Find Nearest National Park
Locate the closest US National Park from your current GPS position or any searched address. Compares all 63 Congressionally designated National Parks with exact straight-line mileage, compass bearings, park acreage, and established dates.
Ready to Find Nearest National Park
Click the map or enter your address to find the closest of all 63 officially designated US National Parks with straight-line distance and compass bearing.
Features dramatic Continental Divide peaks above 12,000 feet, alpine tundra, and Trail Ridge Road reaching 12,183 ft elevation.
How to use the nearest national park finder
- 1Share your location or type an address
Use GPS or enter any address.
- 2Compare all 63 national parks
The straight-line distance to each US national park is measured from your point.
- 3See the nearest parks
Read the closest park with distance, compass direction, acreage and year established.
How to find the nearest national park
The United States National Park System protects over 85 million acres across hundreds of units. However, only 63 premier units carry the strict congressional designation of “National Park.” Other federal units—including National Monuments, National Historic Sites, National Recreation Areas, and U.S. Forest Service lands—operate under different legal protections, access guidelines, and federal management mandates.
To find the closest one with Open Map Lab's National Park Finder:
- Enter a home address, town or state and press Find Nearest, or tap Use My GPS to start from where you are.
- The tool measures the straight-line distance from that point to each park in its list and sorts them from nearest to farthest.
- Read the nearest park, its distance in miles and kilometers, and its compass direction from you.
- Check the park's own website for entrance roads, seasonal closures and reservations before you drive.
The finder currently covers 25 of the most visited and best-known national parks, from Acadia to Zion, measured to one reference point per park. A smaller park that is closer to you may not be listed yet.
Distance to the park edge vs. the entrance
A common pitfall in national park trip planning is confusing distance to the park boundary with distance to the public entrance station:
- Canyon and Gorge Dividers: The South Rim and North Rim of the Grand Canyon are just 10 miles apart as the crow flies across the chasm. However, driving between the two rims requires a 215-mile, 4.5-hour highway trek around the canyon via Navajo Bridge.
- Wilderness Inaccessibility: Massive parks like Death Valley (3.4 million acres) or Wrangell-St. Elias (8.3 million acres) have vast wilderness perimeters where no paved roads exist. Reaching the park boundary is not the same as reaching a trail or visitor center.
- Gate Coordinates: Open Map Lab measures to one reference point per park, not to the park boundary or a specific gate. Use the NPS park page to find the entrance that suits your route.
Seasonal closures, passes and road access
High-elevation and northern national parks experience dramatic seasonal closures that radically change ground transit times:
- Mountain Passes: Yosemite’s Tioga Pass (CA-120 at 9,943 ft), Glacier’s Going-to-the-Sun Road (Logan Pass at 6,646 ft), and Rocky Mountain’s Trail Ridge Road (12,183 ft) routinely close from November through June due to heavy snowfall.
- Water-Access Only Parks: Isle Royale (Michigan), Dry Tortugas (Florida), and Channel Islands (California) cannot be reached by private vehicle; travel requires ferries, seaplanes, or licensed charter boats.
How the nearest national park is calculated
How the finder picks the nearest park from its list of park reference points:
d = \min_{k} \left( 2R \cdot \arcsin \left( \sqrt{ \sin^2\left(\frac{\Delta \phi_k}{2}\right) + \cos\phi \cos\phi_k \sin^2\left(\frac{\Delta \lambda_k}{2}\right) } \right) \right)- Compute ellipsoidal distance to all western region candidate coordinates
- Sort distances in ascending order: [106.8 mi, 139.4 mi, 152.8 mi, 174.5 mi...]
- Select lowest minimum distance: Death Valley National Park at 106.8 miles
Identifies closest federal park preserve instantly, along with its compass bearing (284° WNW). Driving distance will be longer than this straight-line figure.
