Last year, there was a total of 88,662,181 unique visits to the 63 national parklands in the United States. Let that staggering number sink in for a moment. If you’ve visited one of these incredible parks, that number is probably not that surprising to you. The national parklands in the United States have some of the most stunning and unique landscapes in North America, if not the world. However, what you are probably wondering is which of these incredible parks are amongst the most popular national parks in America. If you have wondered which are the most visited national parks, you are in luck!

In this article, I am going to review the most popular national parks in the United States. Not only throughout the year but on a month-by-month basis. In addition to the most popular national parks, I will also list the least popular national parks in the country. Not that these parks aren’t worth seeing, because I think all of the country’s parks are incredible.

It’s just that some parks are incredibly difficult to get to and are best seen during small portions of the year. So, if you are trying to determine which national park you want to see next (or first), you have come to the right place. Hopefully, this article provides you with the inspiration to plan a trip to see one of these beautiful parks in the future!

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The Most Visited National Parks in America

When it comes to the most popular national park in America, it really isn’t that close. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which spans North Carolina and Tennessee, blows all other parks out of the water. With a staggering 12,937,633 visitors, it was a clear winner of the most visited national park last year. It should come as no surprise, seeing that the park is stunning, is easily accessible, and is located in a temperate climate.

Some of the other parks that are amongst the most popular national parks include the Grand Canyon, Zion, Rocky Mountain, Acadia, Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Joshua Tree National Parks. Each of these incredible parklands drew over 3 million visitors in 2022. However, it isn’t just a one-off thing. These parks consistently rank amongst the most visited national parks in the United States year after year.

If you are interested in seeing a complete breakdown of how all the parks rank in terms of annual visitors, I have included a table for you to review below. The table lists each park, the state(s) it is located in, and how many recreational visitors it had last year. Feel free to sort the table, switch between pages, and adjust the number of parks included per page using the provided table controls.

Total Number of Visitors at Each National Park in 2022

The Top 32 Parks in Number of Annual Visitors

As you can see in the chart below, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park led all national parks in visitors last year. Not only that, but it led by a very wide margin. It averages almost three times as many monthly visitors than any other national park. That aside, some of the other parks near the top in annual visitors aren’t much of a surprise.

For instance, I have long known that Zion, Acadia, and Yellowstone National Parks were amongst the most popular national parks in the United States. However, there were some parks near the top that did surprise me. I wouldn’t have guessed that Indiana Dunes and Hot Springs, as incredible as they are, would be near the top.

The Bottom 31 Parks in Number of Annual Visitors

While I firmly believe each and every one of America’s national parklands is incredible and worth visiting, it is only natural that some are more popular than others. Typically, the least visited national parks are the ones that are the most difficult to get to or have a very small window of prime visiting time. For instance, the remote parks in Alaska and the National Park of American Samoa are much further away and isolated. These parks are amazing but visiting them requires a lot more planning.

Like the top of the list, there were some surprises near the bottom of the list of most visited national parks as well. I never would have guessed that Pinnacles, Great Sand Dunes, and Crater Lake National Parks would be near the bottom. I have visited each of these parks and they are spectacular. My guess is that, as more people share their stunning photos of these parks on social media, they will get far more visitors than they have been.

The Most Visited National Parks by Month

Looking at which national parks are most popular throughout the year is interesting. However, it gets even more interesting when we start to look at which parks are most popular by month. Looking at the most visited national parks by month gives us some key insight as to which parklands are busiest throughout the year. Most often, this is because those parks are the most accessible during that time of year. Other times, it is because that time of year is the best time to visit the park for certain activities.

In this section of my article, I have listed the twenty most popular and least popular national parks by month. Using this data, I draw some conclusions on why certain parks may be more popular at certain points of the year. Likewise, I try to understand why other parks may not attract many visitors at certain times of the year. I am hopeful that this information is interesting and useful for you as you plan your national park trips in the future.

Visitors to Each Park by Month from January to June

I wanted to provide you with a sortable table that shows the number of visitors to each national park, but the table was just too wide. So, I have broken the data down into two separate sortable tables to make it easier for you to view.

In this table, I list all of the visitor numbers for each national park from the month of January to June of last year. Feel free to sort the table, switch between pages, and adjust the number of parks included per page using the provided table controls.

