What Are the Least Crowded National Parks to Visit in Summer 2026?

Sticking to parks in the lower 48 states, the least crowded national parks during the summer are:

• North Cascades
• Great Basin
• Guadalupe Mountains
• Voyageurs
• Isle Royale
• Dry Tortugas
• Channel Islands
• Congaree

Summer crowds are becoming a bigger problem in our national parks, with reduced staffing and budgets, the removal of some reservation systems, and an increase in popularity from social media.

According to the National Park Service, in 2024, the national parks saw a record-breaking total of over 331 million visitors.

Even with 2025’s numbers that were slightly down from that record high, 26 parks still saw the most visitors ever.

Summer is when many parks are the most accessible, and since the kids are off from school, it’s natural that summer is the busy season.

I’ll talk about what makes a national park ‘uncrowded’ during the summer, and describe the eight parks above. Shaka Guide has self-guided driving tours for five of these parks, which makes it easy to plan a trip.

What makes a national park "uncrowded" in summer?

Parks are uncrowded in the summer either because of high temperatures, because they’re remote, or because limited infrastructure restricts their numbers year-round.

Some parks may get larger numbers of visitors but see a dip during the summer.

For instance, desert parks like Big Bend, Death Valley, and Saguaro see lower numbers during the summer because of the intensity of the summer heat. It’s just way more comfortable to visit during cooler months.

Trust me, I visited Big Bend in July, and I could only do about a mile of hiking at a time. It was just too hot and too dangerous to do any more.

And it’s a little spooky showing up to overlooks and trailheads with no other cars…in the middle of the desert! Comparatively, I visited Death Valley in November and avoided the famous record-breaking heat.

Badwater Basin was about 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and I actually needed a winter jacket up at Dante’s View, where it was in the 30s in the morning. The temperature makes a big difference!

Meanwhile, some parks have low visitation year-round, either because of their remoteness, the limited infrastructure or access available, or both.

All eight of these parks have low visitation year-round for these reasons. I’ll explain why below.

8 National Parks that stay quiet all summer

1. North Cascades, Washington

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• Best for: Backcountry hikers, alpine scenery seekers
• Visitors: Rarely over 10,000 a month during the summer.
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes! Of the scenic highway.

Highlight: Though only a few hours from Seattle, the North Cascades is a hinterland park, meaning the only people who visit are backcountry hikers or people who arrive by boat. There are incredible views of the Cascade Mountains, turquoise lakes, and snow that lingers until July. Most folks drive by on the North Cascades Scenic Highway.

Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes! Of the scenic highway.

2. Great Basin, Nevada

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• Best for: Stargazing beginners, hiking enthusiasts
• Visitors: Rarely tops 25 thousand a month in summer
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes!

Great Basin ranks as one of the most surprising national parks, with dark skies, Lehman Caves, and Nevada’s only glacier. Enjoy an alpine island surrounded by desert with easy trails and some of the oldest trees in the world, the bristlecone pine.

3. Guadalupe Mountains, Texas

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• Best for: Hiking enthusiasts, botanists
• Visitors: Fewer than 15 thousand a month during the summer.
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes!

More than 5,000 feet of elevation change in this relatively small park promises excellent hiking, a high level of biodiversity, and a surprising fall color display during the autumn in McKittrick Canyon. You can ascend the highest mountains in all of Texas. Just get an early start, right? This is summer in the Chihuahuan Desert after all.

4. Voyageurs, Minnesota

NPS Gallery

• Best for: Water lovers
• Visitors: Under 50,000 a month during the summer. Boats limit crowds naturally
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Not yet.

Find your own slice of Northwoods solitude at Voyageurs, a largely water-based park with endless lakes, rivers, and ponds. Enjoy kayaking, fishing, and camping about as far north as you can go in the lower 48 states.

5. Isle Royale, Michigan

Image from Flickr by Ray Dumas

• Best for: Campers, backcountry hikers, wildlife enthusiasts
• Visitors: Around 8,000 a month during July and August, fewer than that on the shoulder months.
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Not yet.

Situated on an island in the middle of Lake Superior, Isle Royale is only accessible via boat and has few amenities other than a small lodge. Once you’re on the island, enjoy the remote wilderness, which is the domain of the island’s moose and wolf populations.

6. Dry Tortugas, Florida

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• Best for: History buffs, solitude seekers, birdwatchers
• Visitors: Under 10,000 a month year-round.
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes!

Only accessible with a guided boat tour from Key West (or your own boat, if you brought one), Dry Tortugas protects a remote archipelago in the middle of the Gulf waters. The highlight is the crumbling ruins of Fort Jefferson, used during the Civil War as a prisoner camp.

