National Parks Finder

Acadia National Park holds some of the most spectacular scenery on the Eastern Seaboard: a rugged coastline of surf-pounded granite and an interior graced by sculpted mountains, serene ponds, and lush deciduous forests.

Four hours (235 miles) from Salt Lake City, this park has the world’s largest concentration of natural sandstone arches, including that most-famous symbol of Utah, Delicate Arch. Nearby is Moab, an adventure hotspot, with world-class white-water rafting on the Colorado River, rock climbing, four-wheeling, and mountain biking.

Badlands National Park's eroded buttes and spires cast amazing shades of red and yellow across the South Dakota prairie. In addition to scenery, it has some of the world’s richest mammal fossil beds.

The Canadian Rockies are one of the most beautiful ranges on Earth, and Canada's first national park is nestled among these mountains, glaciers, and forests. It also has some of the world's best skiing.

In a remote location, with the Rio Grande River along its southern border, Big Bend's limitless skies and ample space are two of its strongest selling points.

Occupying 172,000 acres along the southern portion of Biscayne Bay, south of Miami, Biscayne National Park is 95% submerged, with coral reefs and coastal mangrove forests.

This steep and narrow river gorge in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park has sheer cliffs and a drop twice as high as the Empire State Building.

Exploring the hoodoos (spectacular columns of rock) at this park is like wandering through a giant maze. Bryce is within a few hours of Utah's other national parks and near Kodachrome Basin State Park and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

Biking on White Rim Road, white-water rafting in Cataract Canyon—plus spires, pinnacles, cliffs, and mesas as far as the eye can see are the top reasons to go.

Seven times larger than nearby Bryce Canyon and much less crowded, Capitol Reef is known for its 100-mile-long Waterpocket Fold, a monocline (or “wrinkle” in the Earth’s crust). It has many options for day hikes as well as backcountry trips into slot canyons, arches, cliffs, domes, and slickrock.

The park’s 113 caves, bizarre underground rock formations, and 400,000 diving, dipping, sonar-blipping bats are the main draws.

These five islands are home to 145 species of terrestrial plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. You’re bound to see wildlife such as dolphins, sea lions, island foxes, and pelicans, and can kayak, dive, and go whale-watching.

Crater Lake is a geological marvel—the 21-square-mile sapphire-blue lake inside a caldera is the nation's deepest. The park itself includes about 90 miles of trails.

This is a vast, lonely, beautiful place with breathtaking vistas, searing heat, and mysterious moving rocks. The desert landscape is surrounded by majestic mountains, dry lakebeds, spring wildflowers, and Wild West ghost towns.

Home to Mt. McKinley—the highest peak in North America—Denali National Park and Preserve comprises 6 million acres of Alaska's best wildlife, scenery, and adventures.

Glacier Bay is home to the continent's largest collection of tidewater glaciers, which can be seen from a cruise ship or on a day boat tour. Migrating humpback whales and occasionally orcas can also be spotted here and it's an excellent place to sea kayak. The park's remote, undeveloped location ensures that travelers in search of quiet repose will not be disappointed.

The rugged mountains that weave their way through the Continental Divide in northwest Montana are the backbone of Glacier National Park. The park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road is a spectacular drive that crosses the crest of the Continental Divide.

The Grand Canyon exalts and humbles the human spirit. You can view the spectacle from the South Rim, the North Rim, or hike or take a mule ride into the canyon for a richer experience. Rafting the Colorado River through the canyon can't be beat.

With no foothills, the unimpeded view of the Teton Range rising out of Jackson Hole is stunning. Wildlife from short-tailed weasels to grizzly bears abound.

It may be one of the nation's least visited national parks (there isn’t even an entrance fee), but the stalactites, stalagmites, and popcorn in Lehman Caves and the solitude of backcountry treks are big draws.

The 30 square miles of landlocked dune fields are an impressive sight. Aside from the dunes there are eight different life zones to explore, ranging from salty wetlands to alpine peaks.

The Great Smoky Mountains is one of the great wild areas of the eastern United States, with many of the region's tallest mountains. Within the park you'll find excellent hiking, fishing, and lookouts to marvel at the scenery.

This remote park draws thousands of visitors every fall, when the hardwoods of McKittrick Canyon burst into flaming color. The park is home to the Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in the state.

