National reserves are partnerships between federal, state, and local authorities. Haleakalā National Park. But if you need some inspiration as to the best national parks to visit, you can get started with our National Parks Bucket List, which contains 15 amazing US parks to visit. Badlands NP has a landscape like no other park. Take in the view from Dante’s Peak, slide down the sand dunes, explore narrow canyons, and journey out to Racetrack Playa, where boulders mysteriously slide across the desert landscape. United States houses 62 National Parks full with mesmerizing views, amazingly beautiful landscapes, mountains, waterfalls, caves, dessert, coral reefs, glaciers and canyon. Waterfalls tumble over the granite cliffs, hiking trails weave their way from the valley floor to top of the highest peaks, and massive sequoia trees form a quiet sanctuary within the park. If you have plans to visit all 63 national parks, like we do, it doesn’t take long to realize that these national parks protect a wonderfully wide variety of landscapes. With a few exceptions, most national parks have an optimal time to visit, based on factors such as weather, crowd levels, and road closures. Mount Rainier is a glacier-capped, active volcano that can be seen from hundreds of miles away. Acadia National Park: This popular spot in Maine charges $30 admission per vehicle. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Shenandoah National Park. Wrangell – St. Elias is full of wonderful adventures. Death Valley, das Tal des Todes, ist eine Wüste der Extreme mit heißen Temperaturen, eindrucksvollen Sanddünen, schneebedeckten Bergen und seltenen Regenfällen. Denali National Park, one of the largest national parks in the USA, is home to millions of acres of remote, rugged wilderness. The national park community welcomes you! Yosemite National Park: 278 trails. This is a great resource for determining the best time to visit a specific national park, or you can look at our top picks for the month you prefer to plan your trip. Our first map only shows the National Park. There are 84 national historic sites, of which 74 are NPS units, 9 are affiliated areas, and one, Grey Towers National Historic Site, is managed by the U.S. Forest Service (not listed here). President Woodrow Wilson signed the Organic Act, which created the National Park Service, the organization that oversees all of America's national parks. The park is named for Lake Clark, but this park also contains four active volcanoes, a temperate rainforest, numerous lakes and rivers, three mountain ranges, and a tundra plateau. Oxbow Bend is a great place to photograph wildlife and Mormon Row makes a prime sunrise photography spot. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Olympic National Park. From the rocky coastline of Acadia to the desert landscapes of Saguaro to the glacier-covered mountains of Kenai Fjords to the wetlands of the Everglades, the United States is filled with many natural treasures. The NPS also owns conservation easements (but not the land itself) for part of the area called the Green Springs National Historic Landmark District. Kenai Fjords National Park. At Sequoia National Park, you will walk among towering sequoia trees and see the largest tree in the world, the General Sherman. Plan Your Visit: How to Visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park. 50 Best National Parks in the USA 1. Crater Lake. However, as mentioned earlier, it has more national park land area than any state by a long shot. Top Experiences: See the Northern Lights, go fishing, explore the park by houseboat or on a guided tour, see Junction Bay Falls and Kettle Falls, hike the Echo Bay Trail, enjoy the view from Anderson Bay Overlook. Zion National Parkin southern Utah is just outside of Springdale and not terribly far from Salt Lake City and Las Vegas.Weather-wise . Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Arches National Park. And if you have any questions, let us know in the comment section on any of our articles and guides. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Big Bend National Park. These pure white dunes create a fun place to explore, for both kids and adults. We'll keep our eyes and ears open in 2023 to see if any new National Parks are added and if . Hiking and ice climbing on the Exit Glacier is a popular thing to do in this park, but Kenai Fjord is also one of the best US national parks for wildlife spotting. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Indiana Dunes National Park. There are three national lakeshores, located in Michigan and Wisconsin. Plan Your Visit: How to Spend One Day in Everglades National Park. 15. When to Go: The summer months are the best time to visit Glacier Bay National Park. This national park is named for the Saguaro Cactus, which only grows in the Sonoran Desert. These mountains are the remnants of an extinct volcano. This is also consistently one of the least visited national parks in the USA. National Historical Park. