The National Park Service (NPS) oversees more than 400 sites, which include memorials, battlefields, recreation areas and of course, the parks themselves. Last year, those sites had about 325.5-million recreation visits, according to the NPS’s annual visitation report that just came out.
- That’s 13-million more visits (or 4%) more than in 2022, but the peak year for recreation visits is still 2016 with 330.97-million.
- Of course, some sites are much more popular than others, including the most visited National Park Service in 2023, the Blue Ridge Parkway.
- It’s a roadway that winds through 29 counties in North Carolina and Virginia, linking Shenandoah National Park and Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
- The only new entry on the most-visited NPS sites in 2023 is Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah.
- The national parks get a lot of the attention, but they only account for 28% of total visitors to all National Park Service sites in 2023.
The Top 10 Most Visited National Park Service Sites in 2023
- Blue Ridge Parkway (16.75 million visits)
- Golden Gate National Recreation Area (14.95 million
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (13.29 million)
- Gateway National Recreation Area (8.70 million)
- Gulf Islands National Seashore (8.27 million)
- Lincoln Memorial (8.09 million)
- George Washington Memorial Parkway (7.39 million)
- Natchez Trace Parkway (6.78 million)
- Lake Mead National Recreation Area (5.79 million)
- Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (5.20 million)
The Top 10 Most Visited National Parks in 2023
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (13.29 million)
- Grand Canyon National Park (4.73 million)
- Zion National Park (4.62 million)
- Yellowstone National Park (4.50 million)
- Rocky Mountain National Park (4.11 million)
- Yosemite National Park (3.89 million)
- Acadia National Park (3.87 million)
- Grand Teton National Park (3.41 million)
- Joshua Tree National Park (3.27 million)
- Olympic National Park (2.94 million)
Source: CNN