Closest national parks to Grand Rapids

Written by:
July 13, 2022
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Closest national parks to Grand Rapids

Approximately 331 million people visited American national parks in 2024, representing a 2% year-over-year growth and the fourth straight year of growth.

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 Grand Rapids. National parks are ranked by closest straight line distance, measured from representative points in Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI 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.

#1. Indiana Dunes National Park (Indiana)

- Distance: 116 miles
- Driving time: 2.1 hours
- Date founded: February 15, 2019
- 2024 visitors: 2,705,209 (#13 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 15,349.08 acres

#2. Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio)

- Distance: 250 miles
- Driving time: 4.8 hours
- Date founded: October 11, 2000
- 2024 visitors: 2,912,454 (#12 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 32,571.89 acres

#3. Isle Royale National Park (Michigan)

- Distance: 375 miles
- Driving time: 9.3 hours
- Date founded: April 3, 1940
- 2024 visitors: 28,806 (#58 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 571,790.30 acres

#4. Gateway Arch National Park (Missouri)

- Distance: 382 miles
- Driving time: 6.8 hours
- Date founded: February 22, 2018
- 2024 visitors: 2,563,052 (#14 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 192.83 acres

#5. Mammoth Cave National Park (Kentucky)

- Distance: 405 miles
- Driving time: 7.4 hours
- Date founded: July 1, 1941
- 2024 visitors: 747,042 (#28 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 72,472.87 acres

#6. New River Gorge National Park (West Virginia)

- Distance: 422 miles
- Driving time: 9.2 hours
- Date founded: December 27, 2020
- 2024 visitors: 1,811,937 (#17 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 7,021 acres

#7. Shenandoah National Park (Virginia)

- Distance: 498 miles
- Driving time: 11.3 hours
- Date founded: December 26, 1935
- 2024 visitors: 1,720,211 (#18 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 200,445.92 acres

#8. Voyageurs National Park (Minnesota)

- Distance: 510 miles
- Driving time: 12.6 hours
- Date founded: April 8, 1975
- 2024 visitors: 199,030 (#53 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 218,222.35 acres

#9. Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina, Tennessee)

- Distance: 522 miles
- Driving time: 10.5 hours
- Date founded: June 15, 1934
- 2024 visitors: 12,191,834 (#1 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 522,426.88 acres

#10. Congaree National Park (South Carolina)

- Distance: 693 miles
- Driving time: 14.3 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 2003
- 2024 visitors: 242,049 (#51 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 26,692.60 acres

#11. Hot Springs National Park (Arkansas)

- Distance: 707 miles
- Driving time: 12.5 hours
- Date founded: March 4, 1921
- 2024 visitors: 2,461,812 (#16 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 5,554.15 acres

#12. Badlands National Park (South Dakota)

- Distance: 842 miles
- Driving time: 15.4 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 1978
- 2024 visitors: 1,094,245 (#25 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 242,755.94 acres

#13. Acadia National Park (Maine)

- Distance: 883 miles
- Driving time: 19.2 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1919
- 2024 visitors: 3,961,661 (#7 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 49,071.40 acres

#14. Wind Cave National Park (South Dakota)

- Distance: 892 miles
- Driving time: 16.8 hours
- Date founded: January 9, 1903
- 2024 visitors: 489,399 (#40 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 33,970.84 acres

#15. Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota)

- Distance: 905 miles
- Driving time: 17.1 hours
- Date founded: November 10, 1978
- 2024 visitors: 732,951 (#31 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 70,446.89 acres

#16. Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado)

- Distance: 1,037 miles
- Driving time: 17.7 hours
- Date founded: January 26, 1915
- 2024 visitors: 4,154,349 (#5 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 265,847.74 acres

#17. Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado)

- Distance: 1,100 miles
- Driving time: 20.4 hours
- Date founded: September 24, 2004
- 2024 visitors: 437,661 (#44 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 107,345.73 acres

#18. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (Colorado)

- Distance: 1,187 miles
- Driving time: 21.9 hours
- Date founded: October 21, 1999
- 2024 visitors: 335,862 (#49 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 30,779.83 acres

#19. Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming, Montana, Idaho)

