The United States is home to 63 national parks spread across the nation and two in overseas territories. They cover over 200,000 km2 in 30 states and contain jaw-dropping scenery, exotic wildlife, and iconic landmarks. These national parks can be the perfect location to explore the countryside, enjoy adventures, and see nature in all its glory.
National parks can be a great place to visit with children as there are many things to keep them entertained, lots of space to exercise, and the fresh, healthy air can benefit you and your family’s mental and physical well-being.
The Top 5 Most Family-Friendly National Parks To Visit With Children
It’s official! Sequoia National Park in California is the best national park to visit with children.
1. Sequoia National Park, California
Family National Park score of 7.19/10
Sequoia is a national park located at the southern end of the Sierra Nevada mountains in California.
The park covers 1,635 km and contains the Giant Forest, home to the largest tree in the world, the Giant Sequoia, which gives the park its name. Sequoia topped the rankings as it scored in the top ten for all but one factor, with an exceptionally high number of restaurants (32.34 per 100,000 visitors).
There is lots of fun to be had in the forest with children, including visiting General Sherman, the largest tree in the world, which is an imposing, awe-inspiring site for people of every age.
2. Acadia National Park, Maine
Family National Park score of 6.65/10
Acadia National Park is a part of the world with a bit of everything regarding geographical features, making it perfect for outdoor enthusiasts. It has sandy beaches, tall mountains, big lakes, and sprawling meadows.
It is a hotbed for recreational activities, with cycling, horse riding, and walking being popular in the summer due to the historic carriage road system.
In winter, it gets icy and becomes somewhere to cross-country ski. Acadia could have come out top of the rankings if it hadn’t been for the fact it is so busy; over 3 million people visit the park every year, making it one of the busiest in the country.
3. Denali National Park, Alaska
Family National Park score of 6.21/10
In contrast to Acadia, Denali National Park is one of the most scarcely populated, as there are less than half a million visitors per year in an area of almost 20,000 km2.
It has the second-highest number of hotels per 100,000 (15.44) and the fourth-highest number of restaurants per 100,000 (6.55). Denali (also known as Mount McKinley) is the largest mountain in North America, and the national park surrounds the peak.
4. Big Bend National Park, Texas
Family National Park score of 6.16/10
Big Bend is a national park in southern Texas, just on the border between the US and Mexico. The magnificent Rio Grande River traverses the park, and as it meanders between high cliffs, it produces the bends for which the park is named.
Big Bend has more than ten attractions per 100,000 visitors, and if your children love dinosaurs, then it is definitely the place to visit, as numerous fossilized remains of the ancient creatures have been found there.
5. Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
Family National Park score of 6.01/10
Rounding out the top five is the Isle Royale National Park in Michigan. The park encompasses the main island and over 400 smaller ones in Lake Superior, close to the Canadian border.
If you like having a place to yourself, Isle Royale is the place for you and your family. The park attracted around 25,000 visitors in 2022, the fewest of any US national park studied.
The Top 10 Most Family-Friendly US National Parks To Visit With Children
So, we’ve explored the top 5 US national parks to visit if you’re vacationing with the kids…but what about the top 10?
Here, using the same factors, we reveal the family-friendly national parks that have claimed spots 6 through 10. So, if the giant trees of Sequoia National Park or the soaring heights of Mount McKinley don’t take your fancy, be sure to check out the best of the rest.
6. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho
Family National Park score of 5.96/10
Visit Yellowstone and get three states for the price of one! Read our family travel guides to make the most of your vacation.
- The Most Stunning Waterfalls In Yellowstone National Park
- The Best Time Of Year To Visit Yellowstone
- Yellowstone Vs Yosemite: Which Is Better For Kids?
7. Glacier National Park, Montana
Family National Park score of 5.81/10
An ever-popular choice in both summer and winter…check out our Glacier National Park guide to make sure your family trip is off the hook.
8. Joshua Tree National Park, California
Family National Park score of 5.71/10
Is Joshua Tree National Park the one for you? Explore our family travel guides to get the inside scoop on what to see and do!
- The Best Time Of Year To Visit Joshua Tree National Park
- The Best Stargazing Spots In Joshua Tree National Park
9. Yosemite National Park, California
Family National Park score of 5.62/10
Check out our guides on visiting Yosemite with the kids to plan an awesome vacation!
- 15 Of The Best Hotels In Yosemite
- The Best Time Of Year To Visit Yosemite
- 14 Stunning Waterfalls To See In Yosemite
10. Crater Lake National Park, Oregon and Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
IT’S A TIE! – Family National Park scores of 5.47/10
- The Best Things To Do In Oregon With Kids
- Everything You Need To Know About Visiting The Rocky Mountains With Kids
Methodology
- We created a list of all 63 US national parks.
- We used Google Keyword Planner to find the number of searches for ‘visit national park’ between March 2023 and February 2024.
- We took the 30 most popular to study further.
- The park size in km2 and the number of visitors in 2022 was sourced from Wikipedia.
- We divided the number of visitors by the park size to get the average number of visitors per km2 in a year.
- TripAdvisor was used to get the review score for each national park. In addition, we sourced the number of attractions, restaurants, and hotels from TripAdvisor.
- We then calculated the number of attractions, restaurants, and hotels per 100,000 visitors.
- We sourced the number of walking trails from Alltrails and then calculated the number of walking trails per 100 km2
- All data is correct as of the 14th of March, 2024.
More about our TFVG Author
A seasoned traveller, Dad, and avid sports tourist, James foundered The Family Vacation Guide to share his expert vacation experiences- especially when it comes to being a travelling family man.
Featured in Travel articles such as Travel + Leisure, TripSavvy and SFGate, you know you're reading some of the best vacation tips online.
- James Brockbankhttps://www.thefamilyvacationguide.com/author/james/
- James Brockbankhttps://www.thefamilyvacationguide.com/author/james/
- James Brockbankhttps://www.thefamilyvacationguide.com/author/james/
- James Brockbankhttps://www.thefamilyvacationguide.com/author/james/
