Taking a break in nature can mean a deep breath in veritable and remote isolation—or elbowing throngs of other looky-loos out of the way so you can see the sights. The National Parks Service recently released its 2022 visitor data for all 63 parks, and Thrillist notes that the Great Smoky Mountains National Park remains at the top by a mile with nearly 13 million visitors, but points out some lesser-known spots so you can gawk in peace. Without further ado, the parks with their number of 2022 visitors:
Most visited National Parks:
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park: 12,937,633
- Grand Canyon National Park: 4,732,101
- Zion National Park: 4,692,417
- Rocky Mountain National Park: 4,300,424
- Acadia National Park: 3,970,260
- Yosemite National Park: 3,667,550
- Yellowstone National Park: 3,290,242
- Joshua Tree National Park: 3,058,294
- Cuyahoga Valley National Park: 2,913,312
- Glacier National Park: 2,908,458
Least visited National Parks:
- National Park of American Samoa: 1,887 visits
- Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve: 9,457 visits
- Kobuk Valley National Park: 16,925
- Lake Clark National Park & Preserve: 18,187
- Isle Royale National Park: 25,454
- North Cascades National Park: 30,154
- Katmai National Park & Preserve: 33,908
- Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve: 65,236
- Dry Tortugas National Park: 78,488
- Great Basin National Park: 142,115