There are no roads, campgrounds or entrance gates for this 1.8 million-acre expanse’s human visitors. Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska – 11,540 recreation visits The park stretches across 13,500 acres, some 4,000 of which are marine acres that are mostly coral reefs.ģ. The only National Park Service site south of the equator, the park has units on three different islands in the territory of American Samoa. Hawaiian Airlines offers direct flights from Honolulu. Most parkgoers will need a passport to visit this spot in a remote part of the South Pacific. National Park of American Samoa – 8,495 recreation visits Visitors must be self-sufficient, flexible and “able to execute self-extraction and communication, should an emergency situation arise.” Arrive prepared.Ģ. “Visitors may wander at will across 8.4 million acres of superlative natural beauty,” the park’s website says. The park and preserve has six designated Wild Rivers. With no roads, no trails, no cell service and no established campsites, this massive expanse is a true wilderness experience. Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, Alaska – 7,362 recreation visits Here’s the list and some park highlights for a little trail-less-taken inspiration: 15 least-visited US National Parks in 2021 Aquarius Valley in Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska.(Matt Brain/Adobe Stock)ġ. Nevada, South Carolina, Minnesota and Texas parks also make the 15 least-visited list. Isle Royale is a wooded island in Lake Superior accessible by ferry or seaplane Dry Tortugas is 70 miles west of Key West and encompasses open water and a handful of islands, including one that’s home to an impressive 19th-century fort. The latter two are remarkably different island environments. The park logged just under 8,500 visits in 2021.Īmong other non-Alaska entries in the least visited parks list are North Cascades in Washington Isle Royale in Michigan and Dry Tortugas in Florida. National Park of American Samoa is located on a volcanic island arc in the South Pacific, where fruit bats and coral reefs are part of the ecosystem. The second least-visited national park couldn’t be more different.

13 among the least-visited parks, saw a whopping 229,521 visits by comparison. It’s safe to say the people who accounted for its 7,362 recreation visits in 2021 were very committed to a wilderness experience. The least visited of the 63 national parks, Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, contains no roads or trails and visitors must fly or hike into the park, according to the National Park Service. Covering close to 665,000 square miles - much of it wild and often frozen - getting around the state can be challenging and there’s a lot of wilderness to see. It’s no big surprise that a good chunk of the least-visited national parks are in the 49th state.

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