This story initially appeared on Outdoorsy.
With air journey down, many Americans are hitting the roads throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Assuming native rules permit for it, exploring the outside generally is a good option to trip safely. Fortunately, many National Park System parks remain open with fewer guests than throughout a traditional yr.
The National Park System is managed by the National Park Service (NPS), which oversees 422 completely different parks that span over 80 million acres throughout all 50 states.
While a few of the most visited parks are leisure areas, parkways, and nationwide parks, the National Park System is comprised of many various types of parks, together with monuments, memorials, battlefields, and historic websites. In truth, lower than one-third of annual visits are visits to the 62 parks with “national park” of their title.
During 2020, there was virtually a 25% decline in visits to the National Park System. However, even with social distancing orders in place, out of doors recreation and visiting these areas generally is a COVID-safe exercise.
To discover the states that provide one of the best entry to the National Park System, researchers at Outdoorsy checked out knowledge from the National Park Service’s National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics. They ranked states primarily based on the variety of NPS-managed parks which are partially or totally contained inside the state. They additionally included the annual visits to the NPS parks in every state, a measure of the financial profit from NPS park tourism, and the title of essentially the most visited park in every state.
Here are the states that provide one of the best entry to the National Park System.
15. Tennessee
- Number of NPS parks: 12
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 9,979,139
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $995,900,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Great Smoky Mountains NP (7,026,734)
14. Colorado
- Number of NPS parks: 13
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 7,761,213
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $771,700,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Rocky Mountain NP (4,670,053)
13. Utah
- Number of NPS parks: 13
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 15,285,200
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $1,868,700,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Zion NP (4,488,268)
12. Texas
- Number of NPS parks: 14
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 5,834,681
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $492,000,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Lake Meredith NRA (1,328,340)
11. New Mexico
- Number of NPS parks: 15
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 2,139,674
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $155,000,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): White Sands NP (608,785)
10. Washington
- Number of NPS parks: 15
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 8,776,096
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $709,800,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Olympic NP (3,245,806)
9. Massachusetts
- Number of NPS parks: 15
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 10,003,220
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $1,285,400,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Cape Cod NS (4,096,104)
8. Maryland
- Number of NPS parks: 18
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 6,854,872
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $312,800,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Chesapeake & Ohio Canal NHP (3,888,758)
7. Pennsylvania
- Number of NPS parks: 19
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 10,153,809
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $711,300,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Independence NHP (4,532,459)
6. Arizona
- Number of NPS parks: 22
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 12,463,772
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $2,015,900,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Grand Canyon NP (5,974,411)
5. Virginia
- Number of NPS parks: 22
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 22,815,596
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $1,669,100,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): George Washington MEM PKWY (7,487,265)
4. Alaska
- Number of NPS parks: 24
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 3,218,301
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $2,192,900,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Klondike Gold Rush NHP (1,116,161)
3. New York
- Number of NPS parks: 24
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 21,013,245
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $1,060,200,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Gateway NRA (7,803,348)
2. District of Columbia
- Number of NPS parks: 25
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 39,687,383
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $830,700,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Lincoln Memorial (7,808,182)
1. California
- Number of NPS parks: 28
- Annual guests to NPS parks: 39,620,672
- Economic profit from NPS park tourism: $4,276,200,000
- Most visited NPS park (& visits): Golden Gate NRA (15,002,227)
Methodology and detailed findings
The knowledge used on this research is from the National Park Service’s (NPS) National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics. The research contains all 422 NPS-managed parks, together with 19 completely different park sorts, comparable to nationwide parks, nationwide battlefields, nationwide monuments, nationwide memorials, nationwide historic websites, and nationwide parkways, amongst others.
States have been ranked primarily based on the quantity NPS parks which are partially or totally contained inside the state. Some parks are listed in a number of states. In the occasion of a tie, the state with the larger variety of annual recreation guests to its NPS parks was ranked greater. The financial profit from NPS park tourism “is a measure of the total estimated value of the production of goods and services supported by NPS visitor spending. Economic output is the sum of all intermediate sales (business to business) and final demand (sales to consumers and exports).”
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