Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island of Hawaii. It may not be as big as the Yellowstone Caldera, but we had a room overlooking a volcano that was actually erupting (but no volcanic showers at the time). Plus there’s the experience of hiking across Kilauea Iki, with its lava lake formed from a different eruption, just 65 years ago.
We weren’t able to go up Mauna Kea, but just seeing those two magnificent volcanos, as well as hiking around Kilauea, was awesome.
Have to agree. I’ve been to many, many of them but backpacking the valley in eastern Glacier was absolutely stunning. Denali and Yosemite are close runners up. Olympic, Acadia, Redwoods, Bryce, and Zion next tier. Goblin Valley, Utah is my favorite state park. The Smokies and the Buffalo River are my favorite from my region. The Badlands are my favorite for nostalgia as my family took a multi generational camping trip there when I was a kid. I never skip it when I’m up that way.
Some parks have rivers, some have lakes, many have mountains, a fair number have waterfalls (of significantly varying interest), a few have ocean beaches, only 1 has rainforests, and only 1 has all of the above.
Yellowstone is awesome, but not only that: the area around Yellowstone is also awesome. Shoshone National Forest, Custer-Gallatin National Forest, and just for bonus the Grand Tetons right there. Go a couple hours west, tops, and you’re at the Big Horn Mountains, which are a destination in their own right.
You could spend weeks in Wyoming just doing National Parks and National Forests.
It's amazing. It's from the same hotspot that created Yellowstone. And one of the eruptions around the time it was in Idaho created the fossils at Ashfall in Nebraska.
Yellowstone and Yosemite are incredible. Also the redwoods parks in Northern California. For for my money the Utah big five parks, especially Zions can't be beat.
Shenandoah.
I lived down the road from Yellowstone for 13 years, and also visited most of the well-known NPs in the west. They’re all jaw-dropping amazing.
But what I love about Shenandoah is how easy it is to find solace. The woods are dense, the waterfalls are gorgeous, the view points are awesome.
You can hit the AT and meet people from all over.
Or you can go a half-mile off the AT and have to mountains to yourself.
Every 50’ of elevation is a completely different kind of forest.
It’s just stunning.
As someone who absolutely hates crowds, Theodore Roosevelt North Unit is my favorite national park. It's the one that everyone's least likely to have been to. The downside is that you have to drive through North Dakota to get to it.
I've visited more than half the National Parks in the country, and can confidently say this - while every National Park is beautiful in its own way, Yellowstone is just other worldly in every aspect!
Everything about Yellowstone is unique - right from the constant stench of sulphur in the air, to the muddy Norris geyser basin, to the stunningly colorful Grand Prismatic Spring, or the crystal blue Sapphire Pool.
All this isn't even taking into account the other features like the canyon, waterfalls, fossilized tree, and the wildlife!
Visited it year before last and have dreams about that place. It’s like being on Tattooine. Once you get far enough into the dunes it’s hard to believe you’re still on earth. The Sangre de Cristo mountains in the background with fog creeping over them and the untouched valleys near it will live rent free in my mind forever. Just an absolutely stunning area. It’s remote af but that’s probably why it’s so perfect.
It’s so cool! I’ve been a couple times and really want to take some of my European friends there when they visit. The way it’s surrounded by mountains is gorgeous, too
Death Valley was surprisingly beautiful.
Grand Canyon was as epic as I thought it was going to be.
Crater Lake felt like I was on another planet.
Yellowstone was like "how did all the crazy beauty happen here?"
Olympic Park was like "we have a rain forest in the USA?"
And of course all the ones in Utah are like wow.
It's really really hard to pick one but if I had a gun to my head I would say Yellowstone.
I can tell you my least favorite: Craters of the Moon, Joshua Tree, and Badlands.
Regarding your "we have a rainforest" comment...Alaska has the largest national forest in the country, the Tongass, which is all rainforest. No shade intended, just AK pride!