Established in 1916, Haleakala National Park covers an astonishing 33,222 acres, with the Haleakala Crater as its centerpiece. There's tremendous hiking, otherworldly landscapes, and spots to view gorgeous sunrises.

Exploring the surface of the world's most active volcano—from the moonscape craters at the summit to the red-hot lava flows on the coast to the kipuka, pockets of vegetation left untouched—is the ultimate ecotour.

One of the largest protected mountain ecosystems in the world and the largest of the Canadian Rocky Mountain parks, Jasper woos visitors with its lakes, glaciers, waterfalls, and mountains.

Large stands of Joshua trees gave the park its name, but it’s also a great spot for rock climbing. Brilliant wildflower displays and starry nights add to the draw.

From hiking to canoeing, Kenai Fjords National Park has world-class recreation activities. Wildlife abounds in the icy waters and dense coastal forests, while glaciers meet the sea at the Harding Icefield.

Lassen Peak, a dormant plug dome volcano that last erupted in 1915, and every other type of known volcano (shield, cinder cone, and composite) are here, as well as roiling mud pots and hissing steam vents.

Located in the Four Corners region—the junction of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona—this park houses an amazing collection of Ancestral Puebloan dwellings, some carved directly into cliff faces, and ancient artifacts.

The fifth-highest mountain in the Lower 48, Mt. Rainier is so massive that the summit is rarely visible, but when conditions are right, the image of the entire mountain is unforgettable. Hikes cover temperate rainforest, old-growth forests of hemlock and fir, high meadows, and tundra—not to mention hot springs, glaciers, lakes, and waterfalls.

Hiking on a real glacier is a memorable experience—especially if you add in marmots, golden eagles, and coyotes—and North Cascades is home to several hundred of them.

Centered on Mt. Olympus and framed on three sides by water, this park is known for its temperate rain forests, rugged coastal expanses, Sol Duc hot springs, and hiking (or skiing) at Hurricane Ridge.

This park is known for fallen and fossilized trees, which look like they are made of colorful stone.

Hiking among rugged volcanic spires is the most popular activity at Pinnacles, and the best chance you'll have at encountering one of the extremely rare California condors that make their home here.

Redwood is home to the world’s tallest trees: giant coast redwoods, which grow to more than 300 feet tall.

Alpine lakes, mountain peaks, and wildlife such as elk and bighorn sheep draw visitors to the park. There are also 355 miles of trails leading to meadows filled with wildflowers and crystal lakes and 14,259-foot Long's Peak to summit.

The park takes its name from the towering saguaro cactus, the largest of its kind in the United States. The park is split into two districts, each about 30 miles apart; the better collection of cacti is found in the west district.

Sequoias are the big trees here, which have monstrously thick trunks and branches. The Generals Highway, which connects the two parks, features many of these natural marvels. The Kings Canyon Scenic Byway offers views into a canyon deeper than the Grand Canyon.

From the open vistas and forest-hemmed stretches of Skyline Drive to the beautiful terrain on the park's 500 miles of trails, Shenandoah National Park is stunning.

Covering more than 1.5 million acres, the fabled "River of Grass" is the state's greatest natural treasure. Alligators, Florida panthers, black bears, manatees, dolphins, bald eagles, and roseate spoonbills call this vast habitat home.

Theodore Roosevelt is known for chunks of badlands on the Little Missouri River and the 26th president’s beloved Elkhorn Ranch. This is one of the most isolated parks in the country.

This Canadian national park is the meeting of two worlds: the flatlands of the prairie and the abrupt upthrust of the mountains.

One of the largest caves in the world, with beautiful cave formations including boxwork (3-D calcite honeycomb patterns on cave walls and ceilings), Wind Cave is the place to go spelunking.

Best known for Old Faithful, the world's most famous geyser, flowing hot springs, and mudspots, Yellowstone is the oldest national park in the world. Spotting the abundant wildlife, like bison, elk, moose, and bears, is the other main draw.

Dozens of famed features, from the soaring granite monoliths of Half Dome and El Capitan, to shimmering waterfalls like Yosemite Falls and Bridalveil Fall, like within reach in the Yosemite Valley.

Sheer 2,000-foot cliffs and river-carved canyons are what Zion is all about, and hiking the Narrows and the Subway are on many an adventurer’s bucket-list. Zion is right next to hospitable Springdale, which is full of amenities and charm.