7. Channel Islands, California

NPS Gallery

• Best for: Wildlife enthusiasts, water lovers
• Visitors: Typically under 40,000 a month during the summer
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Not yet.

Nicknamed “The Galapagos of North America,” the Channel Islands off the coast of southern California are only accessible via boat, including the park’s guided tours. Once on the islands, there are very few amenities. Visitors enjoy the hiking trails, as well as opportunities to view marine wildlife on a sea kayak. Some guided boat tours focus on viewing wildlife, including whales.

8. Congaree, South Carolina

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• Best for: Easy first-timers
• Visitors: 15,000 to 20,000 a month in the summer
• Shaka Guide Tour?: Yes

Take a walk on an elevated boardwalk through the largest old-growth bottomland forest in the United States. Oh, did I mention most of the park is in a floodplain? This swampy park has a reputation for mosquitoes and muddy trails. That’s when a canoe does the trick.

Honorable Mentions: More Quiet National Parks to Consider

Are some of these a little too remote? Gotcha. Here are some honorable mentions that have slightly bigger visitation numbers than these during the summer, but still have smaller crowds than the big hitters.

• Capitol Reef, Utah
• Lassen Volcanic, California
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado
• Theodore Roosevelt, North Dakota
• Pinnacles, California

How to avoid crowds at any national park this summer

Whatever national park you visit this summer, here are some tips on how to keep one step ahead of the biggest crowds.

1. Visit on weekdays instead of weekends

Weekdays typically see smaller numbers, as locals can also easily stop by their nearest national park on a weekend. And, most travelers organize their trips around weekends as well.

2. Arrive before 8 AM or after 3 PM

In parks like Pinnacles, you’ll notice that parking lots can fill up fast. The earlier you can enter a park, the better chance you’ll have of enjoying some quieter moments and claiming that coveted parking spot before someone else does.

Likewise, day trippers will be leaving late in the afternoon. If you come back around in the late afternoon or evening, you may enjoy some quiet moments again.

3. Skip the main trail — take the second trail

The park highlights are usually highlights for a reason. But sometimes the lesser-known areas of a park offer their own incredible views or trails. In Yosemite, everybody rightfully descends upon Yosemite Valley and Glacier Point. But go up on the alpine Tioga Pass, or to the beautiful Hetch Hetchy Valley, and you’ll find far, far fewer people.

4. Use a park planning app to check real-time conditions

The National Park Service has an app that includes the current conditions of its parks. Using the app may help you avoid frustration at closed or busy areas.

Frequently asked questions about uncrowded national parks

What is the #1 least-visited national park in the US?

Gates of the Arctic in Alaska has no roads, no trails, and no amenities whatsoever. It sees about 12,000 people a year.

Which national parks should beginners avoid in summer?

Yellowstone, Glacier, Grand Canyon, and Yosemite all see big, big numbers during the summer, because that’s when they’re the most accessible, and when everyone’s on vacation. Prices at hotels are high, traffic can be frustrating, and there are crowds nearly everywhere you want to go (unless you find that second trail, right?).

Do any national parks require reservations in summer?

The list changes every year, but yes, some parks will require a reservation during peak days, in addition to the park pass they charge to enter. Be sure to frequently check the National Park Service site of the park you’re interested in visiting several months before your trip.

What is the best month to visit national parks to avoid crowds?

For most national parks, the shoulder months of April and May, and September and October are the best months. Levels of accessibility may differ depending on the park, but for the most part, you’ll get acceptable or even good weather without the summer crowds.

Are free national parks more or less crowded?

Typically. Parks like the Great Smoky Mountains and the Cuyahoga Valley, which are free to enter and have multiple entry points, can get busy. But then, there’s also Gates of the Arctic, which doesn’t even have an entry gate, let alone a fee, and there’s nobody going out there.

Explore National Parks with Shaka Guide

And of course, don’t forget you can use Shaka Guide’s self-guided driving and walking tours as you explore national parks across the United States. We provide turn-by-turn directions, trip planning advice, and stories to connect you to the place’s people, animals, and land.

About the Writer: Matt Caracciolo

Matt Caracciolo is a travel writer based in Ohio and an author of  Shaka Guide tours. Born and raised in Columbus, Matt fell into travel writing while teaching English abroad in South Korea.

He has written two travel books, including the Moon Ohio guidebook, and enjoys writing and editing tours for Shaka Guide. Matt follows Mark Twain’s belief that “travel is fatal,” embracing travel as a way to learn more about the world and ourselves.

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