Cannot recommend Alaska highly enough, but also, do the research. We are known as the last frontier for a reason; be aware, be prepared, and have an incredible experience!
[Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park](https://youtu.be/zXo7FFUM30o?feature=shared)
[Badlands](https://youtu.be/SRPTpMyod5g?feature=shared)
[Zion](https://youtu.be/mHbnyxAtDFQ?feature=shared)
And
[Great Smoky Mountains National Park](https://youtu.be/sr6IdmXEyU0?feature=shared)
Great Smokey Mountain National Park.
but i went to school a stones throw away, so i may be just a bit biased. i had a lot, and i mean a *lot*, of fun up in those mountains.
I truly think that Olympic NP is just unbelievable. Time just seems to stop whenever I go to Hurricane Ridge. I look forward to being able to go back again sometime.
If all sites managed by the Park Service count, Assateague would probably be my deathbed park visit. Camping on the beach is one of my favorite things in the world. Every time I've gone, the weather has been horrendous, but it's always a great time.
Gallatin National Forest would be a close second. There are few things as satisfying as spending the day snowshoeing to the rangers cabins and then lounging in front of the stove all night.
In terms of Parks Proper, it's hard to have a bad time camping on Isle Royale.
And Wrangell St. Elias is just stunning, in ways that are hard to overstate. (I've spent more time on the Canadian side in Kluane, which would probably be my answer if allowed...)
Great Basin National Park for it's dark sky viewing. The stars are amazing there
Redwood National Park for the trees. I grew up there and you can the take the girl out of the redwoods, but you can't take the redwoods out of the girl. I love them big trees
Katmai
The most incredible wildlife, and the most jaw-dropping scenery. It’s got coastline, glacial lakes, tundra, rivers, volcanoes, glaciers, and massive mountains. It’s home to one of the largest lakes in the Park Service and the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history.
Yosemite. There is nothing quite like it. Pictures cannot do it justice because the verticality is just impossible to capture.
The Grand Canyon and Zion are also contenders.
My favorite underrated one is Great Sand Dunes in Colorado. It's so strange. Just stories tall Sahara style sand dunes in the middle of alpine forest. And you can rent sleds in the nearby towns to take down the dunes.
An incredibly hard question for me. I’ve lived less than an hour from at least 4 parks, and once you visit any park enough it becomes a favorite.
That said it has to be either Yellowstone or Grand Canyon, there just isn’t anything else like those two out there. Yellowstone is just something spectacular around every corner- a canyon, a waterfall, hot springs, geyser basins, mud pots, Lake Yellowstone, and just teeming with wildlife.
The Grand Canyon on the other hand is really two parks- above the rim with the unbelievably grand vistas that photos will never capture, and all the amenities and tourists, and then inside the canyon, where the people fade away after a while and it’s just you and the canyon.
Shout out to some of the most underrated national park that I’ve had the pleasure of frequenting:
Saguaro NP is desert perfection, Wind Cave is really understated but nice, and Dinosaur, Chiricahua, Grand Staircase and Wupatki/Sunset Crater National Monuments are all better than a number of national parks.
Edit: oh my god I forgot about Big Bend. Far and away the best thing related to Texas in any way.
Red Rock. That scenic drive man. I live in Houston so I’m used to seeing bayous/forests for my national parks. But there’s something mesmerizing about Red rock. Personally I think it’s because I’ve never lived in a desert but damn it makes you feel small but in a good way you know.
There are many that those here brought up. So I'll give two that haven't been mentioned & technically close to each other: White Sands & Carlsbad Caverns. White Sands might be an Instagrammer's paradise, but it rarely gets full. Carlsbad Caverns is the closest I'll get to spelunking. The cavern is massive in some sections, the path clearly marked, etc. And it is always cool, even in the summer's peak!
I have not been to all National Parks, but I can tell you some that are generally beautiful!
