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America’s Top National Parks

What you need to know about visiting these popular spots

AARP, Updated December 30, 2022

kayaks at Lake Crescent

YinYang/Getty Images

En español | The Great Outdoors is calling to Americans who miss travel, crave recreation and desire safe spaces where they can wander alone or explore with family and friends. The 63 wondrous national parks — “America’s best idea,” as documentary filmmaker Ken Burns has called them — offer all of that, and more.

Whether you are spotting wildlife from an overlook, walking an easy trail, hiking a majestic peak, camping in the back country or settling into a comfy cabin, you may find our national lands are a way to connect to America’s history viscerally and physically.

View from North Bubble, in Acadia National Park, Maine

Acadia

Spectacular ocean views and cool forest trails along the rocky coast of Maine

beautiful landscapes at sunset in Badlands National Park

Badlands 

Amber walls and prairie grass make for impressive landscapes in S.D.

boca chita key in biscayne national park florida

Biscayne

Find stunning coral reefs and other unique marine life in this wild Florida sanctuary

Cave interior in Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico

Carlsbad Caverns

Travel more than 700 feet below the Earth’s surface to walk among rock ​formations 

Brandywine Falls in Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Cuyahoga Valley

Find serene nature, accessible adventure and American history

Tent camping at the wonder lake campground in Denali National Park

Denali

Find spectacular scenery and mountain adventures in the Alaskan wilderness

Grinnell Lake

Glacier

Find wildlife, turquoise lakes and snow-capped peaks in Montana

canoe ride in the Grand Teton National Park

Grand Teton

Stunning snow-capped mountains, wildlife galore and more in this serene haven

footprints in the dunes made by hikers at great sand dunes nataional park colorado

Great Sand Dunes

Choose your own adventure among the tallest sand dunes in North America 

view of guadalupe mountains el capitan from the road

Guadalupe

Easy nature walks and views from ‘the Top of Texas’ are a few of the highlights

Holei Sea Arch

Hawaii Volcanoes

A nature lover's paradise of lava fields and lush rain forests on the Big Island

the shore of indiana dunes national park

Indiana Dunes

Everything you need to know about visiting this lakeside treasure near Chicago

Manzanita Lake in Autumn, Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen Volcanic

Explore the otherworldly landscape and see hot springs in this northern California park

Tourist at Mesa Verde National Park photographing Cliff House

Mesa Verde 

A thrilling collection of ancient canyon-carved cliff dwellings welcomes visitors in Colorado

New River Gorge National Park and Preserve

New River Gorge

America's 63rd National Park offers big views, hiking, biking and a mighty river

redwood trees in prairie creek redwoods california

Redwood

Find solace and many accessible options among the tallest trees on Earth

Sunrise at Saguaro National Park

Saguaro

Winter is the perfect time to visit this camera-ready desert treasure

Sunset over the Blue Ridge Mountains, seen from Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

Shenandoah

Cruise scenic Skyline Drive, explore miles of mountain trails and find serenity 

St. John, US Virgin Islands at Trunk Bay

Virgin Islands

No passport needed for Americans visiting this gorgeous Caribbean haven on St. John 

Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone

Exploding geysers, prismatic pools, a Grand Canyon and more make for a magical visit

a lone female hiker walking through the ZIon National Park

Zion

Cathedral-like canyons and majestic sandstone cliffs create a wondrous landscape

delicate arch in great arches national park in utah

Arches

View jaw-dropping sandstone archways in a red-rock wonderland

Landscape at Big Bend National Park

Big Bend

A ruggedly beautiful, remote desert landscape along the Rio Grande in West Texas 

Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon

Find otherworldly hoodoos, red cliffs and magical sunrises in Utah

See through to Crater Lake and Wizard Island in Crater Lake National Park

Crater Lake 

Enjoy gorgeous hikes, drives, water views and adventure in Oregon

a photo of zabriskie point in death valley national park california

Death Valley

​The California oasis is huge, dry, often brutally hot — and absolutely worth a visit​​​

alligator and white bird in The Everglades

Everglades 

Alligators, crocodiles, birds and bear beckon a million visitors a year

Woman standing against rail, look over the Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Experience the majesty of the natural wonder — gorges and rocks resembling castles

A view from the road leading up Wheeler Peak in Great Basin National Park

Great Basin

Solitude, mountain beauty and the world’s oldest trees in a remote oasis

Fall morning in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Great Smoky Mountains

Avoid the crowds at the country's most popular park by finding quiet walks

Sunrise at Haleakala National Park, Maui, Hawaii

Haleakalā 

A legendary sunrise highlight this volcanic playground on Maui

Overlook over the Ouchita Mountains in Hot Springs National Park

Hot Springs

Soak your cares away at this historic mountain retreat in Arkansas

Jumbo Rocks and Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia), Joshua Tree National Park, California.

Joshua Tree

The California haven offers a ruggedly beautiful landscape

Frozen Niagara in Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky

Mammoth Cave

Explore the natural world above and below ground at this Kentucky treasure

Purple Lupin growing on a hillside at Mt. Rainier National Park

Mount Rainier

Ice, wildflowers and ancient forests in the Pacific Northwest

A view of a mountain in the Olympic National Park,

Olympic

Emerald wilderness, ancient trees, eagles, orcas and limited Wi-Fi

Alpenglow kisses Hallet Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain

A Colorado gem sparkles with the richness of wildlife and nature

Sequoia National Park, California

Sequoia

Spend a lot of time looking up — way up — at these giant trees 

Painted Canyon Overlook

Theodore Roosevelt

Bison, prairie dogs, coyotes – a Dakota wildlife landscape

white sand dunes under a blue sky in white sands national park new mexico

White Sands

The dramatic dunes become your personal sandbox here in southern New Mexico

Valley view in Yosemite National Park

Yosemite

Giant sequoias, huge waterfalls, El Capitan call to naturalists and artists

vintage charmer a house available for rent in washington

Vacation Rentals Near National Parks

Consider booking one of these properties

Park Ranger Shares Her WWII History

America’s oldest park ranger, Betty Reid Soskin, shares her experiences on the home front

AARP Travel Center

Call: 1.800.675.4318

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