Visit USA Travel Planner 2025 Intro

NATIONAL AND STATE PARKS

STEVE HARTRIDGE

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, ARIZONA A World Heritage Site regarded as one of the seven natural wonders of the world, the Grand Canyon never fails to leave you in awe, whether you’re a first-time or repeat visitor. From viewing points on the South Rim or the less-visited North, look down the gaping, multi-coloured chasm to the Colorado River a mile below. The adventurous can hike or take a mule ride

CUSTER STATE PARK, SOUTH DAKOTA The lakes and rolling grasslands of this 71,000-acre reserve in the Black Hills can be explored by car, bike or on foot. It is home to almost 1,400 American bison, which roam freely and can often be seen along the 18-mile Wildlife Loop Road, where the Custer State Park Bison Centre is located.

down to the bottom and go rafting or tubing on the Colorado river. VALLEY OF FIRE STATE PARK, NEVADA Nevada’s first state park, created in 1935, is just an hour’s drive from Las Vegas. Its name derives from the fiery red sandstone rock formations, which glow even brighter at sunrise and sunset. Highlights include Elephant Rock, Arch Rock and Fire

JOHN PENNEKAMP CORAL REEF STATE PARK, FLORIDA America’s first undersea park (1960) forms part of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. View the colourful corals on a glass-bottom boat or by snorkelling or diving.

Wave, while hiking trails go past other formations and to the prehistoric carved petroglyphs of Atlatl Rock. Stop off at the visitor centre to see exhibits about its geology, ecology and history.

PICTURED Main image: Sunset at Mather Point, Grand Canyon. Above: A waterfall in Watkins Glen State Park, in the Finger Lakes region of New York. Below: Grinnell Glacier is a remnant of the last ice age in Glacier National Park, Montana; Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park; Christ of the Abyss in Pennekamp State Park, Key Largo, Florida. The top of the statue is just ten feet from the surface, making it popular among snorkellers.

Maryland’s Assateague State Park is a barrier island famous for the wild horses frequently seen on its beaches and in its marshes

PETER W. CROSS

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

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