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Biscayne National Park. Top Experiences: Enjoy the view from Clingman’s Dome and Newfound Gap, hike the Alum Trail to Mount LeConte, drive through Cades Cove, and drive the Roaring Fork Motor Trail. The petrified logs date back hundreds of millions of years, to a time when this land was once lush and fertile. Plan Your Visit: How to Visit Gateway Arch National Park. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Print out your free National Parks Map (PDF) to use as a visual of where the parks are located so you can start making your travel plans. Rocky Mountain National Park: 235 trails. The ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains runs through the center of the park and it is here that you will find some of the tallest peaks in eastern North America. Top Experiences: Hike the Lost Mine Trail, go star gazing, hike Santa Elena Canyon, go for a drive on Maxwell Scenic Drive, visit Boquillas del Carmen, hike to Balanced Rock, and hike to Emory Peak, the highest peak in the Chisos Mountains. Plan Your Visit: New River Gorge National Park Itinerary for 1 to 3 Days. ), Best National Parks in the USA: 15 Amazing Parks for Your Bucket List, 15 Amazing Things to Do in Badlands National Park (+ Photos & Map). Big Bend National Park. Top Experiences: Visit the overlooks on Island in the Sky, watch the sunrise at Mesa Arch, go hiking in The Needles, drive Shafer Canyon Road, hike below the rim of the Island in the Sky mesa, drive the White Rim Road, explore The Maze. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Cuyahoga Valley. Required fields are marked *. Big Bend National Park: Texas. Wind Cave National Park gets its name for its large, underground cavern and maze of passageways. When to Go: Spring and fall for good weather; the winter months for lower crowds, Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Zion National Park. Top Experiences: Take a ranger guided tour of the cave. Nine of those are counted as separate units, while Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve and New River Gorge National Park and Preserve are single units (there is no functional difference). Top Experiences: Photograph Brandywine Falls, hike, bike or run the Ohio and Erie Towpath Trail, visit Beaver Marsh, go for a ride on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, visit Bridal Veil Falls, visit Deer Lick Cave, hike to Blue Hen Falls, visit the Everett Covered Bridge, and hike the Ledges Trail. 11. In our National Parks to Visit By Season guide, we list the prime time to visit each national park. To be a national park, the unit contains a wide variety of resources and is generally an area of natural and/or cultural importance. Top Experiences: Visit Trunk Bay and snorkel the underwater trail, visit Maho Beach, walk the Leinster Bay Trail and snorkel in Waterlemon Bay, visit the overlooks on North Shore Road, and visit beaches along the north shore of St. John. 20 states do not have a national park: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin. A national monument is typically smaller than a national park and a national preserve and only protects one specific resource. Top Experiences: Take a cave tour, spot bison from the park roads, hike the Rankin Ridge Trail, and hike the Lookout Point and Centennial Trail Loop. Some states have many national parks (California tops the list with 9) and not every state has a national park. So technically, Idaho has a national park. You will also get a U.S. National Parks Bucket List checklist. When to Go: May through October is a beautiful time to visit the park. Save . The remaining 46 monuments are administered by five other federal agencies. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to North Cascades National Park. Why? Top Experiences: Hike to Delicate Arch, see Balanced Rock and the Fiery Furnace, hike the Devils Garden Trail, visit Double Arch, Turret Arch, and Windows Arch, hike Park Avenue. Plan Your Visit: Best Things to Do in Saguaro National Park. The National Park Service publishes tons of great free maps; I've collected them all for you. Here are all 63 national parks, organized by state (the states are in alphabetical order). Everglades. We updated the map in 2022 to include New River Gorge National Park in West Virginia, the newest park to be added! Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Yellowstone National Park. Isle Royale is an archipelago of over 400 islands. With a volcanic peak above the clouds, the dramatic landscape is home to endangered species, some of which exist nowhere else. Biscayne . No roads lead into Gates of the Arctic. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Mount Rainier National Park. Affiliated areas are marked on the lists below. Denali National Park is the epitome of wilderness, a true gem of unbridled natural beauty.The park is home to an incredibly diverse array of wildlife, from moose to wolves, bears, caribou, and more. 7. In Lassen Volcanic, you’ll see steaming fumaroles, pretty lakes, colorful landscapes, and Lassen Peak. US National Parks List National Parks Interesting Facts List of the Oldest National Parks List of the Newest National Parks Information about All 63 Parks List of the Parks By Alphabetical Order List of the Most Visited Parks List of the Least Visited Parks US National Parks List: By State How to Plan a National Parks Trip US National Parks Checklist Frequently Asked Questions. Mt Rainer is the park's highest peak (5th largest in the USA, excluding Alaska) at 14,400 feet. Visitors to the park can observe Alaskan bears, moose, wolves, bison, and caribou in their natural habitat. When to Go: May through October, when the roads are open and you can tour the cliff dwellings. There are 18 national recreation areas administered by the National Park Service. Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve is not officially a national preserve but has similar management policies, while Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve is unrelated. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Capitol Reef National Park. The best way to explore it is by boat, which makes it very unique from many of the other US national parks. These areas are also places where people can go to learn more about the natural world, explore the wilderness and unique landscapes, and get in touch with nature. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Canyonlands National Park. Olympic National Park is one of the most diverse national parks in the United States. The sunrises and sunsets are magical, the hiking trails are short and sweet, and for those looking for more solitude, you can take your pick from a handful of backcountry experiences. Plan Your Visit: The Complete Guide to Acadia National Park. Plan Your Visit: How to Spend One Day in Congaree National Park. With an amazing scenic drive, hiking trails that rival those in Zion, rugged, remote areas to explore by 4×4, short, easy slot canyons, historical landmarks, and even delicious pie, this is another one of our favorite national parks. You can also go star gazing, hike a surface trail, or go on a scenic drive. 15 Epic Day Hikes in the Dolomites (RANKED!! [2] There are many more national wild and scenic rivers that run through other units. Of these, 83 (all except Grand Canyon-Parashant) are NPS official units. Located in southwestern Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park is one of the most unique national parks in the United States. Unsere Empfehlung: Die TOP 10 Nationalparks in den USA. We have made this map so that you have a little more orientation where the parks can be found. Scenery - 9.5/10. Top Experiences: Drive Skyline Drive and visit the overlooks, hike to the top of Bearfence Mountain, hike Old Rag, visit Dark Hollow Falls, enjoy the view from Hawksbill Mountain, hike to Mary’s Rock, and hike a section of the Appalachian Trail. National Geographic takes viewers on an extraordinary venture across world-famous and lesser-known national parks to reveal the diversity and wonder of this beautiful country, from the lush valley . You can also visit the lush forests and waterfalls in the Kīpahulu District, which is located along the Road to Hana. A great way to experience the park is by spending a couple days in one of the campgrounds. Cruises are one of the best ways to experience this park, as you drift past glaciers and take excursions to seaside towns and hiking trails. Located on the southwestern corner of Texas, within the Chihuahuan Desert, is an extraordinary mountain range that is a haven for hikers, backpackers, and outdoor enthusiasts. Der Arches Nationalpark in Utah zählt zu den schönsten Nationalparks der USA. Top Experiences: Bear watching at Brooks Falls, day trip to the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, go fishing, take a flightseeing tour, visit Naknek Lake, hike to the top of Dumpling Mountain. Mt. CO. National Monument. The Official Units of the National Park System of the United States is the collection of physical properties owned or administered by the National Park Service.. As of December 2022, there are 424 official units of the National Park System; however, this number can be misleading.For example, Denali National Park and Preserve are counted as two units, since the same name applies to a national . Dementsprechend ist der Death-Valley-Nationalpark der trockenste Nationalpark in den USA. On land, you can see moose, black bears, brown bears, and wolves. Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park. When to Go: May through September, the dry season in American Samoa. Because of its remote location, it’s also one of the least visited. Since 1872, 62 more national parks have been established in the United States, not to mention the hundreds of national parks that have been created around the globe. Search for photos, videos, webcams, and audio files on any topic. Yellowstone National Park is one of the most iconic in America—and also the world's first national park (established in 1872 by President Ulysses S. Grant).It has the largest number of mammal species, its own Grand Canyon, and half the world's hydrothermal features, including mud pots, geysers, and hot springs. Two, Grand Canyon–Parashant and Craters of the Moon National Monuments, are jointly administered by the NPS and the Bureau of Land Management, and Tule Lake National Monument is joint with the Fish and Wildlife Service. Alaska is home to 8 national parks making it the state with the second most national parks in the country. Hiking and mountain biking trails wind through the forests, leading to overlooks and historic settlements. The United States has 63 national parks, which are congressionally designated protected areas operated by the National Park Service, an agency of the Department of the Interior. Top Experiences: Go snorkeling, hike through tropical rainforests, hike the Mount ‘Alava Trail to the summit of Mount ‘Alava, and visit Ofu Beach. ", Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve, List of national parks of the United States, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Waterton–Glacier International Peace Park, New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, List of national monuments of the United States, George Washington Carver National Monument, Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument, Belmont–Paul Women's Equality National Monument, Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument, Cape Krusenstern National Monument and Archeological District, Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument, Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, George Washington Birthplace National Monument, Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve, Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument, Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, Wrangell–St. Top Experiences: Drive Bajada Loop Drive, walk the Valley View Overlook Trail and the Desert Discovery Nature Trail, see the Signal Hill Petroglyphs, and drive the Cactus Forest Drive. The rocky pinnacles are a popular rock climbing destination and wildflowers in the spring draw the biggest crowds of the year. In some ways, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is a smaller version of the Grand Canyon. Nearly all units managed by the National Park Service participate in the National Park Passport Stamps program. This has been a popular beach destination for decades, but it is also one of the most biodiverse national parks in the USA. Visiting Proenneke’s Cabin on Upper Twin Lake is another popular activity. Hot springs, thermal pools, and bubbling mud pots can be seen throughout the park. National Historical Park. It’s also one of the best hikes to visit if you are an avid hiker. And then there is the designation “National Park.”. Top Experiences: Hike the Harding Icefield Trail, go ice climbing or glacier hiking on the Exit Glacier, take a wildlife cruise, walk the Glacier Overlook Trail, go glacier kayaking, go fishing, or take a flightseeing tour. With its desert scenery, hiking trails, rock climbing routes, hidden oases, scenic drives, and trees that look like they have been plucked from the pages of a Dr. Seuss book, Joshua Tree National Park is a joy to explore. Explore the national parks through multimedia. Top Experiences: Walk the Anhinga Trail, visit the Flamingo Visitor Center and see if you can spot crocodiles or manatees, walk the boardwalk trail at Mahogany Hammock, take a kayaking tour, and bike through Shark Valley. There are many different types of national park units, sites such as National Battlefield Parks, National Preserves, National Monuments, National Lakeshores, and National Historical Parks, just to name a few. Grand Canyon National Park is one of the most visited parks in the USA. In the 1930s and 1940s, the NPS developed dozens of recreational demonstration areas, most of which eventually became national or state parks. Hunting, fishing, and mining are permitted, just as long as these do not affect the resource that the national preserve protects. Top Experiences: Hike Angels Landing, Observation Point, Hidden Canyon, Riverside Trail, Emerald Pools, Weeping Rock, and Canyon Overlook. This is one of the most wild, rugged, and remote areas in the lower 48 states. The National Park System of the United States is the collection of physical properties owned or administered by the National Park Service. Affiliated areas are marked on the lists below.