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.
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.
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