10 Least Visited National Parks

Despite travel coming to a near standstill in 2020, national parks in the United States received 237 million visits combined. While that’s the lowest visitor numbers since 1980, it’s still a lot of people.

The United States National Park System contains many famous landmarks that people dream of visiting, from Old Faithful to the Grand Canyon, but it also contains quieter spots that receive far fewer visitors, even in a normal year. Many of these less traveled places are gorgeous spots worth seeing.

Here were the ten least visited US National Parks in 2020.

10. Katmai National Park

Katmai National Park is in a volcanically active region of southern Alaska. Despite the small visitor numbers it gets compared to other national parks, it’s an exciting place that contains 14 active volcanoes. One of them, Novarupta, erupted in 1912 in one of the five biggest eruptions in recorded history. This eruption also formed the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, so named because of the steam found throughout the valley for a long time after the eruption.

The park offers a wide range of outdoor activities. Visitors can go bear watching, hiking, or fishing. Local businesses also offer sightseeing tours in small airplanes that allow visitors to see the spectacular sights from above. The park received 51,511 visitors in 2020.

9. Dry Tortugas National Park

You won’t find any volcanoes at this national park. Instead, Dry Tortugas, contrary to its name, is mostly water. The only land to be found in the park is seven small islands west of the Florida Keys. There’s no way to visit this park by car. Visitors must take a boat or seaplane.

Dry Tortugas is a great park to visit for anyone who enjoys exploring coral reefs. In addition to the boating and camping that you can do at many other parks, Dry Tortugas allows visitors to go snorkeling and diving in the area. One popular dive spot in the park is the site of a shipwreck. In 2020, there were 48,543 visitors to the park.

8. North Cascades National Park

A few hours outside of Seattle is North Cascades National Park. The park contains temperate rainforests and mountains as well as glaciers and lakes. Visitors can experience a wide variety of outdoor activities, including guided tours, horseback riding, and bicycling. Many visitors also enjoy viewing the wildlife, which includes birds like eagles and falcons.

In 2020, North Cascades received 30,885 visitors. Due to a risk of avalanches, most visitors come during the warmer months. The park is also the site of research on climate change and how it affects the park’s glaciers.

7. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is another park in Alaska, but at 13.2 million acres, it’s more than three times the size of Katmai National Park. Like Katmai, the park contains volcanoes and glaciers. One of these volcanoes is Mount Wrangell, which is one of the largest active volcanoes in the world. Visitors can often see steam rising from Mount Wrangell. The glaciers are no less impressive. Wrangell-St. Elias contains the largest glacial system in the United States. The park is even a World Heritage Site.

There were 16,655 visitors to the park in 2020. These visitors could experience hiking, snowmobile riding, and fishing among other activities. Visitors can also view animals such as Dall sheep, moose, or bears.

6. Kobuk Valley National Park

Kobuk Valley National Park is yet another park in Alaska. It’s the home of the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes. Yes, there are sand dunes in Alaska, and not just any sand dunes. These are the largest active sand dunes in the Arctic. They’re remnants from the last ice age 28,000 years ago. Since it’s Alaska, you might expect cold temperatures, but the dunes can actually get into the 80s Fahrenheit in the summer!

Visitors can go hiking or even camping on the dunes. In the fall, visitors can see caribou migrations. There’s also a freshwater river in the park that provides visitors with chances to go fishing or boating. There is no road to the park, so visitors must come by plane or boat. Perhaps because of this, only 11,185 people visited the park in 2020.

5. Isle Royale National Park

For anyone who wants to spend time on the water but has taken a few too many trips to the ocean recently, Isle Royale National Park is a great place to visit. The main island and hundreds of smaller islands that make up the park are part of Michigan, but they’re surrounded by Lake Superior. The park is close to the US-Canada border and is accessible only by boat or seaplane. Visitors can experience a wide variety of outdoor activities, including hiking, boating, and even scuba diving.

The park is completely closed during the winter because of the extreme weather. In 2020, only 6,493 people visited the park, which makes it a great place to enjoy the beach without a crowd.

4. Glacier Bay National Park

Glacier Bay National Park is yet another park from Alaska. This park has a lot to see, from temperate rain forests to glaciers to fjords. Glacier Bay itself is a World Heritage Site along with Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Cruise ships often visit the bay in the summer, but visitors can also take daily boat tours. The park also has opportunities for camping, hiking, rafting, or bird watching.

Despite the impressive sites, only 5,748 people visited the park in 2020.

3. Lake Clark National Park

Lake Clark National Park is in southwest Alaska. It includes many lakes and volcanoes. Lake Clark is part of the largest sockeye salmon fishery in the world. A lot of salmon and wolf research takes place in the park. Cliffs in the park also contain many fossils. While removing any of these fossils is illegal, visitors can look at and touch them during their visit. There are also salt marshes along the coast where many animals live, including both brown and black bears.

Visitors can go bear viewing, rafting, or sport fishing. The park is only accessible by plane or, if weather and tides allow, by boat. Because of this, only 4,948 people visited in 2020.

2. National Park of American Samoa

National Park of American Samoa is the only park on this list that’s in a US territory instead of a state. Its location across three islands in American Samoa also means that it has a lot of unique features compared to other national parks. Visitors can see animals like fruit bats and whales. The park also has a coral reef program that works to protect the islands’ coral reefs.

Visitors can go hiking on the beaches as well as going snorkeling or diving. There’s also a museum that shares Samoan culture and nature with guests. For people already in American Samoa, there are rental cars, taxis, and buses available. Visitors who want to go between islands need to take a plane. In 2020, there were 4,819 visitors to the park.

1. Gates of the Arctic National Park

The title of least visited national park in the US goes to another park in Alaska. Gates of the Arctic National Park is north of the Arctic Circle, making it the northernmost national park in the country. It’s also the second largest. Despite its climate, the park contains many species of wildlife, including arctic hares, lynxes, and musk oxen. It also includes the Brooks Mountain Range.

If they don’t mind the weather, visitors can actually go camping in the park, and there are opportunities for backpacking, mountain climbing, and hunting. Because there are no roads into the park, visitors must either take a plane or hike to the park. In 2020, only 2,872 people visited.