A map of every national park in the United States

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A law organizing the first national park, Yellowstone, was signed in 1872. Principles for selecting national parks cover natural attractions, unique ecosystems, and geological peculiarities. Nowadays, the United States has 63 national parks. 14 American national parks are assigned UNESCO World Heritage Sites, while 21 national parks are chosen by UNESCO as Biosphere Reserves, and 8 national parks are nominated in both UNESCO lists.

U.S. national parks

Thirty U.S. states have national parks, including American Samoa and the U.S. Virgin Islands. California has the most national parks with 9, accompanied by Alaska with 8, Utah with 5, and Colorado with 4. The map below shows all the national parks in the country.

Largest National Park in Each U.S. State

The largest U.S. national park is Wrangell–St. Elias in Alaska: at above eight million acres (32,375 sq. km.), it is bigger than any of the 9 smallest U.S. states. The following 3 biggest parks are also in Alaska.

The “tiniest” is Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri, at about 193 acres (0.7804 sq km). The entire area protected by U.S national parks is about 52.2 million acres (211,000 sq. km.).

The map below created by Malcolm Tunnell shows the largest national parks by state.

Map U.S. States rated the by share of parks in their territory

The U.S. state with the highest percentage of national and park coverage is Hawaii, with parks protecting 9.41 percent of the state’s 4,134 thousand acres (16730 sq km). Its 50 U.S. state parks cover 30 thousand acres (121 sq km), while the 2 national parks in Hawaii make up 358,870 acres (1452 sq km).

The U.S. state that ranked last was Kansas, with just 0.06% of the state’s 52,660 thousand acres (213107 sq km)made up of 26 state parks (32 thousand acres or 130 sq km) and 0 national parks.

National Park System Map

19 U.S. national parks had over 1 million recreational visits in 2021 (the total number of visits is more than 92 million).

The most-visited U.S national park is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee (about 14.1 million visitors in 2001), accompanied by Zion National Par (5 million visitors).

Top 10 the most visited National Park

1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park (14.1 million visitors)
2. Zion National Park (5 million visitors)
3. Yellowstone National Park (4.9 million visitors)
4. Grand Canyon National Park (4.5 million visitors)
5. Rocky Mountain National Park (4.4 million visitors)
6. Acadia National Park (4.1 million visitors)
7. Grand National Park (3.9 million visitors)
8. Yosemite National Park (3.9 million visitors)
9. Indiana Dunes National Park (3.2 million visitors)
10. Glacier National Park (3.1 million visitors.)

While national parks like the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Zion National Park attract millions of tourists, the United States is home to some beautiful remote national parks that present the chance for isolation and breathtaking natural beauty. If you’re looking to become dipped in nature, far from the crowds of people, there are possible alternatives you might not have regarded. From Alaska’s magnificent wilderness to American territories in the South Pacific, these are the nation’s most hidden treasures to explore.

Which US National Park is your closest?

10 Most Remote National Parks

1. Gates of the Arctic National Park (Alaska)
2. Isle Royale National Park (Michigan)
3. North Cascades National Park (Washington)
4. National Park of American Samoa (American Samoa)
5. Dry Tortugas National Park (Florida)
6. Great Basin National Park (Nevada)
7. Virgin Islands National Park (Virgin Islands)
8. Congaree National Park (South Carolina)
9. Pinnacles National Park (California)
10. Guadalupe Mountains National Park (Texas)

The map below shows the distance to the nearest National Park created by Reddit user toddrjones, using geographical coordinates taken from the list of the national park of the United States published on Wikipedia.