Yet you are here on a travel forum. LOL. |
So go to the less popular parks - they will be just as beautiful and far less crowded |
That's because I haven't got any homework to do or APs I should be studying for. |
yeah, have fun in Gates of the Arctic! |
There's a reason why people go to the crowded parks -- because there's stuff to do, but okay, you go ahead and plan a week at Gateway Arch National Park or Indiana Sand Dunes. Oh, and camp while you're at it. |
Gates of the Arctic is a tough destination, but it looks awesome. |
Staying in the hotel towns outside tha parks is fine. We had great trips. There are nice lodgings, restaurants. Driving to the park or the shuttle point is not a problem.
Get the $90 yearly park pass in advance you can get one online or at C&O Canal NHP, Great Falls, etc. Grand Canyon: Tusayan Holiday Inn Express & Suites note: try to eat dinner in the park at least once after sunset we lucked out and got El Tovar twice. Ambiance! Zion: Springdale Desert Pearl Inn simply wonderful get river view room looking at the red rock Bryce: Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Note: here, try to eat dinner in the park lodge at least once, we did both nights Glacier: Kalispell Hilton Garden Inn look around there are several to choose from in each town |
Agreed - but so dang expensive to get to. It's still on my bucket list though. Maybe someday! |
Note to augment the above : imo Death Valley is much enhanced by staying at Furnace Creek |
This is a consequence of the US getting so much richer than the rest of the world. The way to win is to earn in US$ and spend abroad. Once you have sucked up the air fare the rest is all gravy. Example: only a fool would now ski in the US. |
Also a consequence of the rest of the world coming to see these well known national parks as well. |
Attendance will go down when the dollar is strong and airfare prices go up more. There are a ton of foreign vusitors at the popular park (and also at disney! I swear that off season half the guests at disney are from abroad).
I highly recommend also looking at state parks. For instance, in the SW instead of gojng to NP Carlsbad Caberns, go to Katcher Caverbs state park which is a better preserved cavern system. Also.if you are in the DMV, think about late August when most kids in this country are back in school already and it’s too hot for the Europeans. We went to Yosemite one year and Yellowstone another and got in park reservations and it was not super crowded. The NP system always has cancelllatoons so it’s worth checking periodically — we scored rooms in El Tovar Su tie at the Grand Canyon three days before our trip. And got a room in old faithful inn through a cancellation a couple weeks before our trip. |
I think a lot of people think of what national parks were like when they were teens. But there were at least 60 million fewer Americans back then. (And our current population figures probably don't include some of your coworkers and friends and neighbors, because of various difficulties inherent in tracking such numbers.)
In short, you're sharing the parks with A LOT more people than when you were a kid. They're never gonna feel as empty again as they did when you were younger. |
Your privilege is showing. |
If anything the costs will rise as more parks have to implement timed tickets, etc. |