National parks list with locations
Reference coordinates, primary visitor entrance locations, and official federal acreage:
Key U.S. National Parks Reference Guide
Official National Park Service acreage data and verified primary gate coordinates.
| National Park | State(s) | Federal Acreage | Primary Gate Coordinates | Annual Visitors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowstone National Park | WY / MT / ID | 2,219,791 acres | 45.0298° N, 110.7084° W (North Entrance) | 4.5+ Million |
| Grand Canyon National Park | Arizona | 1,201,647 acres | 35.9868° N, 112.1246° W (South Rim) | 4.7+ Million |
| Yosemite National Park | California | 759,620 acres | 37.7495° N, 119.5875° W (Arch Rock) | 3.9+ Million |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park | NC / TN | 522,427 acres | 35.6888° N, 83.5354° W (Sugarlands) | 12.9+ Million |
| Zion National Park | Utah | 147,243 acres | 37.2002° N, 112.9871° W (South Gate) | 4.6+ Million |
| Acadia National Park | Maine | 49,075 acres | 44.3386° N, 68.2733° W (Hulls Cove) | 3.8+ Million |
Permits, fees and safety before you go
Visiting America's National Parks requires prior preparation and awareness of federal policies:
- Timed Entry Reservations: High-traffic parks like Arches, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, and Yosemite require advance vehicle reservations during peak summer months via Recreation.gov.
- Park Entrance Fees: Most premier national parks charge a vehicle entry fee ($30–$35 for 7 days) or honor the America the Beautiful interagency annual pass.
- No Cell Service: Significant portions of backcountry terrain have zero cellular coverage. Download offline topographic maps before departing.
Explore Related Tools
Calculate driving times with the Drive Time Map or measure trail elevations with My Elevation.
Quick facts about the nearest national park finder
| Fact | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Park Database | All 63 US National Parks | From Yellowstone (1872) to New River Gorge (2020) |
| Most Visited Park | Great Smoky Mountains | Over 12 million annual visitors |
| Largest National Park | Wrangell-St. Elias, AK | 8.32 million acres (larger than Switzerland) |
Edge cases and exceptions
National Parks vs. National Monuments
This tool specifically searches the 63 premier Congressionally designated "National Parks" managed by the NPS, excluding National Monuments, Historic Sites, and National Forests.
The nearest national park finder: worked examples
Weekend Trip from Las Vegas, NV
Scenario: Searching nearest National Park from Las Vegas Strip.
Outcome: Identifies Death Valley National Park (CA/NV) as closest at 85 miles northwest, followed by Zion National Park (UT) at 135 miles northeast.
Frequently asked questions about the nearest national park finder
How many National Parks are there in the United States?
There are currently 63 Congressionally designated National Parks across 30 states and 2 US territories.
How is the nearest park determined?
We compute geodesic great-circle distances from your coordinates to the official visitor headquarters centroid of every park in the NPS system.
How many national parks are there in the US?
There are 63 congressionally designated national parks, out of more than 430 units in the National Park System that also include monuments, seashores and historic sites.
Which state has the most national parks?
California has nine, followed by Alaska with eight.
What is the most visited national park?
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which typically receives more than 12 million visits a year.
Does the distance mean driving time?
No. It is straight-line distance to the park location. Access roads and entrances often make the drive much longer.
What is the difference between a national park and a national monument?
Parks are designated by Congress and generally protect large natural areas. Monuments can be created by the President under the Antiquities Act.
Do I need a pass to enter a national park?
Many parks charge an entrance fee. The America the Beautiful annual pass covers entry to federal recreation sites.
Which national parks are closest to a major city?
Cuyahoga Valley near Cleveland and Akron, and Biscayne near Miami, are close to large metros, while others are remote.
Can I find parks along a route?
Run the search from several points along your route, or use the multi-stop tool to measure the detour.
Keep exploring
What to do with this result
- Distance Between Two Places (Address to Address)Use this to measure the distance between two addresses.
- Drive Time Map (Travel Time Isochrone)Use this to map a drive-time area.
- Elevation Finder: Elevation of Any Address or PlaceUse this to look up the elevation of any address.
- Sunrise and Sunset Times CalculatorUse this to check sunrise and sunset times.
- What State Am I In?Use this to find out what state you are in.
Related map tools
Blog posts, studies & methodology
Browse counties by state
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Puerto Rico
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming