Approximately 323 million people visited American national parks in 2025, a 2.7% year-over-year decrease and the first annual decline since 2020.
President Woodrow Wilson in 1916 signed the act creating the National Park Service to leave natural and historic phenomenons "unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." Since then, our national parks have welcomed visitors from around the world to experience some of the best the country has to offer and showcase the country's natural beauty and cultural heritage. Today, the country's 63 national parks contain at least 247 species of endangered or threatened plants and animals, more than 75,000 archaeological sites, and 18,000 miles of trails.
Stacker compiled a list of the closest national parks to Sioux City. National parks are ranked by closest straight line distance, measured from representative points in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD Metro Area and each national park. Estimated driving times are from Here and are only available within the lower 48 states. All featured distances and driving times are estimated using representative locations from the center of each metro and national park—for some places within the metro area, the actual distance may be slightly shorter or longer to reach the closest entryway to a park.
Matt Ragen // Shutterstock
1 / 63#1. Badlands National Park (South Dakota)
- Distance: 318 miles
- Driving time: 5.4 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 1978
- 2025 visitors: 1,139,361 (#26 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 242,755.94 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
2 / 63#2. Wind Cave National Park (South Dakota)
- Distance: 364 miles
- Driving time: 6.8 hours
- Date founded: January 9, 1903
- 2025 visitors: 606,258 (#37 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 33,970.84 acres
Paul Brady Photography // Shutterstock
3 / 63#3. Gateway Arch National Park (Missouri)
- Distance: 424 miles
- Driving time: 7.9 hours
- Date founded: February 22, 2018[47]
- 2025 visitors: 2,209,028 (#15 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 192.83 acres
BlueBarronPhoto // Shutterstock
4 / 63#4. Voyageurs National Park (Minnesota)
- Distance: 448 miles
- Driving time: 9.4 hours
- Date founded: April 8, 1975
- 2025 visitors: 206,326 (#53 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 218,222.35 acres
Laurens Hoddenbagh // Shutterstock
5 / 63#5. Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota)
- Distance: 462 miles
- Driving time: 9.2 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 1978
- 2025 visitors: 729,893 (#33 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 70,446.89 acres
Delmas Lehman // Shutterstock
6 / 63#6. Indiana Dunes National Park (Indiana)
- Distance: 486 miles
- Driving time: 8.6 hours
- Date founded: February 15, 2019
- 2025 visitors: 2,629,497 (#13 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 15,349.08 acres
Anna Krivitskaya // Shutterstock
7 / 63#7. Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado)
- Distance: 496 miles
- Driving time: 9.8 hours
- Date founded: January 26, 1915
- 2025 visitors: 4,171,431 (#6 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 265,807.25 acres
SveKo // Shutterstock
8 / 63#8. Isle Royale National Park (Michigan)
- Distance: 544 miles
- Driving time: 11.9 hours
- Date founded: April 3, 1940
- 2025 visitors: 29,091 (#60 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 571,790.30 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
9 / 63#9. Hot Springs National Park (Arkansas)
- Distance: 582 miles
- Driving time: 11.1 hours
- Date founded: March 4, 1921
- 2025 visitors: 2,494,611 (#14 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 5,554.15 acres
Kris Wiktor // Shutterstock
10 / 63#10. Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado)
- Distance: 582 miles
- Driving time: 12.5 hours
- Date founded: September 24, 2004
- 2025 visitors: 432,498 (#44 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 107,341.87 acres
SL-Photography // Shutterstock
11 / 63#11. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (Colorado)
- Distance: 652 miles
- Driving time: 14.0 hours
- Date founded: October 21, 1999
- 2025 visitors: 250,086 (#50 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 30,779.83 acres
Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock
12 / 63#12. Mammoth Cave National Park (Kentucky)
- Distance: 661 miles
- Driving time: 12.9 hours
- Date founded: July 1, 1941
- 2025 visitors: 660,734 (#34 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 54,011.91 acres
Lane V. Erickson // Shutterstock
13 / 63#13. Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming, Montana, Idaho)
- Distance: 720 miles
- Driving time: 13.5 hours
- Date founded: March 1, 1872
- 2025 visitors: 4,762,988 (#3 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 2,219,790.71 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
14 / 63#14. Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming)
- Distance: 730 miles
- Driving time: 14.0 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1929
- 2025 visitors: 3,800,648 (#8 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 310,044.36 acres
Sopotnicki // Shutterstock
15 / 63#15. Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado)
- Distance: 738 miles
- Driving time: 16.2 hours
- Date founded: June 29, 1906
- 2025 visitors: 463,130 (#43 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 52,485.17 acres
Manamana // Shutterstock
16 / 63#16. Arches National Park (Utah)
- Distance: 739 miles
- Driving time: 14.4 hours
- Date founded: November 12, 1971
- 2025 visitors: 1,511,740 (#21 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 76,678.98 acres
Manamana // Shutterstock
17 / 63#17. Canyonlands National Park (Utah)
- Distance: 771 miles
- Driving time: 20.1 hours
- Date founded: September 12, 1964
- 2025 visitors: 796,057 (#29 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 337,597.83 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
18 / 63#18. Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio)
- Distance: 772 miles
- Driving time: 13.2 hours
- Date founded: October 11, 2000
- 2025 visitors: 3,025,325 (#11 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 32,571.88 acres
Layne V. Naylor // Shutterstock
19 / 63#19. Capitol Reef National Park (Utah)
- Distance: 831 miles
- Driving time: 16.0 hours
- Date founded: December 18, 1971
- 2025 visitors: 1,388,476 (#22 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 241,904.50 acres
ZakZeinert // Shutterstock
20 / 63#20. Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina, Tennessee)
- Distance: 837 miles
- Driving time: 16.3 hours
- Date founded: June 15, 1934
- 2025 visitors: 11,527,939 (#1 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 522,426.88 acres
Doug Meek // Shutterstock
21 / 63#21. Carlsbad Caverns National Park (New Mexico)
- Distance: 837 miles
- Driving time: 16.8 hours
- Date founded: May 14, 1930
- 2025 visitors: 410,778 (#46 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 46,766.45 acres
Galyna Andrushko // Shutterstock
22 / 63#22. White Sands National Park (New Mexico)
- Distance: 856 miles
- Driving time: 16.9 hours
- Date founded: December 20, 2019[111]
- 2025 visitors: 659,742 (#35 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 146,344.31 acres
ShuPhoto // Shutterstock
23 / 63#23. Guadalupe Mountains National Park (Texas)
- Distance: 865 miles
- Driving time: 17.9 hours
- Date founded: October 15, 1966
- 2025 visitors: 206,423 (#52 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 86,367.10 acres
Steve Heap // Shutterstock
24 / 63#24. New River Gorge National Park (West Virginia)
- Distance: 866 miles
- Driving time: 16.5 hours
- Date founded: December 27, 2020
- 2025 visitors: 1,958,440 (#17 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 7,021 acres
Felix Lipov // Shutterstock
25 / 63#25. Petrified Forest National Park (Arizona)
- Distance: 883 miles
- Driving time: 17.8 hours
- Date founded: December 9, 1962
- 2025 visitors: 315,951 (#48 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 221,390.21 acres
ronnybas frimages // Shutterstock
26 / 63#26. Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)
- Distance: 900 miles
- Driving time: 18.1 hours
- Date founded: February 25, 1928
- 2025 visitors: 1,967,367 (#16 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 35,835.08 acres
Josemaria Toscano // Shutterstock
27 / 63#27. Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona)
- Distance: 950 miles
- Driving time: 19.9 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1919
- 2025 visitors: 4,430,653 (#4 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,201,647.03 acres
Galyna Andrushko // Shutterstock
28 / 63#28. Zion National Park (Utah)
- Distance: 951 miles
- Driving time: 18.6 hours
- Date founded: November 19, 1919
- 2025 visitors: 4,984,525 (#2 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 147,242.66 acres
Pung // Shutterstock
29 / 63#29. Glacier National Park (Montana)
- Distance: 952 miles
- Date founded: May 11, 1910