Visitors to Each Park by Month from July to December

In the second table, I list the number of visitors for each national park in the United States for the months of July thru December of last year. Feel free to sort the table, switch between pages, and adjust the number of parks included per page using the provided table controls.

Most and Least Visited Parks in January

The month of January is in the middle of winter in North America, so you would expect to see the southern parks have better visitor numbers this month. In many cases, this is true. For instance, the Everglades National Park in Florida saw an increase of 63,219 visitors from December to January last year. This was an 83% increase month-over-month. Likewise, Saguaro National Park in Arizona saw an increase of 14,189 visitors in January. This marked a 17% increase over the number of visitors the park saw in December.

Visitor Drops in Some Big Parks

Some of the parks that saw the largest drop in visitors are also not surprising. Some of the busiest parks in the country saw the biggest drops in visitors as the calendar turned to January. This includes the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which saw a 261,359 (39%) visitor drop. It also includes the Grand Canyon, which saw its number of visitors drop by 93,158 (34%) in January.

The parks that saw the largest gains by percentage include Voyageurs in Minnesota (+742%), Great Basin in Nevada (+126%), and Badlands National Park in South Dakota (+102%). Meanwhile, the parks that saw the largest decrease by percentage were Denali in Alaska (-77%), the National Park of Samoa (-71%), and Kenai Fjords National Park in Alaska (-66%).

The 20 Most Visited Parks in January

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of January last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in January

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of January last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in February

In February, two of the most popular national parks see a big jump in the number of visitors. The Great Smoky Mountains picks back up after a drop in January, increasing by 127,325 visitors in February. This is a 31% increase month-over-month. The other park to see a big increase in visitors is Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.

Big Visitor Increase in Hot Springs National Park

This popular southern park saw an 88,270 visitor increase in February. This was a 58% increase over the number of visitors it had in January. Other parks to see big increases in visitors were Yosemite (+33,139 visitors), Death Valley (+31,879 visitors), and Zion National Park (+28,672 visitors).

The park that saw the largest drop in visitors in February was Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. This beautiful park saw its number of visitors decrease by 29,222. This marked a 22% decrease month-over-month. Other parks that saw a large decrease in visitors included Kings Canyon in California (-7,552 visitors), Hawai’i Volcanoes in Hawaii (-7,115 visitors), and Virgin Islands National Park (-3,884 visitors).

The parks that saw the largest gains by percentage include Wrangell-St. Elias in Alaska (+280%), Shenandoah in Virginia (+153%), and Denali National Park in Alaska (+136%). Meanwhile, the parks that saw the largest decrease by percentage were Katmai in Alaska (-100%), Glacier Bay in Alaska (-87%), and North Cascades National Park in Washington (-64%).

The 20 Most Visited Parks in February

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of February last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in February

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of February last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in March

In March, the most popular parks in the country continued to increase their visitor numbers by large totals. This should come as no surprise because of how many visitors they attract throughout the year. Great Smoky Mountains, Zion, the Grand Canyon, and Joshua Tree all increased their number of visitors by over 100,000 in March.

The Southern Utah Parks Had Big Visitor Increases in March

However, I want to spotlight some of the other parks with big visitor increases in March. In March, Arches National Park in Utah saw its first big visitor increase of the year. This stunning park added 90,298 visitors in March, which is a 175% increase over February. Other parks that also saw big visitor increases include Gateway Arch in Missouri (+68,167 visitors), Bryce Canyon in Utah (+65,697 visitors), and Capitol Reef in Utah (+64,233 visitors). March was a great month for Southern Utah, as the area saw its first big visitor bump of the year.

At the same time, other parks in the country saw their visitor numbers drop in March. This includes the Everglades in Florida, which had a 20,347 visitor drop from February to March. This was a 13% decrease month-over-month. Other parks that saw big decreases in visitors included Glacier in Montana (-18,189 visitors) and Yellowstone National Park in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho (-11,707 visitors.)

The parks that saw the largest gains by percentage include Glacier Bay in Alaska, which saw a whopping 109,127% increase from February. The park saw its visitor numbers jump from just 22 in February to over 24,000 in March. This is an incredible increase! The parks that saw the largest percentage decreases were also the parks that saw the largest number of visitor decreases. This includes Glacier National Park in Montana, Voyageurs in Minnesota, and Yellowstone in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in March

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of March last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in March

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of March last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in April

In the month of April, the spring season starts to take full effect in many places in North America. Because of this, the northern parks really start to see their visitor numbers increase. The big parks like the Great Smoky Mountains and Yosemite continue to build on the large visitor numbers they get throughout the year.