- Distance: 1,236 miles
- Driving time: 23.7 hours
- Date founded: March 1, 1872
- 2024 visitors: 4,744,353 (#4 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 2,219,790.71 acres

#20. Biscayne National Park (Florida)

- Distance: 1,241 miles
- Driving time: 22.6 hours
- Date founded: June 28, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 512,213 (#38 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 172,971.11 acres

#21. Everglades National Park (Florida)

- Distance: 1,252 miles
- Driving time: 23.6 hours
- Date founded: May 30, 1934
- 2024 visitors: 741,983 (#29 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,508,938.57 acres

#22. Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming)

- Distance: 1,256 miles
- Driving time: 23.0 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1929
- 2024 visitors: 3,628,222 (#9 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 310,044.36 acres

#23. Carlsbad Caverns National Park (New Mexico)

- Distance: 1,264 miles
- Driving time: 22.4 hours
- Date founded: May 14, 1930
- 2024 visitors: 460,474 (#43 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 46,766.45 acres

#24. Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado)

- Distance: 1,265 miles
- Driving time: 24.1 hours
- Date founded: June 29, 1906
- 2024 visitors: 480,065 (#41 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 52,485.17 acres

#25. Arches National Park (Utah)

- Distance: 1,278 miles
- Driving time: 22.4 hours
- Date founded: November 12, 1971
- 2024 visitors: 1,466,528 (#20 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 76,678.98 acres

#26. Dry Tortugas National Park (Florida)

- Distance: 1,279 miles
- Driving time: 25.5 hours
- Date founded: October 26, 1992
- 2024 visitors: 84,873 (#55 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 64,701.22 acres

#27. Guadalupe Mountains National Park (Texas)

- Distance: 1,294 miles
- Driving time: 23.5 hours
- Date founded: October 15, 1966
- 2024 visitors: 226,134 (#52 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 86,367.10 acres

#28. Canyonlands National Park (Utah)

- Distance: 1,308 miles
- Driving time: 29.5 hours
- Date founded: September 12, 1964
- 2024 visitors: 818,492 (#27 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 337,597.83 acres

#29. White Sands National Park (New Mexico)

- Distance: 1,314 miles
- Driving time: 23.3 hours
- Date founded: December 20, 2019
- 2024 visitors: 702,236 (#33 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 146,344.31 acres

#30. Big Bend National Park (Texas)

- Distance: 1,358 miles
- Driving time: 25.8 hours
- Date founded: June 12, 1944
- 2024 visitors: 561,458 (#36 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 801,163.21 acres

#31. Capitol Reef National Park (Utah)

- Distance: 1,370 miles
- Driving time: 23.9 hours
- Date founded: December 18, 1971
- 2024 visitors: 1,422,490 (#23 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 241,904.50 acres

#32. Petrified Forest National Park (Arizona)

- Distance: 1,397 miles
- Driving time: 24.5 hours
- Date founded: December 9, 1962
- 2024 visitors: 559,254 (#37 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 221,390.21 acres

#33. Glacier National Park (Montana)

- Distance: 1,408 miles
- Date founded: May 11, 1910
- 2024 visitors: 3,208,755 (#10 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,013,126.39 acres

#34. Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)

- Distance: 1,438 miles
- Driving time: 26.1 hours
- Date founded: February 25, 1928
- 2024 visitors: 2,498,075 (#15 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 35,835.08 acres

#35. Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona)

- Distance: 1,481 miles
- Driving time: 27.8 hours
- Date founded: February 26, 1919
- 2024 visitors: 4,919,163 (#3 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,201,647.03 acres

#36. Zion National Park (Utah)

- Distance: 1,489 miles
- Driving time: 26.6 hours
- Date founded: November 19, 1919
- 2024 visitors: 4,946,592 (#2 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 147,242.66 acres

#37. Great Basin National Park (Nevada)

- Distance: 1,509 miles
- Driving time: 26.6 hours
- Date founded: October 27, 1986
- 2024 visitors: 152,068 (#54 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 77,180.00 acres

#38. Saguaro National Park (Arizona)

- Distance: 1,538 miles
- Driving time: 28.3 hours
- Date founded: October 14, 1994
- 2024 visitors: 946,369 (#26 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 92,876.75 acres

#39. Death Valley National Park (California, Nevada)

