If you’re planning a trip to one of the vast and breathtaking U.S. National Parks, you probably want to know: what are the best national parks in the USA?
It’s no secret that I am a lover of the great outdoors, and fortunately the United States is full of incredible and diverse landscapes to tackle and explore. There are currently 63 national parks officially listed by the National Park Service, along with numerous other national monuments, recreation areas, national preserves, historic sights, and more.
While I certainly have not checked off all or even most of the entries on the list of U.S. National Parks, I have been to enough to feel that some of them are decidedly better than others. Cue my sleep-deprived idea to rate all the U.S. National Parks that I have been to. I settled on a numeric system out of ten with pros and cons, where a 10/10 is everything I could’ve dreamed of and more, and a 1/10 should not even be a national park (in my humble and completely subjective opinion).
I plan to update this listing as I visit more national parks, so go ahead and bookmark this article for the road! Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be able to see them all.
What Makes a U.S. National Park a National Park?
A U.S. National Park is a protected area designated by the federal government to preserve its natural beauty, unique geological features, diverse ecosystems, and historical significance for future generations.
There are plenty of gorgeous natural landscapes in the United States that don’t qualify as U.S. National Parks, and national park status alone doesn’t necessarily mean it’s superior to other natural areas. However, it’s essentially guaranteed that a U.S. National Park features stunning landscapes, such as mountains, forests, deserts, and coastlines. They are also important spaces for wildlife conservation, education, and recreation.
What Are the Best National Parks in the USA?
With over 60 entries, the list of U.S. National Parks encompasses some of the best and most otherworldly landscapes in the United States. It’s hard to say what are the best national parks in the USA—this is a totally subjective rating of mine, and to pursue otherwise would be folly!
That being said, here is my current ranking of the U.S. National Parks. You can find a full description of my reasoning below!
- Bryce Canyon National Park (9/10)
- Grand Canyon National Park (9/10)
- Joshua Tree National Park (9/10)
- Yosemite National Park (8/10)
- Death Valley National Park (8/10)
- Mt. Rainier National Park (8/10)
- Arches National Park (8/10)
- North Cascades National Park (7/10)
- Yellowstone National Park (7/10)
- White Sands National Park (7/10)
- Canyonlands National Park (7/10)
- Zion National Park (6/10)
- Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park (5/10)
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (4/10)
Planning Your U.S. National Park Trip
Because the United States is such a vast country, the U.S. National Parks feature all kinds of landscapes, climates, and geography—from sandy red deserts to lush rainforests to craggy mountains. This means that packing for one national park may look completely different from another. Definitely tailor your packing to the specific park that you’re going to!
However, there are a few consistent things to note across all U.S. National Park trips.
- Car Rental: You will need a car to properly explore any U.S. National Parks. Public transportation is almost nonexistent to, from, or within parks. The distance to cover is also too great for the average biker or pedestrian. If you’re not able to drive your own car to the U.S. National Park you want to visit, I recommend renting a car.
- America the Beautiful National Park Pass: Most U.S. National Parks enforce an entry fee (usually around $30/vehicle per week). If you’re planning on visiting more than 2 national parks in a year, get the American the Beautiful National Park Pass! It’s valid for one year, costs $80, and gives you unlimited entry to any U.S. National Parks and federal lands (National Monuments, National Forests, and such). You can get one at the park entrance.
Because the U.S. National Park system is managed by the National Park Service, all information regarding national parks can be found on the NPS websites. I highly recommend checking your specific park page before you go, because it lists all kinds of important information—including park closures, extenuating weather circumstances, trail conditions, and permits.
⚠️ Because of increasing popularity, many U.S. National Parks have started enacting timed entry permits for crowd control. Please check your desired National Park’s website to see if there is a permit requirement during your visit!
My Cheeky U.S. National Park Ratings
Arches National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: The arches are beautiful, great mix of hike difficulties, super accessible from Moab
Cons: Some questionable signage, lots of crowds
⚠️ Arches National Park often has a timed entry permit or reservation requirement. Check the NPS website here.
Arches National Park is a surreal landscape that also serves as a playground for nature explorers. The eponymous arches are found all over the park and are just gorgeous!