However, starting in April, a few additional big parks really made some big visitor gains. For instance, Acadia National Park in Maine saw an 82,650 visitor increase in the month of April. This was a 368% increase over their total visitors in March. In addition, both Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio and Shenandoah in Virginia saw visitor increases of nearly 60,000 visitors. This was a 34% and 105% increase month-over-month for the parks respectively.

At the same time, the month of April means the return of heat in parts of California, Nevada, and Texas. Because of this, parks like Joshua Tree (-73,148 visitors), Death Valley (-73,068 visitors), and Big Bend (-26,077 visitors) saw a big decrease in visitors.

A Huge Visitor Boom in Glacier National Park

The park that saw the largest increase in visitors by percentage was Glacier National Park. This incredible park saw its visitor total go from 272 visitors in March to 36,246 visitors in April. Road re-opening in the park most likely accounts for this staggering 13,325% increase month-over-month. The parks with the largest percentage decrease were the National Park of American Samoa (-100%), Voyageurs in Minnesota (-95%), and Glacier Bay in Alaska (-84%).

The 20 Most Visited Parks in April

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of April last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in April

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of April last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in May

Starting in the month of May, even the coldest of regions in the Continental United States have thawed enough to see big visitor increases. This is the first month in several months that the Great Smoky Mountains doesn’t have the largest visitor increase. Instead, both Yellowstone National Park (+443,397 visitors) and Acadia National Park (+222,340 visitors) lead the way. Also amongst the top parks to see large visitor increases in May include the Grand Teton (+167,479 visitors), Glacier (+144,869 visitors), and Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado (+132,798 visitors).

Meanwhile, the parks in the south continue to see drops in their visitor numbers as temperatures start to soar. Joshua Tree (-130,074 visitors), Hot Springs in Arkansas (-72,261 visitors), and Saguaro in Arizona (-43,962 visitors) all saw large visitor decreases.

There Were Big Increases at the Lesser-Frequented Northern Parks

At the same time, some of the lesser frequented northern parks saw the largest increases in the percentage of visitors. Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota saw a whopping 16,254% increase in visitors in May as the lakes started to thaw out. The park’s visitor numbers went from 172 in April to 28,130 in May. In addition, Kenai Fjords (+7,243%), Isle Royale (+3,160), Lake Clark (+2,930%), and Glacier Bay (+1,603%) all saw big increases by percentage. Most likely, all from the result of re-opening services after being closed for the winter.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in May

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of May last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in May

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of May last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in June

June is the beginning of summer in North America, and the warmer temperatures provide big changes in park visitation. For one, the northern parks start to see big increases in the number of visitors. At the same time, the parks in areas that get very hot in the summer start to see visitor numbers fall further. Parks like Glacier (+347,711 visitors), Rocky Mountain (+341,396 visitors), Acadia (+275,557 visitors), and Grand Teton National Park (+262,511 visitors) all had huge visitor increases in June.

Conversely, parks in hotter areas like Joshua Tree (-69,450 visitors), Capitol Reef (-56,019 visitors), Canyonlands (-27,840 visitors), and Saguaro (-27,702 visitors) saw their visitor numbers drop in June.

The Remote Parks in Alaska Start Receiving More Visitors

As for the big gainers by percentage, Katmai National Park in Alaska had the biggest gain. It went from 144 visitors in May to 3,434 visitors in June. That is a staggering 3,434% increase month-over-month. Other parks with a big percentage of visitor increases were Gates of the Arctic (+555%), Lake Clark (+466%), and Isle Royale (+333%). Parks with big percentage losses include Big Bend (-45%), Saguaro (-42%), Guadalupe Mountains (-40%), and Joshua Tree (-30%).

The 20 Most Visited Parks in June

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of June last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in June

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of June last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in July

When the calendar turns to July, summer is in full effect in North America. With this comes a big visitor boom in some of the country’s parks. Gateway Arch (+380,455 visitors), Mount Rainier (+209,438 visitors), Olympic (+207,291 visitors), and Glacier (+201,451 visitors) all had huge visitor increases in July.

