128 U.S. National Parks You Can Visit For Free

If you’re looking for something a little different to do, then you should consider thinking about one or a few of the 128 U.S. National Parks you can visit for free.

 

 

 

When daisies pied and violets blue And lady-smocks all silver-white And cuckoo-buds of yellow hue Do paint the meadows with delight”  Love’s Labour’s Lost We think the Bard would’ve found our parks inspiring. How do they inspire you? ?✒? #Shakespeare400 #FindYourPark #nationalpark #Shakespeare

A photo posted by National Park Service (@nationalparkservice) on Apr 23, 2016 at 7:20pm PDT

 

 

Every year, the Park Service offers free entry on the following days; the actual date of Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday, National Park Week and National Public Lands Day varies:

• January 17: Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday
• April 17 : First Day of National Park Week
• August 4: Celebrating the Great American Outdoors Act
• August 25: National Park Service Birthday
• Fourth Saturday in September: National Public Lands Day
• November 11: Veterans Day

For most Parks, you’ll have to rent a car or a bike as typically they don’t have public transportation and are usually away from rural areas. Some are houses of famous people in the middle of a city though, so it all depends.

When you go, if available, try to get a Free Park Ranger Guided Program as they will take you to places that most don’t visit. Just contact the Park beforehand to find out the times and details as it may vary from Park to Park and by season. I have a friend who has done this and swears by it.

If you need additional tips, check out my friend Park Ranger John‘s Website. He’s been a Park Ranger for about 20 years and has lots of tips.

There are 417 Parks to choose from of which 128 of those are free on the days shown above. You can find a full list of all the Parks as well as the nominal charges on their Website. I’ve also listed  the 128 that are Free on the special days below as well as the closest airports:

1. Acadia National Park – Bar Harbour, Maine. Fly into Augusta, Maine (AGC). The Park is right next to Bar Harbour. Be sure to check out the Bar Harbour Lighthouse when you visit.

2. Adams National Historical Park – Quincy, Massachusetts. Fly into Boston, MA (BOS). 

3. Antietam National Battlefield – Hagertown, Maryland. Fly into Baltimore, MD (BWI), Reagan/National, Washington D.C. (DCA) or Washington-Dulles, Virginia (IAD).

4. Arches National Park – Utah. Fly into Canyonlands Field (CNY), UT or Grand Junction Regional Airport (GJT), UT or Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), UT. For this particular Park, you’re in luck as Amtrak also has service to nearby Green River, Utah and Grand Junction, Colorado. You will just need a car from either of these two cities.

 

5. Assateague Island National Seashore – Ocean City, Maryland.  Fly into Salisbury-Wicomico County Regional Airport, Salisbury, MD (SBY).

6. Assateague Island National Seashore – Virginia.  Fly into Salisbury-Wicomico County Regional Airport, Salisbury, MD (SBY).

7. Aztec Ruins National Monument – New Mexico

8. Badlands National Park – South Dakota

 

9. Bandelier National Monument– New Mexico

10. Big Bend National Park – Texas

11. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area – Montana

12. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area – Wyoming

 

13. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park – Colorado

14. Bryce Canyon National Park – Utah

15. Cabrillo National Monument – California

16. Canaveral National Seashore – Florida

 

17. Canyonlands National Park – Utah

18. Cape Cod National Seashore – Massachusetts

19. Capitol Reef National Park – Utah

20. Capulin Volcano National Monument – New Mexico

 

21. Carlsbad Caverns National Park – New Mexico

22. Casa Grande Ruins National Monument – Arizona

23. Castillo de San Marcos National Monument – Florida

24. Cedar Breaks National Monument – Utah

 

25. Chaco Culture National Historical Park – New Mexico

26. Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area – Georgia

27. Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park – Maryland

28. Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park – Georgia

 

29. Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park – Tennessee

30. Christiansted National Historic Site – U.S. Virgin Islands. Fly into Henry E. Rohlsen Airport (STX) in Christiansted, US VI. You may also fly into the downtown seaplane base, Christiansted Harbor Seaplane Base (SSB).

