Work Hard, Play Hard at Mesa Verde National Park!
Mesa Verde National Park is located in southwestern Colorado, near the “Four Corners” of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Colorado. Open from April to October, Aramark Destinations operates a variety of lodging, food service, tour guide, and retail sites within the park. Working at Mesa Verde will be an experience unlike anything you’ve had before!
In 1978, Mesa Verde National Park was named a World Heritage Site in recognition of exceptional archaeological relevance – including spectacular cliff dwellings tucked into the sandstone alcoves of its steep-walled canyons. Ancestral Puebloans (aka Anasazi) built these fascinating cliff dwellings in the late 12th and 13th centuries.
About Aramark Mesa Verde
If you're new to Mesa Verde, read on!
A designated UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mesa Verde National Park is the nation’s largest archaeological preserve with over 4,000 sites for the public to explore. The park’s rich history and culture are reflected in the spectacular cliff dwellings and mesa-top pueblo sites occupied from approximately 500 A.D. through 1300 A.D. 100-mile vistas into 4 states from the highest elevations at 8,250 feet are a must see!
While the history of the park is good to know, and pictures of the park speak for themselves, the real scoop is that our teammates lovingly call working at Mesa Verde "Summer Camp with a Paycheck." Our motto on site is Work Hard, Play Hard, and employees here embody that in everything they do. Mesa Verde is for those who love the outdoors and are ready to explore even more! Southwest Colorado has world=-class hiking, biking, climbing, fishing, rafting, and kayaking - not to mention riverside breweries, distilleries, and a cidery!
Mesa Verde is sure to leave a mark on you forever, and we're not talking about skinned knees. The people you meet here - guests and teammates - will be part of you for a lifetime.
Aramark Destinations is committed to the safety of our teams, clients, and customers. We continue to implement procedures and policies across our locations to keep everyone safe and healthy. From operations, and employee communities we are redefining the experience to meet safety guidelines while maximizing the seasonal experience. Aramark will continue to monitor available information and resources regarding COVID-19, including state and local law, and the following guidance may be modified as new information becomes available.
Here are a few things you can expect as a team member:
- Contactless Interviews: Virtual and phone interviews are available with all our locations.
- Housing and Employee Communities: We have implemented enhanced sanitation practices to keep our team members safe within all Employee Community Facilities.
- Employee Training: Extensive and detailed training on all safety policies and procedures for each team member during their onboarding and throughout the season.
- Personal Protective Equipment: Facial coverings and additional personal protective equipment are provided to associates, based on your position.
- Vaccination Status: Some of our locations require all individuals working on-site to be fully vaccinated against COVID 19. Please review job descriptions for further information.
The Employee Experience
Living and working in Colorado's San Juan Mountain range is an experience like you've never had before.
Our summer staff is as diverse as it gets. You'll meet people starting their first job, interns adding hours to their college transcripts, traveling international students traveling in the U.S. for the first time, locals are looking for something fun to do until the ski lifts open back up, hospitality industry veterans, RVers living life on the road, and retired professionals looking for more adventure. What all of our teammates have in common is that they work hard, are passionate about creating great experiences for others, and love the beauty of the Southwest.
The Mesa Verde area is remote, so if you are accustomed to the sounds and accessibility of city living, this would be a very different, but equally rewarding, experience for you!
If you're a hiker, mountain biker, or wilderness adventurer looking for that hidden gem, Mesa Verde is just what you're looking for! Our teammates can tell you all about the best trails, where to find hidden waterfalls, or the best hot springs around. With the endless spots for adventure that are home to southwest Colorado, you'll make memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.
Ideal Candidate
Available to work April through October, our ideal teammate is able to provide the kind of guest experiences that will have visitors return again and again! We're a perfect fit for team players who crave variety and love to roll up their sleeves to help get the job done. Most of our team lives on the property and enjoys the comradery that living in the park together brings to their everyday experiences.
If you're able to bring a service mindset to everything you do and are up to the challenge of Mesa Verde, we welcome you to become part of the team this year!
Room and Board
Employee housing is available for around $50 per week. We have couples housing, group bunkhouses, and RV slots with full hookups at the base of the mountain. There is a kitchen, laundry house, and shower house for employee use. At the top of the mountain is a women's dorm with restrooms and laundry facilities in the same building. Plus, our recreation room will be remodeled for the Spring 2023 season!
The wi-fi is spotty. These mountains are brutal for wi-fi signals, but we do provide it on the property. AT&T has been the best for cell service. We recommend checking with your current provider for service options in the area.
There are free employee shuttles that take teammates to and from work and also to town and back a few times a week. Free airport shuttles are available to Durango or Cortez upon request, with 48-hour advance notice required.
Employee Perks
It should be fun to go to work! To help make your workplace experience better, we provide employee appreciation events such as holiday celebrations, horseback riding, stand-up paddle (SUP) rentals at nearby lakes, and river tubing trips. In addition, we offer free tours to our team within Mesa Verde. In an effort to help your cost of living, employee meals are offered at a reduced rate, in addition to other retail discounts in the park. When your friends or family visit, we also offer discounts on lodging.
Getting Here and Getting Around
Driving times to and from Mesa Verde National Park:
- Cortez - 30 minutes
- Durango - 1.0 hours
- Grand Junction - 4.0 hours
- Telluride - 2.0 hours
- Canyon De Chelly - 3 hours
- Flagstaff - 5.5 hours
- Grand Canyon - 5.5 hours
- Page/Lake Powell - 4.5 hours
- Albuquerque - 4.5 hours
- Farmington - 2.0 hours
- Santa Fe - 4.5 hours
- Moab - 2.5 hours
- Monument Valley - 2.5 hours
There is a shuttle to take you to the airport or to town a few times a week.
For Fun
The Best Place to Live, Work, & Play!
All within an hour drive from the park, almost like a page out of a history book, you'll find stagecoach rides, horseback riding, chuckwagon dinners, rodeos, and 1000year-old steam engine train rides. For outdoor junkies, you'll have unbelievable hiking and biking trails, golfing, fishing, white water rafting, world-class kayaking, rock climbing, hot springs, and mountain festivals all at your fingertips.
How to Apply
Learn about our location, jobs, benefits and more. For a complete list of open positions with descriptions and our online application, click APPLY HERE below or at the top of the page.
Opportunities at Mesa Verde National Park are brought to you by Aramark Destinations in association with the National Park Service.
Aramark is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.