National Park travel tips

With its immense buttress roots and leathery green leaves, the northern rātā tree isn’t to be underestimated. Carried on the wind, its seeds land in the canopies of neighbouring trees and begin to germinate. Then, over hundreds of years, each individual seedling’s spidery roots wrap around its host, eventually entombing it and consuming the rotting trunk. 

Are you, like 300 million Americans and international visitors, thinking about visiting the US National Parks this year? Do you like to plan your summer vacation several months ahead?

When hearing the term national park, many think of places like Yosemite, Great Smoky Mountains, Acadia, and Grand Canyon.

America's national parks continue to draw big crowds. In fact, attendance has bounced back almost to pre-pandemic levels, with nearly 312 million visitors in 2022, according to the National Park Service. Visiting one of the U.S. park sites remains an incredibly popular travel choice for many people.

Sporting a descriptive and undeniably epic name, Death Valley National Park is a unique location with an absolutely stunning landscape. Not just flat plains, but towering mountains, remarkable rock formations, and more. While you can visit in the summer if you’ve never experienced ultra-hot temperatures before, it’s far more beautiful and hospitable in the winter, early spring, and late autumn.

Of Arizona’s three national parks, Petrified Forest is the least visited. That’s a shame, since it is absolutely stunning. Though named after the fields of petrified wood, that’s only one reason to visit. Vibrant multi-layered and colorful sedimentary rocks look like few other places on earth.

For the past few months I’ve been converting a 2014 Ford Transit Connect into a campervan. I installed solar panels, batteries, built a bed, and more. Now it was time for a test run. I had intended to take more time with the build, but I had an important work-related trip coming up that required the van to be in at least livable condition.

If there’s one park in the US National Park system that displays how beautiful the western states can be, it’s Zion National Park. And it’s well-loved: the national park is the most visited in Utah and one of the most popular in the entire park system.

New River Gorge National Park and Preserve has flown under the radar since earning its designation at the end of 2020. Carved by the New River and framed by sheer sandstone canyons, rafting and climbing have propelled tourism in this part of West Virginia. Hiking, biking, fishing, and golfing are also on the table while leashed dogs are permitted on the trails. A longer trip can be supplemented by exploring the neighboring Hawks Nest and Babcock state parks.

Yosemite National Park is bringing back its reservation system. During peak times next year, travelers won’t be able to enter the park without a reservation, the National Park Service said Wednesday.

America’s national parks are some of the most beautiful spots in the entire country, and next year travelers will be able to visit them all for free on six different days. 

Utah’s Zion National Park is raising visitor rates next year, increasing by as much as 75 percent. 

Know someone who feels perpetually drawn to America’s most beautiful spaces? Treat them to a National Park-themed gift for the holidays. From hand-drawn maps to outdoor apparel, these gifts will keep National Park enthusiasts connected to the most cherished landscapes in the country. Some of these treasures might even put new parks on their radar, inspiring their next adventure in the great outdoors.

I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t this. Pictures barely do it justice. I was passing through West Texas, having already visited the nearby White Sands, Carlsbad Caverns, and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks, and figured this would be the easiest time to visit Big Bend National Park. I’d heard from a fellow traveler that it was his favorite park, and he’d been to all of them. With that in mind, I purposely limited how much I’d see of the park before I arrived. I wanted to be surprised, and boy was I.

In southern New Mexico there are some of the most picturesque sand dunes in the world. Perfectly white sand rolling off into the distance, with sharp mountain peaks obscuring the horizon. White Sands National Park is the largest gypsum dunefield on Earth, and the park itself is surrounded by Holloman Air Force Base and the White Sands Missile Range.

Nestled deep in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Yosemite National Park is one of the most amazing places in California. There are legendary hikes, jaw-dropping scenic vistas, and wildlife galore. It is also one of the most visited national parks, with nearly 3.7 million visitors each year. That’s a lot, but even more so when you consider it’s barely visited at all in the winter. Almost all those people are also funneled into a relatively narrow valley, it can get quite crowded.

The captivating Niah National Park in Sarawak is packed with natural beauty and profound historical significance. Adventurous travellers can immerse themselves in a full day of exploration through this unique and varied landscape.

The first time I visited Great Basin National Park, I was struck by its isolation and the incredible beauty of the landscape.

Visiting Acadia National Park, located on Mount Desert Island off the coast of Maine, has been at the top of my dream destination list for years. It's also one of the busiest national parks in the country, with nearly 4 million visitors last year.

Death Valley National Park partially reopened over the weekend, welcoming visitors back to the park after its longest-ever closure.

The Grand Canyon wants travelers to stop leaving so-called “love locks” on fencing in the park, warning the trend endangers animals.