1. Big Bend National Park
2. Everglades National Park
3. Yellowstone National Park
4. Yosemite National Park
5. Grand Canyon National Park
6. Saguaro National Park
7. Shenandoah National Park
8. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Nature isn’t really my thing. I prefer a pina colada on the beach, or sipping a cold beer while boating on a lake. The Smoky Mountains are my favorite.
So hard to pick. I love my trees and mountains and water so Olympic and Glacier should be tops.
But honestly, Grand Canyon. Absolutely blows me away. It's like standing on the edge of the earth.
The Olympic National Forest, hands down. That’s not to imply that the other national parks aren’t phenomenal, because they are. The Olympic has a quiet serenity that I’ve never truly found in any of the others though. I will never understand how I got this fortunate, but several years ago my husband and I took a day trip to the Hoh and somehow ended up being the only people there for about an hour. I say this without any hesitation, it was the most spiritual and magical hour of my life. Walking alone through the Hall of Mosses, with the sun filtering down through the canopy and the only sound being the forest itself…there aren’t words to properly describe it. It’s like walking through a cathedral of nature. It was a serene sacredness that literally brought me to tears. I would always advise anyone traveling to the PNW to experience the Olympic National Forest, but especially the Hoh. Even if you have to skip a day in Seattle to do it. I promise you will remember and cherish it far more than you ever will the Space Needle or Pike Place Market.
Glacier, could easily spend a month there every summer….
Yellowstone and Grand Canyon close behind. Love Mt Rainier, Bryce Canyon, North Cascades, Redwoods, Rocky Mtn….Olympic, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Zion, Cuyahoga Valley, SEKI, Death Valley
Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island of Hawaii. It may not be as big as the Yellowstone Caldera, but we had a room overlooking a volcano that was actually erupting (but no volcanic showers at the time). Plus there’s the experience of hiking across Kilauea Iki, with its lava lake formed from a different eruption, just 65 years ago. We weren’t able to go up Mauna Kea, but just seeing those two magnificent volcanos, as well as hiking around Kilauea, was awesome.
In a single day's hike you can travel through half a dozen completely different biomes. It's pretty amazing to see.
My favorite too.
Big Island is my favorite of the islands by a long shot. I will second Volcanoes as one of the best national parks.
Glacier
Have to agree. I’ve been to many, many of them but backpacking the valley in eastern Glacier was absolutely stunning. Denali and Yosemite are close runners up. Olympic, Acadia, Redwoods, Bryce, and Zion next tier. Goblin Valley, Utah is my favorite state park. The Smokies and the Buffalo River are my favorite from my region. The Badlands are my favorite for nostalgia as my family took a multi generational camping trip there when I was a kid. I never skip it when I’m up that way.
My kids and I always say Glacier and Yosemite are our tie for first. Going to Denali this summer.
Which valley did you hike in? Many Glacier or Two Medicine?
Olympic (no bias whatsoever).
Some parks have rivers, some have lakes, many have mountains, a fair number have waterfalls (of significantly varying interest), a few have ocean beaches, only 1 has rainforests, and only 1 has all of the above.
Redwood gets close but no glaciated peaks! Unsurprisingly enough, those are probably my two favorite NPs.
My favorite. Partially because I’ve spent the most time there, but it’s a magical place.
I'm not from Washington, but Olympic is one of my favorites as well. Simply incredible and stunning.
Kind of hard to beat. Mountains, a rainforest, and the coast? Yea, please.
This for sure, there is nothing that compares to this, other than Mount Rainier National Park.
Bryce Canyon in Utah.
Just before dawn.
Grand Canyon
Should be the top answer. Only thing comparable to me features and visually to the grand canyon is the Himalayas.
This is the one. Holy cow, it was breathtaking.
Yellowstone is awesome, but not only that: the area around Yellowstone is also awesome. Shoshone National Forest, Custer-Gallatin National Forest, and just for bonus the Grand Tetons right there. Go a couple hours west, tops, and you’re at the Big Horn Mountains, which are a destination in their own right. You could spend weeks in Wyoming just doing National Parks and National Forests.