- 2025 visitors: 3,136,557 (#10 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,013,125.99 acres
Arlene Waller // Shutterstock
30 / 63#30. Great Basin National Park (Nevada)
- Distance: 966 miles
- Driving time: 18.6 hours
- Date founded: October 27, 1986
- 2025 visitors: 161,210 (#54 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 77,180.00 acres
Jon Bilous // Shutterstock
31 / 63#31. Shenandoah National Park (Virginia)
- Distance: 989 miles
- Driving time: 20.1 hours
- Date founded: December 26, 1935
- 2025 visitors: 1,682,152 (#19 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 199,223.77 acres
Eric Foltz // Shutterstock
32 / 63#32. Big Bend National Park (Texas)
- Distance: 990 miles
- Driving time: 19.4 hours
- Date founded: June 12, 1944
- 2025 visitors: 568,104 (#38 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 801,163.21 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
33 / 63#33. Congaree National Park (South Carolina)
- Distance: 1,041 miles
- Driving time: 20.1 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 2003
- 2025 visitors: 287,833 (#49 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 26,476.47 acres
kojihirano // Shutterstock
34 / 63#34. Saguaro National Park (Arizona)
- Distance: 1,046 miles
- Driving time: 21.6 hours
- Date founded: October 14, 1994
- 2025 visitors: 847,749 (#28 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 92,867.42 acres
Bryan Brazil // Shutterstock
35 / 63#35. Death Valley National Park (California, Nevada)
- Distance: 1,170 miles
- Driving time: 21.8 hours
- Date founded: October 31, 1994
- 2025 visitors: 1,320,134 (#24 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,408,406.73 acres
Dennis Silvas // Shutterstock
36 / 63#36. Joshua Tree National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,215 miles
- Driving time: 24.2 hours
- Date founded: October 31, 1994
- 2025 visitors: 2,932,644 (#12 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 795,155.85 acres
Patrick Poendl // Shutterstock
37 / 63#37. Kings Canyon National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,239 miles
- Driving time: 29.7 hours
- Date founded: March 4, 1940
- 2025 visitors: 779,791 (#30 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 461,901.20 acres
Virrage Images // Shutterstock
38 / 63#38. Sequoia National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,257 miles
- Driving time: 28.5 hours
- Date founded: September 25, 1890
- 2025 visitors: 1,378,337 (#23 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 404,062.63 acres
Stephen Moehle // Shutterstock
39 / 63#39. Yosemite National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,258 miles
- Driving time: 27.5 hours
- Date founded: October 1, 1890
- 2025 visitors: 4,278,413 (#5 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 761,747.50 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
40 / 63#40. North Cascades National Park (Washington)
- Distance: 1,267 miles
- Driving time: 24.6 hours
- Date founded: October 2, 1968
- 2025 visitors: 46,925 (#57 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 504,780.94 acres
Diane Fetzner // Shutterstock
41 / 63#41. Mount Rainier National Park (Washington)
- Distance: 1,276 miles
- Driving time: 23.0 hours
- Date founded: March 2, 1899
- 2025 visitors: 1,635,342 (#20 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 236,381.64 acres
Hank Shiffman // Shutterstock
42 / 63#42. Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)
- Distance: 1,301 miles
- Driving time: 25.8 hours
- Date founded: May 22, 1902
- 2025 visitors: 632,242 (#36 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 183,224.05 acres
Zack Frank // Shutterstock
43 / 63#43. Lassen Volcanic National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,303 miles
- Driving time: 25.1 hours
- Date founded: August 9, 1916
- 2025 visitors: 504,777 (#40 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 106,589.02 acres
f11photo // Shutterstock
44 / 63#44. Olympic National Park (Washington)
- Distance: 1,365 miles
- Driving time: 25.3 hours
- Date founded: June 29, 1938
- 2025 visitors: 3,584,187 (#9 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 922,649.41 acres
Ethan Daniels // Shutterstock
45 / 63#45. Channel Islands National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,375 miles
- Date founded: March 5, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 227,186 (#51 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 249,561.00 acres
Yhelfman // Shutterstock
46 / 63#46. Pinnacles National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,380 miles