At the same time, parks like Hot Springs (-90,248 visitors), Yosemite (-73,212 visitors), Capitol Reef (-58,308 visitors), and Zion National Park (-21,339 visitors) saw big decreases in visitors. In July, Arkansas and Southern Utah can be quite hot, which likely explains these decreases. The waterfalls are a lot less active at Yosemite in July, so the crowds may have slowed after the peak spring season.

Big Visitor Bump in the North Cascades in July as Snow Melted in the Mountains

In terms of big gainers by the percentage of visitors, four parks saw triple-digit visitor increases in July. North Cascades in Washington had a 315% increase in visitors. Meanwhile, Gateway Arch (+234%), Katmai (148%), and Mount Rainier (114%) all saw big percentage increases as well. The parks with big percentage drops included Congaree (-36%), Capitol Reef (-35%), and Hot Springs National Park (-29%). Each of these parks is in an area that gets very hot in the summer, so these visitor drops are to be expected.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in July

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of July last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in July

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of July last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in August

August is the last full month of summer in North America, and that is reflected in the visitor stats for America’s national parks. There were only two parks with double-digit visitor increases this month. Olympic National Park saw an increase of 202,494 visitors in August. Meanwhile, Yosemite National Park saw an increase of 121,574 visitors.

Decreases in Visitor Numbers at Popular Parks as Summer Winds Down

Most notable were the parks that saw big visitor decreases in August. Some of the most popular national parks in America saw the biggest decrease. Gateway Arch saw a decrease of 389,79 visitors in August. Likewise, the Great Smoky Mountains (-294,524 visitors), Rocky Mountain (-146,330 visitors), and Zion (-111,502 visitors) all saw big visitor decreases.

In terms of increases by percentage of visitors, North Cascades (+97%), Olympic (+47%), and Yosemite (+31%) saw the largest percentage increases from July to August. Conversely, Gateway Arch (-72%), the National Park of American Samoa (-60%), and Carlsbad Caverns (-53%) saw the largest decreases. With summer winding down and kids getting ready to go back to school, some of these decreases in popular parks make a lot of sense.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in August

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of August last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in August

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of August last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in September

Visitor Numbers Picked Back Up in Southern Utah

In September, summer in North America officially comes to an end. With this, the number of visitors to America’s most popular national parks continues to decrease. However, in the warmer areas of the country autumn is a reprieve from blistering temperatures. Because of this, visitor numbers in some of these parks rise again. Parks like the Great Smoky Mountains (+49,646 visitors), Bryce Canyon (+28,043 visitors), Canyonlands (+23,234 visitors), Arches (+15,396 visitors), and Joshua Tree (+11,316 visitors) saw big visitor increases.

At the same time, visitor numbers at other parks dropped in September. This includes the Olympic National Park in Washington, which saw the biggest drop of all parks. The park went from 634,516 visitors in August to 322,881 visitors in September. This was a drop of 311,635 visitors month-over-month. Other parks with decreases included Indiana Dunes (-198,645 visitors), Glacier (-130,760 visitors), and Mount Rainier (-119,843 visitors). The season was clearly winding down at these summer-centric parks.

Big Drops in Visitors in the Alaskan and Other Northern Parks

In terms of increases in the percentage of visitors, the National Park of American Samoa led the way with an 80% increase in visitors. Other parks to see their numbers increase by percentage as temperatures moderated included Big Bend (+59%), Guadalupe Mountains (+48%), and Canyonlands (+37%). Parks with big decreases in visitors by percentage were some of the parks in Alaska and the Northern Continental United States you’d expect. Wrangell-St. Elias (-68%), Isle Royale (-64%), Gates of the Artic (-63%), and Denali (-62%) all saw big percentage decreases in visitors.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in September

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of September last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in September

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of September last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in October

Changing Leaves Make Some Parks Popular Autumn Destinations

With the calendar turning to October, autumn is in full effect in North America. With that, it should come as no surprise to learn that some of the prettiest parks to see in autumn had the biggest visitor increases. This includes the Great Smoky Mountains, which saw a big increase in visitors in October. The park added 309,090 visitors from September to October. Other parks with big increases included Shenandoah (+152,968 visitors), Hot Springs (+119,569 visitors), and Joshua Tree (+72,096 visitors).

