If you follow me at all on my Insta account or elsewhere you will know that my husband & I love to travel. Our destination is usually based around visiting a National Park.
We have fallen in love with visiting the parks!
The pristine beauty they have to offer is unlike any other experience!
There are many places to take a nice hike but,
at the parks we have found some of our favorite ones (with the BEST views!)!!!
The U.S. has 61 National Parks you can visit.
Here is a complete list you can check out to find which one fits you best:
The last four parks that we visited in 2019: Cuyahoga Valley, Isle Royale, Crater Lake, Acadia
Here are my SIX tips on making your visit to a N.P. successful:
1- Find your park. Explore what they have to offer and which match your interests. Is it hiking? Or does location maybe play a factor?
2- Plan your trip. I would highly recommend staying inside the park (there are often a handful or less of N.P. lodges available) BUT the kicker is that these fill up FAST! Like a whole year in advance! Staying inside the park will cut down on drive time at the beginning and end of your day in the park. Be prepared to rent a car if you decide to get there by plane versus road trip. A lot of parks are off the beaten path and you will need to drive to from the airport. I recommend Enterprise for car rental. They have been the best for us! Check out what is recommended as the best time to travel to the park you choose. I would say try to avoid very busy or high peak times if you can. We have found the best time to travel to most is to usually late Spring or early/middle Fall. Large crowds really take away from the experience! Here is a Lonely Planet article with suggestions on when to visit the parks:
3- Use the All Trails app! If you plan on doing any hiking, this is a definite must to download on your phone! I am pretty sure it is free to download. You can search by the area you will be in or the park itself and it will give you a list of trail routes with descriptions, people's photos they have submitted, and their reviews of the trail! It is great!! It also has a GPS feature that will help you stay on the trail and not get lost while you do the hike! A lot of the parks have limited (if any!) cell service.
4- Know what the climate is going to be like and plan accordingly. Keep in mind that altitude does make a difference! Speaking of which-- remember to adjust for altitude-- it can sneak up on you! Drink plenty of water!!! Plan for layers, the climate can quickly change at different altitudes and while hiking you will get warm! But you will definitely want to have some warmer options too just in case! A "What to pack for a hiking trip" post is coming soon! Stay tuned!!!
5- Know what kind of animals may be present (IN THE WILD!!!! THEY ARE WILD ANIMALS!!! So please treat them as so!) and how to plan for that as well. If there are known grizzlies or black bear, pick up a bear bell and shout/clap every so often as you hike. It is better if you do not come around a corner on a trail and surprise a bear! Be smart and be aware of your surroundings. And PLEASE respect the wildlife!!!!!
6- Consider buying a year pass! If you plan a trip around hitting several parks I would highly suggest purchasing the year pass! This will get you in to any of the 61 parks for the entire year. A definite cost savings if you even plan to visit 2-3 (or more!) within a years time! It is also transferrable to one other person if you want to pass it along to a friend too!!
I hope that you find your next vacation destination at one of the National Parks.
I know you will fall in love just like we did!
Let me know if you have any other questions!
