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US National Park Travel Guides

Welcome to the US national parks! This is where you will find all of our US national park travel guides along with guides featuring US monuments and US memorials.

This section of our blog is dedicated to helping you learn everything you need to know about the US National Parks and preparing you for your next adventure.

There are currently 63 US national parks across 30 different states. Each national park is run by the National Park Service and the state with the highest concentration of national parks is California.

But we also must stress the beauty of lesser known US State Parks. These smaller and less visited parks span thousands of miles across all 50 states, but can be just as magical.

Best National Parks In The US

The US national parks are considered to be the best in the world featuring wonders of rock, ice, sand and forest creating some of the most diverse and incredible landscapes on the planet.

national parks you need to visit in the United States of America

If you are looking for national park inspiration, you might want to start with our popular guide featuring the 20 best US national parks.

>> Best national parks in the US

Search US National Parks By Map

The National Park Service manages 424 units across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories which incluse the very popular 63 US national parks.

In most states, you can visit the national parks or the remaining 361 national recreations sites which are still “parks” but use a different nomenclature such as:

  • Memorials
  • Monuments
  • Historical sites
  • Recreational sites

Use the map below to find your next US national park adventure:

US National Parks Placeholder
US National Parks

Dark green = US national parks

Light green = US national memorials + monuments

Light orange markers = US national historical sites + recreation areas


List Of US National Parks By Name

In 2019, Mark received his US Green Card and officially immigrated to America. We have since made it our goal to visit every single national park as a way to celebrate this accomplishment.

We have traveled to 21 national parks together with a few of these parks many times in different seasons. But we plan to visit all of the national parks within the next few years.

Below we have listed all of the national parks in alphabetical order. You can click the orange links to read more about each individual park and we are currently writing guides about national parks in bold.

Acadia
American Samoa
Arches
Badlands
Big Bend
Biscayne
Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Bryce Canyon
Canyonlands
Capitol Reef
Carlsbad Caverns
Channel Islands
Congaree
Crater Lake
Cuyahoga Valley
Death Valley
Denali
Dry Tortugas
Everglades
Gates of the Arctic
Gateway Arch

Glacier
Glacier Bay
Grand Canyon
Grand Teton
Great Basin
Great Sand Dunes
Great Smoky Mountains
Guadalupe Mountains
Haleakala
Hawai’i Volcanoes
Hot Springs
Indiana Dunes
Isle Royale
Joshua Tree
Katmai
Kenai Fjords
Kings Canyon
Kobuk Valley
Lake Clark
Lassen Volcanic
Mammoth Cave

Mesa Verde
Mount Rainer
New River Gorge
North Cascades
Olympic
Petrified Forest
Pinnacles
Redwood
Rocky Mountain
Saguaro
Sequoia
Shenandoah
Theodore Roosevelt
Virgin Islands
Voyageurs
White Sands
Wind Cave
Wrangell – St. Elias
Yellowstone
Yosemite
Zion


USA Travel Guide Resources

  • US Road Trips – A road trip is often the best way to visit many national parks all in one go. Visit the section of our blog dedicated to helping you find the best road trip.
  • America the Beautiful Pass – For only $80 / year this pass will give you free entry to all the US national parks, national monuments and historical sites.
  • Travel eBooks – We have created Travel Guidebooks for popular national parks. Each guidebook represents hours of research, personal experiences, insider tips and recommendations.
  • National Park Quotes – A collection of quotes about America’s national parks to inspire your next trip.
Statue of Liberty National Monument in NYC
Statue of Liberty National Monument in New York City

US National Monuments

The United States has 129 national monuments across 32 states. These monuments typically include historic landmarks and prehistoric structures.

  • Devils Tower National Monument – The oldest national monument in the US situated between South Dakota’s Black Hills and Yellowstone National Park.

Or interested about Alcatraz Island which is now a historical landmark? Don’t miss our popular Alcatraz Island Day and Night Tour Review.

Man and woman posing for a photo in front of Mount Rushmore
Mark and Kristen at Mount Rushmore National Memorial

US National Memorials

National memorials in the United States are created to memorialize a historic person or event.

Mount Rushmore National Memorial – Found nestled with South Dakota’s Black Hills, this memorial depicts George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.

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US National Park Travel Guides