A total of 330.9 million people visited one of the 59 national parks in the United States throughout 2017, according to the most recent data published by the National Park Service (NPS).
The park that had the highest number of visitors was the Great Smoky Mountains, with a total of 11.3 million people, almost double that of any other in the United States. This park, located in the Appalachian Mountains between the states of North Carolina and Tennessee, is recognized worldwide for its great diversity of animal and plant life and for the beauty of its old mountains.
The second park with the highest number of visitors in 2017 was the impressive Grand Canyon, in the state of Arizona, which received 6.2 million people. The river canyon of this geological wonder has a length of 446 kilometers, a width of 29 kilometers, and a maximum depth of 1.6 kilometers.
Zion, in the state of Utah, is third in the ranking. Last year it had 4.5 million visitors. In this park, you can visit spectacular sandstone cliffs of various colors -cream, pink, and red- or climb through the narrow canyon of the Virgin River.
Fourth place in the ranking is occupied by Rocky Mountain National Park, in Colorado, with 4.4 million visitors. The spectacular mountain views are the main attraction of this park, which has an area of 415 square miles.
Yosemite National Park, in the state of California, was the fifth most visited in 2017 with 4.3 million people. El Capitan, a vertical rock formation about 900 meters high, is one of its many and most recognizable attractions, in addition to large waterfalls, extensive meadows, or giant sequoias and other natural wonders.
The five parks that complete the list of the ten most visited are Yellowstone -which was the first national park in the world and is spread across the states of Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana-, Acadia (Maine), Olympic (Washington), Grand Teton (Wyoming) and Glacier (Montana).
More information:
- National Park Service
- Find Your Park
- Encuentra tu parque
- The Hidden Worlds of the National Parks – Google multimedia special about several national parks
- Video: The 59 national parks of the United States in one minute (National Geographic)
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