Yahoo Finance The 10 Most Visited National Parks
National treasures
National park vacations can be exciting, beautiful and affordable. The national park system received 273.6 million visitors in 2013. Here's a look at the most popular parks:
1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park
With nearly 9.4 million visitors, Great Smoky Mountains National Park was the most visited national park in 2013. The Cades Cove Loop Road and Newfound Gap Road are the most popular areas of this park that straddles the border between Tennessee and North Carolina, and there are also opportunities for fishing, horseback riding and even hayrides.
2. Grand Canyon National Park
Some 4.6 million people journeyed to Arizona to see the mile-deep Grand Canyon in 2013. Most people (90 percent) visit the south rim via their car or free shuttle buses. About 10 percent of visitors venture to the north rim, which is 10 miles across from the south rim but a 21-mile hike or 220-mile drive around the canyon to get there.
3. Yosemite National Park
The impressive waterfalls, giant sequoias and scenic Yosemite Valley are big draws of 1,200-square-mile Yosemite National Park in California, which received 3.7 million visitors in 2013. A lesser-known attraction is Hetch Hetchy, a reservoir that is a major source of drinking water for much of the San Francisco Bay area.
4. Yellowstone National Park
The more than 300 geysers are a big reason 3.2 million people headed to Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park in 2013. However, the naturalist staff can predict eruptions regularly for just five of the geysers, including the most famous, Old Faithful.
5. Olympic National Park
Trips to the 922,000-acre Olympic National Park in Washington might include a hike through a temperate rain forest containing giant western hemlocks, Douglas firs and Sitka spruce, a walk along 73 miles of Pacific coastline or a trip to the top of Hurricane Ridge, the park's most easily reached mountain. Some 3.1 million people visited this park in 2013.
6. Rocky Mountain National Park
In Colorado, Rocky Mountain National Park's 415 square miles received nearly 3 million visitors in 2013. The 355 miles of hiking trails include lakeside strolls, journeys to spectacular waterfalls and scaling steep mountain peaks.
7. Zion National Park
Zion National Park's most prominent feature is Zion Canyon, and there are hiking options along the rim and descending to the floor of the canyon. Also consider the quieter, scenic 5-mile drive through the crimson Kolob Canyons. Some 2.8 million people visited this Utah park last year.
8. Grand Teton National Park
Located just slightly south of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Grand Teton National Park received 2.7 million visitors in 2013. Grand Teton is best known for its mountains, but you could also raft down the Snake River or ride a boat across Jenny Lake.
9. Acadia National Park
This Maine park is home to Cadillac Mountain, the tallest mountain on the U.S. Atlantic coast, and was visited by 2.3 million people in 2013. You can also hike or bike 45 miles of scenic carriage roads in the park.
10. Glacier National Park
There are over 700 miles of trails in Montana's Glacier National Park, which were used by 2.2 million people in 2013. The Going-to-the-Sun Road winds through some of the most spectacular scenery in the park, including Logan Pass and a glacier.
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