12 Beautiful National Parks in the United States .EndlessTravelDestinations

Planning a road trip in the US? Check out this list of the most beautiful and best national parks in the United States.

The United States is a huge country with world-renowned cities, exciting attractions, and countless of impressive national parks. Established in the United States back in 1872, Yellowstone is the oldest national park in the world. Since then, many unique nature sites have been added to the list. Today, the United States has 60 national parks.

In the United States National Parks, you can find everything from deep gorges in the Grand Canyon, swamps in the Everglades, the world’s tallest trees in California, arid deserts in the Death Valley, and majestic mountains in the Rocky Mountains. In the national parks of the United States, there’s literally something for everyone.

Do you know which national parks in the US you should visit? Otherwise, you can find out in this article about some of the most beautiful national parks in the United States.

Tips for National Parks in the United States: If you’re planning to visit several national parks in the United States, it’s often an advantage to purchase an America the Beautiful Annual Pass for $ 80. The card gives free access for all the passengers in the car to visit all national parks in the United States indefinitely for 1 year. Entrance fees to the national parks are usually between $ 15- $ 35 per car. So, if you’re planning to visit several of the major national parks in the United States, there’s a lot of money to be saved by buying this card.

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12 beautiful national parks in the USA:

Grand Canyon National Park

Located in Arizona, the Grand Canyon National Park is one of the largest and most natural wonders of the world. Therefore, it’s an absolute must-see on your road trip in the United States.

The world-famous gorge has been formed by the Colorado River for millions of years. The river has dug itself deep into the rocky ground at a depth of 1.6 kilometers. With a length of 446 kilometers and a width of 26 kilometers, the gorge at the Grand Canyon is huge.

The Grand Canyon is one of the few places on earth where pictures simply cannot prove how huge and impressive it really is. It’s one of those places you just must see for yourself! The grandeur of the Grand Canyon is best experienced on a hike along Hermits Rest Route. The route winds along the cliff edge and offers breathtaking views along the way.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park is located in Colorado and is part of the Rocky Mountains. Here you’ll find some of the highest mountains in the United States, more than 60 of which rise over 3,500 meters into the sky. The highest of the mountains in the park is Longs Peak which is 4,345 meters high.

Take a drive on Trail Ridge Road (Highway 34), the highest paved road in the United States. It stretches for 78 kilometers and runs across the park. Here you’ll drive over the tree boundaries and through deep valleys and large forests while passing snow-capped mountains. The wildlife in the national park is also amazing with residents such as moose, red deer, wood hedgehogs, bears, bighorn sheep, and otters.

Although it’s great to drive in the great mountains of the Rocky Mountains, don’t deceive yourself for a hike. Many of the best hiking trails in the park start at Bear Lake. This is also where the popular hike to Emerald Lake starts.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon National Park is located in Utah and is characterized by a red desert landscape with impressive rock formations. Here you can experience the world’s largest collection of hoodoos which is the name of the park’s many pillars of sandstone. The pillars are formed by wind and weather for millions of years.

Bryce Canyon National Park is located at an altitude of approximately 2,500 kilometers. The views of the surrounding areas are breathtaking from here.

The road that leads through the park is 29 kilometers long and passes impressive viewpoints and spectacular rock formations. The most popular area is at the Bryce Amphitheater which offers beautiful views beyond thousands of hoodoos facing the sky. Don’t forget to take a walk down the gorge where you really get a feel for how big the hoodoos really are.

Yosemite National Park

Located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, Yosemite National Park is one of the most popular national parks in the United States. In fact, the picturesque national park is one of the most beautiful natural areas in the world and is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The many titles say not so little about the scenic park, especially known for its impressive waterfalls. In addition to great waterfalls, Yosemite National Park also offers vast forests, deep valleys, beautiful meadows, flowing rivers, giant sequoia trees, huge cliffs, and great hiking trails.

The most popular area in the park is the 12-kilometer-long Yosemite Valley. The beautiful valley is surrounded by several of the park’s most popular landmarks, including the Bridevail Falls and the Half Dome and El Capitan granite cliffs.

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park in the northwestern United States stretches across the states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. In 1872, Yellowstone was named a national park, making it the oldest national park in the entire world.

The volcanic activity in the park attracts thousands of visitors every single year. Beneath the earth’s surface, one of the largest and most dangerous supervolcanoes in the world is roaming, creating hundreds of active geysers, hot springs, and bubbling mud puddles. The most popular geyser in Yellowstone is Old Faithful which erupts about every 90 minutes and sprays boiling water up to a height of about 45 meters.

In Yellowstone National Park, you’ll find unique scenery with great mountains, beautiful lakes, powerful waterfalls, and deep forests. However, one of the best things about visiting the park is the impressive wildlife, especially in the Lamar Valley. Here there are great chances of spotting bison, bears, wolves, moose, deer, and other animals.

Everglades National Park

Everglades National Park in South Florida consists primarily of a large swamp area. It may not seem impressive at first glance as there aren’t any colossal cliffs, giant trees, and impressive vantage points. Instead, you can experience one of the most important ecosystems in the United States with a wide variety of flora, fauna, and wildlife.

