camping is available.
Chamizal National Memorial
Along the border in El Paso, this memorial honors the peaceful settlement of a century-long U.S.–Mexico boundary dispute. Stop for borderlands art in the Franklin G. Smith Gallery, walking paths, and ballet folklórico performances.
El Paso Museum of Art
Founded in 1959 and set in downtown El Paso, this art museum holds more than 7,000 works strong in American, European, and Mexican art, including Kress Collection paintings by Botticelli and Canaletto and a notable group of Mexican retablos.
When you get to Chihuahua
Silver strikes at nearby Santa Eulalia in 1704 led to the founding of Chihuahua in 1709, where the Chuvíscar and Sacramento rivers meet on the high plains of the north. Today the state capital's historic center gathers around a Baroque cathedral built from 1725 to 1826, with mansions and museums tied to the Mexican Revolution a few blocks away.
- Catedral de Chihuahua: Facing the Plaza de Armas, the Baroque cathedral took more than a century to build, and a museum of sacred art occupies a basement behind it. source
- Palacio de Gobierno: Murals trace Chihuahua's history from colonial times to the Revolution, and the building marks the spot where Father Miguel Hidalgo was executed. source
- Museo Casa de Villa: Pancho Villa's former home preserves his belongings, including the car in which he was assassinated in Hidalgo del Parral. source
Cathedral of Chihuahua
Construction on this Baroque cathedral began in 1725 and stretched over more than a century. It anchors the Plaza de Armas in downtown Chihuahua, and a museum of sacred art occupies its basement.
Cruz de Clavos
In Chihuahua City, the Cruz de Clavos is a memorial honoring victims of femicide in the state of Chihuahua.
Museo Casa Juárez
In downtown Chihuahua, the Museo Casa de Juárez occupies the house where President Benito Juárez and Margarita Maza lived when the city served as the seat of the federal government in 1864; it now holds permanent and temporary exhibitions.
More drives to Chihuahua
- Alamogordo, NM to Chihuahua
- Safford, AZ to Chihuahua
- Socorro, NM to Chihuahua
- San Angelo, TX to Chihuahua
- Portales, NM to Chihuahua
- Nogales, AZ to Chihuahua
From Las Vegas to other places in Mexico
- Las Vegas, NM to Ojinaga
- Las Vegas, NM to Ciudad Juárez
- Las Vegas, NM to Agua Prieta
- Las Vegas, NM to Nuevo Casas Grandes
All routes to Chihuahua, border crossings and permits in one place: Driving to Chihuahua, Mexico from the U.S.
Continue Your Adventure
- Las Vegas to Mexicali, Mexico: Border Crossing, Route & Stops
- Las Vegas to Rosarito, Mexico: Border Crossing, Route & Stops
- Las Vegas to Sonoyta, Mexico: Border Crossing, Route & Stops
- Las Vegas to Ensenada, Mexico: Border Crossing, Route & Stops
- Las Vegas to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico Road Trip: Route & Stops
Frequently asked questions
How long is the drive from Las Vegas to Chihuahua?
About 10 h 55 min of driving without stops, over 538 miles.
How far is Chihuahua from Las Vegas by car?
About 538 miles (866 km) on the Wayro route. Other map services may show a few miles more or less, depending on where they start and end in each city.
Where does the Las Vegas to Chihuahua drive cross into Mexico?
At about mile 309 of this route, from Texas into Chihuahua, near the El Paso port of entry.
Do I need a permit to drive my car from Las Vegas to Chihuahua?
Yes. A temporary vehicle import permit (TIP) is required for a U.S.-registered car this far into Mexico. You also need Mexican auto insurance and a passport book or card. An FMM entry permit is required too.
Is it safe to drive from Las Vegas to Chihuahua?
The U.S. State Department rates Chihuahua Level 3: Reconsider Travel (advisory issued May 29, 2026). Read the full advisory before you go.
What roads does the drive from Las Vegas to Chihuahua use?
In order: I-25, US-84, NM 219, US-54, MEX-45 and MEX-45D. The road-by-road table above shows the route miles and states for each one.
What are good stops between Las Vegas and Chihuahua?
Closest to the road: Tularosa Original Townsite District (historic district, mile 209, 0.1 mi from the route); Alameda Park Zoo (zoo, mile 222, 0.6 mi from the route); Chamizal National Memorial (National Memorial of the United States, mile 309, 0.4 mi from the route). All stops are described above.
How we put this guide together
Wayro calculates the route from OpenStreetMap road data; mile numbers are positions along this route, not highway mile markers, and "from the route" distances are straight-line, so the real detour depends on access roads. Stops are chosen from parks, natural sites, museums, historic sites and attractions close to the route (roughly 2 to 7 miles depending on the type, farther for World Heritage sites): at least one strong stop for each stretch of the drive, then the best-known places nearest the road, with no more than five of one type, up to nine in all. Places that are closed, private or not open to visitors are removed. Place and city descriptions are written by the Wayro team from official park, museum, tourism and government websites and other published sources. Safety levels and entry rules were checked against the U.S. Department of State on September 29, 2026. Conditions change, so check the linked sources before you travel.
Route data © OpenStreetMap contributors.