In the spring and early summer, wildflower-filled valleys frame the high alpine, glacier-capped skyline, uninhibited by man for miles. Home to the tallest summit in North America, from which the park got its name, this 6 million-acre park has only one road traversing it. Another option, just 18 miles from the northwest border of the park in Big Sky, Montana, is the Lone Mountain Ranch, which offers a number of guided wilderness experiences and has 30 unique cabins to choose from.įor remote wilderness experiences and mountain-based adventure, it's hard to match Denali National Park and Preserve. Spend the night at the Canyon Lodge, a classic hotel in the park that was renovated in 2016. Lone Star Geyser is one of the many features that require visitors to leave the worn boardwalks and paved parking areas, but solitude and hot water spouting 45 feet into the air are the reward. While the Old Faithful geyser is a rite of passage for all first-time visitors, Yellowstone has over 10,000 hydrothermal features spread across 2.2 million acres, so it’s possible to skip the crowds. Today, America’s first national park, known for herds of bison and elk, glacier-carved valleys, and steaming geysers and hot springs, continues to be one of the most visited. Grant signed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act into law on March 1, 1872, he put the wheels in motion to establish the entire park system. However, when you book something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. All listings featured in this story are independently selected by our editors. But if you’re willing to take a trip to the most popular parks outside of the peak season, during the late fall, winter, or early spring, there’s a good chance you’ll find fewer people, and serene landscapes (possibly blanketed in snow).īelow, we round up 22 of the very best national parks in the USA-from remote and seldom-visited sites, such as The Gates of the Arctic, to classics like Yellowstone that simply can’t be missed. With 63 national parks nationwide, there are plenty of opportunities to explore the country's diverse landscapes without having to compete with the crowds of headlining acts like the Grand Canyon. In fact, the National Park Service’s annual visitation numbers in 2021 exceeded those of 2020 by nearly 60 million, and are on track to return to-or even surpass-pre-pandemic numbers.

The past few years have heightened Americans' interest in spending time outdoors-and travelers continue to flock to national parks in record numbers. These days, most of us are on a mission to visit the best national parks in the USA.

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