Crater of Diamonds State Park
4.5(8.2K)google
4.1(150)yelp
Nature
Overview
Crater of Diamonds State Park is a 911-acre (369 ha) Arkansas state park in Pike County, Arkansas, in the United States. The park has a 37.5-acre (15.2-hectare) plowed field which is one of the few diamond-bearing sites accessible to the public. Diamonds have been discovered in the field continuously since 1906, including the graded-perfect Strawn-Wagner Diamond, found in 1990, and the Uncle Sam, found in 1924, which at over 40 carats is the largest diamond ever found in the United States.
Practical Info
Mon8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Tue8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Wed8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Thu8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Fri8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Sat8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Sun8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Suggested Duration4-8 hours
Best TimeExceptional year-round attraction as the world's only public diamond mine where you keep what you find. The ultimate strategy is to enter at the 8:00 AM gate opening the very morning after a heavy rainstorm; rainwater naturally washes the dirt away from the 37-acre plowed volcanic field, making authentic gems sparkle brilliantly under early sunbeams.
Getting ThereSituated in Murfreesboro at 209 State Park Rd. Drive off I-30 taking Exit 73 at Arkadelphia, follow state highway AR-26 W westward straight for 38 miles into the Murfreesboro town square traffic circle. From the center, transition onto AR-301 S heading south for 2.5 miles straight into the state park's expansive, free paved visitor parking plazas.
Travel Tips
- The 37.5-acre search perimeter is a periodic plowed volcanic breccia clay texturing. Post-rainfall saturation converts the matrix into ankle-deep sludge that traps running shoes; tall industrial rubber muck boots are functionally required to cross the furrows.
- State conservation codes strictly restrict mining equipment to non-motorized, manually operated handheld tools like simple shovels and mesh screens. Bringing battery-powered shake-tables, dynamic water pumps, or automated dredges is a crime yielding equipment seizure and heavy prosecution.
- General admissions operate under strict daily headcount limits that regularly exhaust by 09:30 AM on weekends. Booking date-specific digital tickets online ahead of time is fully required; automated wet-sluice washing lines shut down water pressure 30 minutes before park closing.
Reviews
Positive
- The world's only active diamond site open to the public where any gem you find is 100% yours to keep, offering an unmatched thrill.
- Features an exceptional visitor center where professional state mineralogists use high-powered gear to inspect your rocks for free.
- The state park campgrounds are top-notch, providing wide full-hookup pads and modern bathhouses kept spotlessly clean and pristine.
- Boasts a wonderful onsite splash waterpark, making it perfect for kids to cool off and rinse off dirt after a long day digging in the soil.
Heads up
- The actual digging field is just a massive, unshaded 37-英亩 ploughed dirt field that gets intensely muddy or sizzling hot under the direct sun.
- The actual statistical odds of finding a diamond are microscopic; most guests dig for hours only to leave coated in dirt with zero gems.
- Opting for technical wet-sifting requires renting specialist screens, heavy shovels, and wagons, which adds unexpected secondary costs.
- Following heavy rain storms, the ploughed dark dirt transforms into an ankle-deep sticky mud bog that ruins sneakers and bogs down wagons.