The park is not too massive, it’s got a good mix of easy and hard trails, and seeing the arches and learning how they are formed is just fun. However, there was definitely some confused scrambling over unmarked rock fins to be had during our visit, and the number of hikers who consulted us for directions indicated that getting lost is somewhat of a park necessity.
Bryce Canyon National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 9/10
Pros: Otherworldly landscape and amazing views of hoodoos, especially at the amphitheater
Cons: Not many trails, non-hoodoo areas are just average
With its breathtaking landscapes of orange and pink hoodoos, towering spires, and vast amphitheaters, Bryce Canyon is a true marvel that seems to have sprung from the pages of a fairytale. This park is often overlooked by its much more popular sister, Zion National Park, but has cemented itself in my opinion as the superior of the two! Bryce Canyon has my heart as one of the best national parks in the USA.
🏜️ Read my Bryce Canyon National Park Guide here.
Canyonlands National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Grand Canyon-worthy views but without the crowds
Cons: Not very accessible or easy to explore
Canyonlands National Park is an underrated treasure. The views can easily rival those at the Grand Canyon and the crowds are pretty much nonexistent. However, not only is the park gargantuan, most of the districts (excluding Islands in the Sky) are quite difficult to explore without adequate preparation or vehicles. Definitely come prepared if you are expecting to make the most of your time here.
Death Valley National Park (NV)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: Extremely diverse landscape with rewarding views
Cons: Can be confusing or underwhelming if you don’t know where to go
Death Valley National Park has a ton of potential — Badwater Basin, Artist’s Palette, the shocking springtime blooms — but it’s also easy to miss because so much of the park looks simply like barren desert. This is certainly a park that you would be well-advised to research properly before arriving here. I have yet to see all the sights Death Valley has to offer — it’s such a mysterious and beautiful place.
Grand Canyon National Park (AZ)
Overall rating: 9/10
Pros: Stunning views and trails. Everyone knows that!
Cons: Crowds are killer, temperatures are brutal
The Grand Canyon might be the most famous out of all the U.S. National Parks — but for good reason! Hiking through and spending time here is truly an otherworldly experience that I can’t capture in words. The trails are also challenging but fantastically rewarding, and are still some of my favorite trails in the entire country today.
Crowds can spoil the immersion, but you just need to know where to go—or hike down far enough that the flocks simply melt away. However, depending on what time of year you go, you might be the one melting instead…or freezing if it’s winter and night!
Great Smoky Mountains National Park (NC)
Overall rating: 4/10
Pros: Free to enter and stunningly beautiful in the fall
Cons: Just average in any other season
Not to snub Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but this has never been one of my favorite U.S. National Parks. Perhaps it’s because I grew up close to the Great Smoky Mountains, but I often find the park fairly average. There’s lots of greenery and rolling hills covered in trees, but the trails are not particularly rewarding unless you catch the peak season of the fall colors. Even then, most of the trails are rather closed off by the foliage and don’t have views until the very end.
Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park (HI)
Overall rating: 5/10
Pros: Only national park with active volcanoes, super unique
Cons: Not as interesting when lava is not visible
The geology and landscapes of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park are incredibly interesting and unique. Featuring lush tropical rainforests, lava tubes, and steam vent fields, the park is fascinating to see. If the weather and volcanoes cooperate, this can definitely be one of the best national parks in the USA.
I had the opportunity to visit Volcanoes National Park when the Kilauea Volcano was erupting. Unfortunately, because of the poisonous gases, there was not any visible lava from any publicly accessible points in the park. Better luck next time!
Joshua Tree National Park (CA)
Overall rating: 9/10
Pros: Incredible sunsets, gorgeous landscape, great sky for stargazing
Cons: Looks a bit washed-out during the day
One of my favorite national parks of all time because of its eerie and otherworldly geography. Joshua Tree National Park challenges the ideas of what should occur on Earth — glowing cacti, massive boulders, and purple and pink sunsets. I’ve been several times, and it’s still one of my personal top national parks in the U.S.! However, the sun can be extremely bright overhead, washing out the landscapes during the day.