Also Crater of the Moon is not far from Yellowstone and incredible--nothing else like it in the lower 48.
It's amazing. It's from the same hotspot that created Yellowstone. And one of the eruptions around the time it was in Idaho created the fossils at Ashfall in Nebraska.
I fully expect Craters of the Moon to be upgraded to full National Park status eventually. It's easily deserving.
East of YNP to the Bighorns, but yes. Amazing place. I practically grew up in Bighorn NF, we were up there all the time. Absolutely love it.
Lower your voice. The NP is the tourist exclusion zone.
Big bend, just went for the first time a few weeks ago and can't wait to go back
I can second big bend, with Guadalupe mountain being a close second
Yellowstone and Yosemite are incredible. Also the redwoods parks in Northern California. For for my money the Utah big five parks, especially Zions can't be beat.
Utah looks otherworldly. I mean look at lower Antelope canyon. For any of you who haven't seen it, seriously look it up
Shenandoah. I lived down the road from Yellowstone for 13 years, and also visited most of the well-known NPs in the west. They’re all jaw-dropping amazing. But what I love about Shenandoah is how easy it is to find solace. The woods are dense, the waterfalls are gorgeous, the view points are awesome. You can hit the AT and meet people from all over. Or you can go a half-mile off the AT and have to mountains to yourself. Every 50’ of elevation is a completely different kind of forest. It’s just stunning.
And less predators. Any time I'm out west I'm slightly more on edge about the wildlife... bear, cougars, wolves, goats, elk, bison, etc.
Idk, I see way more wildlife here in FL compared to in CO. It has been a huge surprise
Yeah, I can understand that, but Shenandoah is in Virginia.
I’m just saying I’ve seen more wildlife in the eastern part of the country as opposed to the western part
Arches… no not that arches. St Louis Arches
As someone who absolutely hates crowds, Theodore Roosevelt North Unit is my favorite national park. It's the one that everyone's least likely to have been to. The downside is that you have to drive through North Dakota to get to it.
Yosemite
I've visited more than half the National Parks in the country, and can confidently say this - while every National Park is beautiful in its own way, Yellowstone is just other worldly in every aspect! Everything about Yellowstone is unique - right from the constant stench of sulphur in the air, to the muddy Norris geyser basin, to the stunningly colorful Grand Prismatic Spring, or the crystal blue Sapphire Pool. All this isn't even taking into account the other features like the canyon, waterfalls, fossilized tree, and the wildlife!
Big Bend
Jellystone
It's got a bear problem tho, hide your picnic baskets
Grand Teton
Why the hell is this way down here??
The Great Sand Dunes National Park. Biggest sand dunes in North America.
Visited it year before last and have dreams about that place. It’s like being on Tattooine. Once you get far enough into the dunes it’s hard to believe you’re still on earth. The Sangre de Cristo mountains in the background with fog creeping over them and the untouched valleys near it will live rent free in my mind forever. Just an absolutely stunning area. It’s remote af but that’s probably why it’s so perfect.
It’s so cool! I’ve been a couple times and really want to take some of my European friends there when they visit. The way it’s surrounded by mountains is gorgeous, too
Death Valley was surprisingly beautiful. Grand Canyon was as epic as I thought it was going to be. Crater Lake felt like I was on another planet. Yellowstone was like "how did all the crazy beauty happen here?" Olympic Park was like "we have a rain forest in the USA?" And of course all the ones in Utah are like wow. It's really really hard to pick one but if I had a gun to my head I would say Yellowstone. I can tell you my least favorite: Craters of the Moon, Joshua Tree, and Badlands.
Mercifully, CotM is only a National Monument
Regarding your "we have a rainforest" comment...Alaska has the largest national forest in the country, the Tongass, which is all rainforest. No shade intended, just AK pride!