- Driving time: 26.9 hours
- Date founded: January 10, 2013
- 2025 visitors: 343,208 (#47 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 26,685.73 acres
Bob Pool // Shutterstock
47 / 63#47. Redwood National Park (California)
- Distance: 1,417 miles
- Driving time: 29.1 hours
- Date founded: October 2, 1968
- 2025 visitors: 1,202,480 (#25 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 138,999.37 acres
Romiana Lee // Shutterstock
48 / 63#48. Acadia National Park (Maine)
- Distance: 1,419 miles
- Driving time: 27.6 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1919
- 2025 visitors: 4,079,318 (#7 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 49,076.63 acres
Varina C // Shutterstock
49 / 63#49. Dry Tortugas National Park (Florida)
- Distance: 1,456 miles
- Driving time: 29.6 hours
- Date founded: October 26, 1992
- 2025 visitors: 89,355 (#56 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 64,701.22 acres
Simon Dannhauer // Shutterstock
50 / 63#50. Everglades National Park (Florida)
- Distance: 1,477 miles
- Driving time: 27.8 hours
- Date founded: May 30, 1934
- 2025 visitors: 778,198 (#31 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,508,938.57 acres
Claudia G Cooper // Shutterstock
51 / 63#51. Biscayne National Park (Florida)
- Distance: 1,488 miles
- Driving time: 26.8 hours
- Date founded: June 28, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 486,567 (#41 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 172,971.11 acres
Laurie Gronewold // Shutterstock
52 / 63#52. Glacier Bay National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,056 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 740,044 (#32 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,223,383.43 acres
Martin Capek // Shutterstock
53 / 63#53. Wrangell–St. Elias National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,267 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 108,840 (#55 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 8,323,146.48 acres
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
54 / 63#54. Virgin Islands National Park (U.S. Virgin Islands)
- Distance: 2,495 miles
- Date founded: August 2, 1956
- 2025 visitors: 471,074 (#42 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 15,052.53 acres
Tomasz Wozniak // Shutterstock
55 / 63#55. Kenai Fjords National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,514 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 425,369 (#45 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 669,650.05 acres
Marc Cappelletti // Shutterstock
56 / 63#56. Denali National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,567 miles
- Date founded: February 26, 1917
- 2025 visitors: 543,300 (#39 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 4,740,911.16 acres
Malachi Jacobs // Shutterstock
57 / 63#57. Lake Clark National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,647 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 19,778 (#61 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 2,619,816.49 acres
BlueBarronPhoto // Shutterstock
58 / 63#58. Gates of the Arctic National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,696 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 14,923 (#62 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 7,523,897.45 acres
Robert Harding Video // Shutterstock
59 / 63#59. Katmai National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,702 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 34,479 (#59 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,674,529.33 acres
BlueBarronPhoto // Shutterstock
60 / 63#60. Kobuk Valley National Park (Alaska)
- Distance: 2,850 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2025 visitors: 7,786 (#63 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,750,716.16 acres
MH Anderson Photography // Shutterstock
61 / 63#61. Haleakalā National Park (Hawaii)
- Distance: 3,741 miles
- Date founded: July 1, 1961
- 2025 visitors: 853,711 (#27 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 33,264.62 acres
jo Crebbin // Shutterstock
62 / 63#62. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park (Hawaii)
- Distance: 3,750 miles
- Date founded: August 1, 1916
- 2025 visitors: 1,877,854 (#18 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 325,605.28 acres
Lloyd Wallin Photography // Shutterstock
63 / 63#63. National Park of American Samoa (American Samoa)
- Distance: 6,103 miles
- Date founded: October 31, 1988
- 2025 visitors: 43,258 (#58 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 8,256.67 acres