Mt. Rainier National Park (WA)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: Mt. Rainier is gorgeous, beautiful mountain ranges and lakes. Wildflowers in the summer!
Cons: Difficult to get around, WAY too many bugs
⚠️ Mt. Rainier National Park often has a timed entry permit or reservation requirement. Check the NPS website here.
Mt. Rainier National Park is one of the most famous national parks in Washington State. Even from Seattle, you can see the eponymous mountain rising in the background! The mountain itself is supremely beautiful and the hikes and views are lovely, if not occasionally repetitive. Come in the summer (late July-August) to enjoy sprawling fields of wildflowers.
However, because of the park’s size and lack of interconnectedness, it can be very difficult to get from one region of the park to another—even up to 2 hours! Also, summertime comes with an intense number of bugs constantly buzzing in clouds around your face and biting you through your clothes. It’s a trade-off, I guess.
🗻 Read my Mt. Rainier National Park Hiking Guide here.
North Cascades National Park (WA)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Dramatic landscapes and beautiful summer or fall scenery.
Cons: Very remote with few easy trails. The bugs will eat you alive in summer
North Cascades National Park is one of the least-visited parks in the United States. I find that baffling because all of the national parks in Washington state are around the same driving distance from the major hub of Seattle! Sometimes called the Alps of the Americas, North Cascades is full of dramatic mountain peaks and valleys. It’s especially gorgeous in the summer and fall when you can see wildflowers or golden larches, respectively!
I will say that the hikes in North Cascades are significantly longer than most of the popular national parks, so you need plenty of time to hike a lot of the “good” trails. The nearest town, Winthrop, is still around a 40 minute drive from the nearest trailhead. Like other subalpine regions, the bugs here are also downright horrific in the summer. I hear it’s much better in the fall, however.
White Sands National Park (NM)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Incredibly unique landscape, brings out the inner child in all of us
Cons: Small and not very diverse landscape, iffy signage
White Sands National Park is definitely one of the most striking and unique U.S. National Parks. The vast expanse of gleaming white gypsum sand dunes creates a mesmerizing and otherworldly landscape that stretches as far as the eye can see.
The best part of White Sands is that off-roading is not just acceptable, but entirely expected — the best experiences come from straying off, climbing a few pillowy dunes, playing in the sand, and just generally having a great time. You don’t even really need a trail, which is probably for the best because the signage here is unreliable at best (and nonexistent at worst). Just don’t accidentally wander into the government missile testing zone!
🤍 Read my White Sands National Park Guide here.
Yellowstone National Park (WY)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Geysers and pools are truly beautiful
Cons: Can feel like wandering a smelly minefield
Yellowstone National Park is one of those parks that I both love and hate. Seeing the beautiful geysers there and the incredible colors that I didn’t know could exist in water is like a work of scientific artistry.
Of course, geysers also mean that it smells like sulfur no matter where you go (and the ubiquity of bison poop doesn’t exactly contribute to the fragrance). Still, it’s more than worth braving for the stunning views, colors, and landscapes.
Yosemite National Park (CA)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: Easily accessible, great for all ages
Cons: Not a ton of landscape diversity (green, grey, and blue)
⚠️ Yosemite National Park often has a timed entry permit or reservation requirement. Check the NPS website here.
Oh, Yosemite. This incredibly popular national park sees 3 to 5 million visitors every year and is located just a short drive away from the massive hub of San Francisco and the Bay Area. There’s a reason Yosemite has always been considered one of the top national parks in the U.S. If you’re looking for world-class granite cliffs, enormous valleys, glassy rivers, and cascading waterfalls, this is the park for you.
🏞️ Read my Yosemite National Park Guide here.
Zion National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 6/10
Pros: Beautiful mix of green and orange landscapes with varied hikes
Cons: Overwhelming crowds, limited parking
The towering and famous Zion National Park is gorgeous, yes, but for me? Maybe just slightly overrated. Beautiful hikes, like Angel’s Landing and the Narrows, but crowded and annoying to navigate. There’s extremely limited parking in the park itself, but the park shuttle system makes navigating the narrow strip of drivable land easier.
Everyone I know says Zion National Park is one of their favorite U.S. National Parks, so I’ve resolved to give it another try!