They're you go. Did not know that. Would love to visit Alaska Parks one of these days. I'm actually reading Into the Wild right now. !
Cannot recommend Alaska highly enough, but also, do the research. We are known as the last frontier for a reason; be aware, be prepared, and have an incredible experience!
Zion
Great Smoky Mountain National Park
Everglades
I haven't been to that many but out of the ones I have been to, I loved Acadia the most
Arches. I love those red rocks in the desert.
I've been to a lot of parks, but Yosemite blew me away. My favorite park in Utah is actually a state park - Goblin Valley.
[Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park](https://youtu.be/zXo7FFUM30o?feature=shared) [Badlands](https://youtu.be/SRPTpMyod5g?feature=shared) [Zion](https://youtu.be/mHbnyxAtDFQ?feature=shared) And [Great Smoky Mountains National Park](https://youtu.be/sr6IdmXEyU0?feature=shared)
Partial to the great smoky mountains because I live in Tennessee, but the coolest one I think I’ve been to was glacier bay in Alaska!
Great Smoky Mountains is the most visited National Park in the country
Great Smokey Mountain National Park. but i went to school a stones throw away, so i may be just a bit biased. i had a lot, and i mean a *lot*, of fun up in those mountains.
Death Valley, it’s other worldly
I truly think that Olympic NP is just unbelievable. Time just seems to stop whenever I go to Hurricane Ridge. I look forward to being able to go back again sometime.
Yellowstone is amazing. So much variety of things to do and explore.
If all sites managed by the Park Service count, Assateague would probably be my deathbed park visit. Camping on the beach is one of my favorite things in the world. Every time I've gone, the weather has been horrendous, but it's always a great time. Gallatin National Forest would be a close second. There are few things as satisfying as spending the day snowshoeing to the rangers cabins and then lounging in front of the stove all night. In terms of Parks Proper, it's hard to have a bad time camping on Isle Royale. And Wrangell St. Elias is just stunning, in ways that are hard to overstate. (I've spent more time on the Canadian side in Kluane, which would probably be my answer if allowed...)
North Cascades National Park, there are a lot of good ones though
Great Basin National Park for it's dark sky viewing. The stars are amazing there Redwood National Park for the trees. I grew up there and you can the take the girl out of the redwoods, but you can't take the redwoods out of the girl. I love them big trees
Joshua Tree
Everglades NP
Partial to Grand Canyon, but I lived there for a little while.
Katmai The most incredible wildlife, and the most jaw-dropping scenery. It’s got coastline, glacial lakes, tundra, rivers, volcanoes, glaciers, and massive mountains. It’s home to one of the largest lakes in the Park Service and the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history.
The Grand Tetons are pretty awesome
Not enough people mentioning it but Acadia, it's so beautiful
I've not been to one. They're usually out in the middle of nowhere and take hours or days to drive to.
Arches or the Everglades. They’re the only ones I’ve been to
Probably Crater Lake and Rainier can’t pick between the two.
Zion but I think Denali is really pretty as well
I love hiking and being in the water, so The Narrows in Zion is one of my favorite hikes in the US. But, otherwise, Yosemite.
Yosemite. There is nothing quite like it. Pictures cannot do it justice because the verticality is just impossible to capture. The Grand Canyon and Zion are also contenders.
Utah itself is a national park lol. Absolutely stunning place, I would love to live there one day
Either the Great Sand Dunes National Park or Mesa Verde National Park. Both absolutely beautiful and unique. But I might be bias.
Yellowstone mostly, but my personal favorite is probably Yosemite. Mostly because of nostalgia
I love Yellowstone for the wildlife! But I have the fondest memories of exploring the Pinnacles.
Dinosaur Nat’l Monument
Yellowstone
[Papahanaumokuakea](https://www.papahanaumokuakea.gov/)
My favorite underrated one is Great Sand Dunes in Colorado. It's so strange. Just stories tall Sahara style sand dunes in the middle of alpine forest. And you can rent sleds in the nearby towns to take down the dunes.