31. Colonial National Historical Park – Virginia

32. Colorado National Monument – Colorado

 

33. Crater Lake National Park – Oregon

34. Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve – Idaho

35. Cumberland Island National Seashore – Georgia

36. Death Valley National Park – Nevada

 

37. Death Valley National Park – California

38. Denali National Park & Preserve – Alaska – Fly into Anchorage, AK (ANC)

39. Devils Tower National Monument– Wyoming

40. Dinosaur National Monument – Utah

 

41. Dinosaur National Monument – Colorado

42. Dry Tortugas National Park – Florida

43. Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site – New York

44. Everglades National Park – Florida

 

45. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument – Colorado

46. Fort Davis National Historic Site – Texas

47. Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine – Maryland

48. Fort Pulaski National Monument – Georgia

 

49. Fort Smith National Historic Site – Oklahoma

50. Fort Smith National Historic Site – Arkansas

51. Fort Sumter National Monument – South Carolina

52. Fort Vancouver National Historic Site – Washington

 

53. Fort Washington Park – Maryland

54. George Washington Memorial Parkway’s Great Falls Park – Virginia

55. Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument – New Mexico

56. Glacier National Park – Montana

 

57. Glen Canyon National Recreation Area – Utah

58. Glen Canyon National Recreation Area – Arizona

59. Golden Spike National Historic Site – Utah

60. Grand Canyon National Park – Arizona

 

61. Grand Teton National Park– Wyoming

62. Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve – Colorado

63. Guadalupe Mountains National Park – Texas

64. Gulf Islands National Seashore – Florida

 

65. Gulf Islands National Seashore – Mississippi

66. Haleakalā National Park – Hawaii

67. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park – Maryland

68. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park – West Virginia

 

69. Harry S. Truman National Historic Site – Missouri

70. Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park – Hawaii

71. Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site – New York

72. James A. Garfield National Historic Site – Ohio

 

73. Jefferson National Expansion Memorial – Missouri

74. Jewel Cave National Monument – South Dakota

75. Joshua Tree National Park – California

76. Lake Mead National Recreation Area – Nevada

 

77. Lake Mead National Recreation Area – Arizona

78. Lassen Volcanic National Park – California

79. Lava Beds National Monument – California

80. Lewis & Clark National Historical Park – Oregon

 

81. Lewis & Clark National Historical Park – Washington

82. Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument – Montana

83. Mesa Verde National Park – Colorado

84. Montezuma Castle National Monument – Arizona

 

85. Mount Rainier National Park– Washington

86. Muir Woods National Monument – California

87. Natural Bridges National Monument – Utah

88. Olympic National Park– Washington

 

89. Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument – Arizona

90. Padre Island National Seashore – Texas. Fly into Corpus Christi International Airport (CRP); approximately 43 miles away.

91. Pea Ridge National Military Park – Arkansas

92. Perry’s Victory & International Peace Memorial – Ohio

 

93. Petrified Forest National Park – Arizona

94. Pinnacles National Park – California

95. Pipe Spring National Monument – Arizona

96. Pipestone National Monument – Minnesota

 

97. Prince William Forest Park – Virginia

98. Pu’uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park – Hawaii

99. Rocky Mountain National Park – Colorado

100. Sagamore Hill National Historic Site – New York

 

101. Saguaro National Park – Arizona

102. Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site – New Hampshire

103. San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park – California

104. San Juan National Historic Site – Puerto Rico. Fly into San Juan International (SJU).

 

105. Scotts Bluff National Monument – Nebraska

106. Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks – California

107. Shenandoah National Park – Virginia

108. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore – Michigan

 

109. Steamtown National Historic Site – Pennsylvania

110. Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument – Arizona

111. Theodore Roosevelt National Park – North Dakota

112. Thomas Edison National Historical Park – New Jersey

 

113. Tonto National Monument – Arizona

114. Tumacácori National Historical Park – Arizona

115. Tuzigoot National Monument – Arizona

116. Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site – New York

 

117. Vicksburg National Military Park – Mississippi

118. Walnut Canyon National Monument – Arizona

119. Whiskeytown National Recreation Area – California

120. White Sands National Monument – New Mexico

 

121. Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield – Missouri

122. Wright Brothers National Memorial – North Carolina

123. Wupatki National Monument – Arizona

124. Yellowstone National Park – Idaho

 

125. Yellowstone National Park – Montana

126. Yellowstone National Park– Wyoming

127. Yosemite National Park – California

128. Zion National Park – Utah

 

Get out there and enjoy them.

Which is your favorite Parks? Please leave a comment below.