The large swamp area is full of mangrove trees and cypress trees in the shallow water. The swamp’s main inhabitants are thousands of wild alligators lurking just below the surface of the water. In addition, there are also wild crocodiles, otters, manatees, snakes, lizards, birds, and the rare Florida panther.

After a visit to Everglades National Park, it’s a must to go on a boat trip with an airboat. Here you’ll be sailed around the wetlands and get very close to Florida’s wildlife. The boats can sail extremely fast, and it can be a little nerve-wracking at times. It’s definitely the perfect thing to do in the US for any adrenaline junkie.

Death Valley National Park

Death Valley National Park is a desolate desert landscape on the border of Nevada and California. The park is known for being one of the most extreme and warmest places on earth.

The average temperature is 47 degrees during the summer months, but it’s certainly not unusual for the temperature to creep up even higher. The heat record in Death Valley is 56.7 degrees in the shade, which is the highest temperature ever measured on Earth! It is unbearably hot in the summer months and it actually feels like a blow dryer is blowing you right in the head.

While it can be terribly hot in Death Valley, it’s also a very fun thing to do in the United States. Driving around the desolate desert landscape with desert plants, dunes, salt flats, mountains, and rock formations in extreme heat.

When visiting Death Valley, don’t forget to make your way past Badwater Basin. This area is located 86 meters below sea level and is thus the lowest point in the western hemisphere.

Be aware that you should only visit Death Valley if there’s air conditioning in your car and you bring tons of water. Be sure to bring a cooler bag as the water will literally get hot a few minutes after you step out of the car. Seriously!

Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is located in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California and is home to the huge sequoia trees that are among the largest trees in the world. They aren’t nearly as tall as those in Northern California, but their trunks are extremely thick.

Many of the giant trees are more than 2,000 years old and some are even more than 3,000 years old. The huge trees are insanely impressive.

The all-time great highlight in Sequoia National Park is General Sherman, the largest single-stemmed tree in the world measured by mass. It consists of approximately 1,500 cubic meters of wood and weighs more than 1,200 tons! In addition, it has a diameter of 11 meters and a height of about 84 meters.

Other trees in the world are taller, wider, and older than General Sherman, but none of them have the same mass. Sequoia National Park also offers a dramatic landscape with deep gorges, rugged mountains, large caves, and rich wildlife with bears and other animals.

Zion National Park

Zion National Park is the most popular national park in the state of Utah. It isn’t exactly the largest national park, but it still offers many exciting activities and memorable experiences.

The national park is located in several different geographical zones and thus offers an extremely varied landscape. Here you’ll find cacti, juniper bushes, rivers, waterfalls, gorges, high cliffs, and breathtaking viewpoints.

The biggest attraction in Zion National Park is Zion Canyon, a beautiful and scenic gorge. It is best explored from the bottom surrounded by the high red, orange, yellow and white rocks.

During the summer months, you can no longer drive through the gorge. On the other hand, it’s possible to take a shuttle bus that stops at all the best hiking trails and viewpoints in Zion National Park.

Arches National Park

Arches National Park is located in Utah and is one of the most beautiful desert landscapes in the United States. Here you’ll find more than 2,000 sandstone arches, making it the world’s largest concentration of natural sandstone arches.

The many arches range from a width of almost 1 meter and all the way up to 90 meters wide. The arches and formations have been created over millions of years by wind and weather.

Many of the most popular and special arches can be reached easily from the road and require only a short walk. Don’t miss the Delicate Arch which is the sandstone arch seen on the license plates in Utah. It requires a walk of 4 kilometers, but the view from there is stunning.

Grand Teton National Park

Located in Wyoming, Grand Teton National Park is unfortunately often overlooked because of its neighbor Yellowstone National Park. It’s a bit of a shame because Grand Teton National Park is truly beautiful with its majestic mountains that are part of the Rocky Mountains. The park is named after its highest mountain Grand Teton with an impressive elevation of 4,197 meters.

The large mountains in the park are surrounded by hilly landscapes, green forests, rushing rivers, large meadows, and mirror-bright lakes that reflect the snow-capped mountain peaks. Grand Teton National Park has rich wildlife with bison, wolves, deer, moose, bears, eagles, cougars, and more.

If you love hiking, you can enjoy the more than 300 kilometers of hiking trails that run through the scenic landscape. Grand Teton National Park is also the perfect place for camping, fishing, kayaking, and everything else that has to do with the outdoors.

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree National Park is located in the wilderness of southeastern California, right where two deserts meet. In the north lies the lush and high Mojave Desert, in the south lies the dry and low Colorado Desert.

The name of the park comes from the fascinating Joshua trees that can be found everywhere in the national park and have adapted to the harsh conditions in the desert. Everywhere in the park, you’ll find giant boulders and rock formations making the rugged landscape even more fascinating.

Joshua Tree National Park of course also offers plenty of hiking trails and rich wildlife with bighorn sheep, cougars, coyotes, and more. The park’s most popular attractions include Hidden Valley and Keys View from where you can see all the way to Mexico on a clear day.

That’s all in this article with some of the most beautiful national parks in the United States. Which National Park in the United States is your favorite? Which national park would you like to visit? Feel free to leave a comment.