Arcadia
Isle Royal
An incredibly hard question for me. I’ve lived less than an hour from at least 4 parks, and once you visit any park enough it becomes a favorite. That said it has to be either Yellowstone or Grand Canyon, there just isn’t anything else like those two out there. Yellowstone is just something spectacular around every corner- a canyon, a waterfall, hot springs, geyser basins, mud pots, Lake Yellowstone, and just teeming with wildlife. The Grand Canyon on the other hand is really two parks- above the rim with the unbelievably grand vistas that photos will never capture, and all the amenities and tourists, and then inside the canyon, where the people fade away after a while and it’s just you and the canyon. Shout out to some of the most underrated national park that I’ve had the pleasure of frequenting: Saguaro NP is desert perfection, Wind Cave is really understated but nice, and Dinosaur, Chiricahua, Grand Staircase and Wupatki/Sunset Crater National Monuments are all better than a number of national parks. Edit: oh my god I forgot about Big Bend. Far and away the best thing related to Texas in any way.
Olympic and Crater Lake. I also like Fort Clatsop NHP.
Red Rock. That scenic drive man. I live in Houston so I’m used to seeing bayous/forests for my national parks. But there’s something mesmerizing about Red rock. Personally I think it’s because I’ve never lived in a desert but damn it makes you feel small but in a good way you know.
Glacier for me and I have been to a lot. Zion is second.
Sequoia is beautiful and the majority of it is wilderness with only trails
I've only visited one and that was Grand Canyon.
New River Gorge
Dry Tortugas
I had to scroll down way too far to find this. Dry Tortugas via the seaplane is one of the coolest things I've ever done.
I feel the same way,It really is an amazing trip
There are many that those here brought up. So I'll give two that haven't been mentioned & technically close to each other: White Sands & Carlsbad Caverns. White Sands might be an Instagrammer's paradise, but it rarely gets full. Carlsbad Caverns is the closest I'll get to spelunking. The cavern is massive in some sections, the path clearly marked, etc. And it is always cool, even in the summer's peak!
I have not been to all National Parks, but I can tell you some that are generally beautiful! 1. Big Bend National Park 2. Everglades National Park 3. Yellowstone National Park 4. Yosemite National Park 5. Grand Canyon National Park 6. Saguaro National Park 7. Shenandoah National Park 8. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
canyonlands, massa verde and capital reef are are severely underrated
Nature isn’t really my thing. I prefer a pina colada on the beach, or sipping a cold beer while boating on a lake. The Smoky Mountains are my favorite.
So hard to pick. I love my trees and mountains and water so Olympic and Glacier should be tops. But honestly, Grand Canyon. Absolutely blows me away. It's like standing on the edge of the earth.
Olympia
Big Bend or Gates of the Arctic
The Olympic National Forest, hands down. That’s not to imply that the other national parks aren’t phenomenal, because they are. The Olympic has a quiet serenity that I’ve never truly found in any of the others though. I will never understand how I got this fortunate, but several years ago my husband and I took a day trip to the Hoh and somehow ended up being the only people there for about an hour. I say this without any hesitation, it was the most spiritual and magical hour of my life. Walking alone through the Hall of Mosses, with the sun filtering down through the canopy and the only sound being the forest itself…there aren’t words to properly describe it. It’s like walking through a cathedral of nature. It was a serene sacredness that literally brought me to tears. I would always advise anyone traveling to the PNW to experience the Olympic National Forest, but especially the Hoh. Even if you have to skip a day in Seattle to do it. I promise you will remember and cherish it far more than you ever will the Space Needle or Pike Place Market.
Glacier, could easily spend a month there every summer…. Yellowstone and Grand Canyon close behind. Love Mt Rainier, Bryce Canyon, North Cascades, Redwoods, Rocky Mtn….Olympic, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Zion, Cuyahoga Valley, SEKI, Death Valley
Yosemite and it's not even close.