- Distance: 1,710 miles
- Driving time: 29.8 hours
- Date founded: October 31, 1994
- 2024 visitors: 1,440,484 (#21 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,408,395.63 acres

#40. North Cascades National Park (Washington)

- Distance: 1,736 miles
- Driving time: 34.5 hours
- Date founded: October 2, 1968
- 2024 visitors: 16,485 (#62 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 504,780.94 acres

#41. Joshua Tree National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,743 miles
- Driving time: 31.7 hours
- Date founded: October 31, 1994
- 2024 visitors: 2,991,874 (#11 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 795,155.85 acres

#42. Mount Rainier National Park (Washington)

- Distance: 1,768 miles
- Driving time: 33.0 hours
- Date founded: March 2, 1899
- 2024 visitors: 1,620,006 (#19 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 236,381.64 acres

#43. Kings Canyon National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,781 miles
- Driving time: 37.5 hours
- Date founded: March 4, 1940
- 2024 visitors: 699,389 (#34 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 461,901.20 acres

#44. Sequoia National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,798 miles
- Driving time: 36.4 hours
- Date founded: September 25, 1890
- 2024 visitors: 1,309,573 (#24 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 404,062.63 acres

#45. Yosemite National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,801 miles
- Driving time: 35.4 hours
- Date founded: October 1, 1890
- 2024 visitors: 4,121,807 (#6 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 761,747.50 acres

#46. Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)

- Distance: 1,826 miles
- Driving time: 33.5 hours
- Date founded: May 22, 1902
- 2024 visitors: 504,942 (#39 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 183,224.05 acres

#47. Lassen Volcanic National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,841 miles
- Driving time: 32.5 hours
- Date founded: August 9, 1916
- 2024 visitors: 357,651 (#47 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 106,589.02 acres

#48. Olympic National Park (Washington)

- Distance: 1,844 miles
- Driving time: 35.2 hours
- Date founded: June 29, 1938
- 2024 visitors: 3,717,267 (#8 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 922,649.41 acres

#49. Channel Islands National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,911 miles
- Date founded: March 5, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 262,581 (#50 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 249,561.00 acres

#50. Pinnacles National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,922 miles
- Driving time: 34.8 hours
- Date founded: January 10, 2013
- 2024 visitors: 354,076 (#48 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 26,685.73 acres

#51. Redwood National Park (California)

- Distance: 1,949 miles
- Driving time: 37.2 hours
- Date founded: October 2, 1968
- 2024 visitors: 622,883 (#35 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 138,999.37 acres

#52. Virgin Islands National Park (U.S. Virgin Islands)

- Distance: 2,101 miles
- Date founded: August 2, 1956
- 2024 visitors: 423,029 (#45 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 15,052.33 acres

#53. Glacier Bay National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,411 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 736,282 (#30 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,223,383.43 acres

#54. Wrangell–St. Elias National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,594 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 81,670 (#56 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 8,323,146.48 acres

#55. Kenai Fjords National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,857 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 419,468 (#46 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 669,650.05 acres

#56. Denali National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,869 miles
- Date founded: February 26, 1917
- 2024 visitors: 466,227 (#42 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 4,740,911.16 acres

#57. Gates of the Arctic National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,943 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 11,907 (#63 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 7,523,897.45 acres

#58. Lake Clark National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 2,977 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 18,505 (#60 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 2,619,816.49 acres

#59. Katmai National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 3,060 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 36,230 (#57 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 3,674,529.33 acres

#60. Kobuk Valley National Park (Alaska)

- Distance: 3,101 miles
- Date founded: December 2, 1980
- 2024 visitors: 17,233 (#61 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 1,750,716.16 acres

#61. Haleakalā National Park (Hawaii)

- Distance: 4,284 miles
- Date founded: July 1, 1961
- 2024 visitors: 732,477 (#32 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 33,488.98 acres

#62. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park (Hawaii)

- Distance: 4,292 miles
- Date founded: August 1, 1916
- 2024 visitors: 1,433,593 (#22 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 344,812.18 acres

#63. National Park of American Samoa (American Samoa)

- Distance: 6,631 miles
- Date founded: October 31, 1988
- 2024 visitors: 22,567 (#59 highest among all national parks)
- Park area: 8,256.67 acres

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