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 United States’ national parks on the list, 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, a 1/10 is questioning why it’s even a national park, and a good solid park sits around 7/10. Keep in mind that these are U.S. NATIONAL PARKS that we’re talking about here, so they’re already the best of the best — all of these are already of a higher caliber than you’ll find in your everyday state park — but it’s fun to compare them just the same.
I plan to update this listing as I visit more national parks, so go ahead and save this one for the road! Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be able to see them all.
Arches National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: The arches are amazing, great mix of hike difficulties
Cons: Extremely questionable signage and lack of trail markers
Arches is an awesome national park. It’s not too massive, it’s well-defined, 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.
Read my guide to Arches National Park and Moab here.
Bryce Canyon National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: Unique and amazing views of hoodoos, especially at the amphitheater
Cons: Not many trails, non-hoodoo areas are just average
I LOVED Bryce Canyon. It is not stuffed with things to do. It’s much less popular and therefore, also much less well-guided than the more famous ones like Zion or the Grand Canyon. But the canyon is stunning, and I just can’t get over how much I love hoodoos. If you’re interested, I wrote an article about Bryce Canyon: The Underdog National Park here!
Canyonlands National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Similar to the Grand Canyon in views but much less crowded
Cons: Not very accessible or easy to explore
Canyonlands is an underrated treasure. The views can 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: Diverse landscape with rewarding views if you know where to go
Cons: Can be confusing or underwhelming if you don’t know where to go
Death Valley 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. Also a park that you would be well-advised to do research on before arriving here. I have yet to see all the sights Death Valley has to offer — it’s such a mysterious and beautiful place.
Everglades National Park (FL)
Overall rating: 5/10
Pros: Mangrove forests and unique marshlands
Cons: Feels like only mangrove forests and marshlands
I visited the Everglades when I was very young, so don’t attack me if it’s much cooler than I remember. While it is an interesting landscape that you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else in the continental United States, the entire park just feels like one large river swamp (which isn’t entirely untrue either). However, seeing herons and crocodiles is definitely something to check off the bucket list if you haven’t been here before!
Grand Canyon National Park (AZ)
Overall rating: 10/10
Pros: Stunning views and trails. Everyone knows that!
Cons: Crowds are killer
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 U.S. today. Crowds can spoil the immersion, but you just need to know where to go. Check out my featured Perfect 3 Day Grand Canyon South Rim Itinerary here.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park (NC)
Overall rating: 3/10
Pros: Free to enter and beautiful in the fall
Cons: Just average in any other season
Perhaps it’s because I grew up close to the Great Smoky Mountains, but I found 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 peak season of the fall colors. Even then, most of the trails are rather closed off 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: Rains a lot, not as interesting when lava is not visible
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. When you are unable to hike directly to the lava and can only see the crater glowing from a distance, it’s a bit less interesting, but still one of the most unique national parks in the United States.
Joshua Tree National Park (CA)
Overall rating: 10/10
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 challenges the ideas of what should happen on Earth — glowing cacti, massive boulders, and purple and pink sunsets. I wrote a guide to the Ultimate Weekend in Joshua Tree National Park here, where you can learn more about what there is to do there and why I love it so much.
Redwood National Park (CA)
Overall rating: 8/10
Pros: Beautiful trees and the air actually smells amazing
Cons: Can feel a bit repetitive after some time
Okay, technically I only went to Muir Woods, so this review is a bit of a lie. But I loved Muir Woods, seeing the enormous soaring trees and breathing in the delicious sweet air. Of course, if you can only spend so long walking through large trees, you might tire quickly, but Redwood National Park also has coastal drives, beaches, and waterfalls as well if you’re looking for a change of pace.
White Sands National Park (NM)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Incredibly unique landscape, brings out inner child in all of us
Cons: Small and not very diverse landscape, iffy signage
This newly-minted national park is quite fun. 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. I wrote an Ultimate Guide to White Sands National Park here, which will give you everything you need to know about visiting — who, what, when, where, and how!
Yellowstone National Park (WY)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Geysers and pools are truly beautiful
Cons: Can feel like wandering a smelly minefield
Yellowstone 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 means that it smells like sulfur no matter where you go (and the ubiquity of bison poop doesn’t exactly contribute to the fragrance). Still, worth braving for the views.
Yosemite National Park (CA)
Overall rating: 7/10
Pros: Easily accessible, great for all ages
Cons: It’s just grey, green, and blue
The solid standard for U.S. national parks, to the point that it even has its own emoji. I think it’s a lovely park, but still a tad overrated (don’t kill me). The crystalline waters, soaring grey mountains, and endless carpet of trees are certainly beautiful in a timeless, classic fashion, and it’s picturesque in every season. I firmly believe everyone should go at least once, or you’ll regret it.
Zion National Park (UT)
Overall rating: 5/10
Pros: Very beautiful, with lots of cool and varied hikes
Cons: EXTREMELY limited parking and crowded
This might be an unpopular opinion, but I thought Zion was overrated. Beautiful hikes, like Angel’s Landing and the Narrows, but crowded and annoying to navigate. Not to mention it was horrendous trying to get into the park — the gates close when parking reaches capacity, so we found ourselves waiting in line at 2AM to get in when the park only opens at 6. To be fair, this was during Covid-19 when the shuttle that usually runs up and down the length of the park was inoperational, but fighting the crowds was a major hassle.
Still on the bucket list:
- Glacier National Park (MT)
- Mt. Rainier National Park (WA)
- Crater Lake National Park (OR)
- Haleakala National Park (HI)
- Denali National Park (AK)
That’s a wrap for my entirely unbiased and extremely serious rating of the United States National Parks! Honestly, though, these places are beautiful treasures and should be protected, cherished, and explored lovingly and respectfully. I can’t wait to head out once again into the great outdoors and explore even more of these natural wonders!
Again — bookmark this list and keep an eye out as it updates. More national park ratings headed your way soon!