Dropping Temperatures in Popular Northern Parks Leads to Visitor Declines

The parks that saw the largest decreases in October were the most popular parks in the Northern United States. This includes Glacier National Park (-428,835 visitors), Yellowstone (-331,020 visitors), Grand Teton (-245,268 visitors), and Rocky Mountain National Park (-175,906 visitors). With temperatures dropping and snow starting to fall in these parks, it isn’t surprising.

The parks with the largest increase in the percentage of visitors included the National Park of American Samoa (+125%), Hot Springs (+107%), Shenandoah (+105%), Big Bend (+92%), and Saguaro (+71%). With leaves changing, Shenandoah and Hot Springs National Park are two of the prettiest parks in America. Meanwhile, moderating temperatures make the other parks on this list more appealing in autumn.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in October

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of October last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in October

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of October last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in November

Cooler November Temperatures Attract More Visitors to Desert and Tropical Parks

Starting in November, the temperatures in the parks that are just too hot to visit in the summer become much more comfortable. Because of this, and the falling temperatures up North, we see a big swing in where visitors choose to go. For instance, parks like Joshua Tree (+94,282 visitors), Death Valley (+39,681 visitors), Saguaro (+23,053 visitors), and the Everglades (+20,628) saw the largest increases in visitors from October to November.

Meanwhile, other popular summer parks start to see even bigger dips in visitor numbers. This includes the Great Smoky Mountains (-679,464 visitors), Acadia (-450,971 visitors), Rocky Mountain (-343,302 visitors), and Yellowstone National Park (-218,880 visitors). With winter temperatures looming, snow starting to fall, and autumn colors gone, these drops should come as no surprise.

Some Northern Parks Saw Visitors Completely Fall Off

The biggest visitor gains in terms of percentage of visitors were at the tropical and desert parks, as you would expect. The National Park of American Samoa (+84%), Death Valley (+74%), Virgin Islands (+61%), Dry Tortugas (+53%), and the Everglades (+47%) saw the biggest increase in the percentage of visitors. Conversely, Lake Clark (-100%), Isle Royale (-100%), Kenai Fjords (-99.9%), and Glacier Bay (-99.8%) saw complete drops in their number of visitors by percentage. In fact, there were no visitors at all to Lake Clark, Gates of the Arctic, or Isle Royale in November of last year.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in November

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of November last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in November

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of November last year.

Most and Least Visited Parks in December

December is the middle of winter in North America, and the visitor numbers in the country’s most popular national parks reflect that. While it is expected to see visitor increases in the desert and tropical parks like Death Valley (+16,011 visitors), Haleakala (+15,759 visitors), and the Everglades (+11,494 visitors), some other parks to gain visitors may surprise you.

Snowmobile Season Leads to Big Visitor Increases in Some Parks

That is unless you understand that December is peak snowmobile season in some parks. No doubt, this explains the uptick in visitors to Grand Teton (+13,852) and Yellowstone National Park (13,107) during December. That and other outdoor winter activities such as snowshoeing and cross-country skiing.

Meanwhile, the Great Smoky Mountains saw its visitor numbers continue to fall in December. With a decrease of 274,818 visitors from November to December, it was the park with the largest overall decrease. Other parks with big decreases included Zion (-114,198 visitors), Shenandoah (-94,641 visitors), and Cuyahoga Valley in Ohio (-52,392).

In terms of parks with the largest visitor increase by a percentage of visitors, Kenai Fjords in Alaska had the biggest increase. Its visitor numbers went from just 6 visitors in November to 64 in December. This was a 967% increase month-over-month. Other parks with big percentage increases included Yellowstone (+74%), Grand Teton (+42%), and the Virgin Islands (+30%).

The List of Parks with No Winter Visitors Grows

Parks with the biggest drops in visitors by percentage included North Cascades National Park, which saw a 100% decrease in visitors in December. It joined Gates of the Arctic, Isle Royale, and Lake Clark in the list of parks with no visitors for the month of December. Other parks with big percentage drops include Shenandoah (-83%), Voyageurs (-79%), Theodore Roosevelt (-71%), and the Badlands National Park (-68%). With bitter cold temperatures, all of these drops are not too surprising.

The 20 Most Visited Parks in December

The following 20 national parks were the most visited parks in the month of December last year.

The 20 Least Visited Parks in December

The following 20 national parks were the least visited parks in the month of December last year.

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