Best U.S. National Parks for Soft-Adventure Travel

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Author Kristi Williams, Dunhill Travel Deals

A new study on behalf of Dunhill Travel Deals has identified the national parks that are best for soft-adventure travelers.

Few travel experiences are as closely associated with the American outdoors as a visit to a national park. From the geysers of Yellowstone to the granite cliffs of Yosemite and the subtropical wetlands of the Everglades, the nation’s 63 national parks preserve some of the country’s most recognizable landscapes while giving millions of visitors the opportunity to experience nature firsthand. Managed by the National Park Service, these parks balance recreation with the long-term protection of natural ecosystems, wildlife, and cultural resources.

While some visitors seek rugged backcountry experiences,

others are drawn to what the travel industry often describes as “soft adventure”—outdoor experiences that emphasize nature and exploration without requiring extensive physical exertion or sacrificing modern comforts. Instead of pitching a tent in a remote campsite, these travelers may choose alternatives ranging from glamping experiences to historic lodges, cabins or park-operated RV (recreational vehicle) campgrounds, where amenities such as comfortable beds, electricity and nearby services make spending the night outdoors more approachable. These accommodations also help broaden access to national parks, allowing families with young children, older adults, travelers with mobility limitations and first-time outdoor enthusiasts to experience some of the country’s most celebrated landscapes without the demands of traditional wilderness camping.

Researchers at Dunhill Travel Deals—a leading source for travel deal discovery—analyzed overnight stay data from the National Park Service’s 63 national parks across 32 states and U.S. territories to identify the destinations where visitors are most likely to choose accommodations associated with soft adventure travel, specifically in-park lodging and park-run RV camps. The analysis also examines how overnight visitation has changed since before the COVID-19 pandemic and explores the accommodation preferences shaping overnight stays across America’s national parks.

Trends in National Park Overnight Stays

National park overnight stay totals have not fully recovered to pre-pandemic highs

Sources:

Dunhill Travel Deals analysis of National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics data

Overnight stays at U.S. national parks have not yet returned to their pre-pandemic high. Across the nation’s 63 national parks, visitors logged about 9.7 million overnight stays in 2025, down 1.8% from 9.9 million in 2019 and 10.6% below the recent peak of 10.8 million in 2016. The sharpest disruption came in 2020, when overnight stays fell to less than 5.3 million as the COVID-19 pandemic prompted widespread travel restrictions, temporary park closures and reduced lodging capacity. Since then, overnight visitation has steadily recovered, climbing to 8.8 million stays in 2021 and reaching 9.7 million in 2025. With overnight demand remaining below pre-pandemic levels, travelers may find it easier to secure accommodations at some parks than during the record-setting visitation years of the late 2010s.

Not all overnight accommodations followed the same trajectory. While overall visitation declined sharply during the pandemic, park-run RV camping remained a relatively resilient option, maintaining a consistent share of overnight stays throughout the period. That stability mirrors broader travel trends during the pandemic, when many travelers turned to RVs as a way to vacation while limiting close contact with others and avoiding traditional hotels or air travel. Self-contained RVs allowed visitors to maintain physical distance and enjoy relative comfort while still accessing public lands, helping sustain demand for RV camping even as other forms of travel faced greater disruption.

How Visitors Stay in National Parks

While camping across all forms makes up the majority of stays, in-park lodging remains the top choice for national park visitors

Sources: Dunhill Travel Deals analysis of National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics data

Accommodation choices play an important role in shaping the national park experience. Whether visitors opt for a lodge, an RV campground or a backcountry campsite often reflects how they balance comfort, accessibility and immersion in nature. For travelers seeking a “soft adventure,” in-park lodging and developed campgrounds that accommodate RVs offer a way to experience the outdoors while maintaining access to amenities that can make national parks more accessible and enjoyable.

Camping in its many forms accounts for most overnight stays at U.S. national parks, but no single accommodation type is more popular than staying at an in-park lodge, hotel or cabin. In 2025, visitors recorded nearly 2.9 million overnight stays at in-park lodging facilities, representing almost 30% of all overnight stays across the nation’s 63 national parks. By comparison, park-run tent campgrounds accounted for about 2.3 million stays (23.9%), followed by park-run RV campgrounds with 1.6 million (16.6%), backcountry camping with 1.2 million (12.3%) and privately operated campgrounds with another 1.2 million (12.0%). Together, in-park lodging and park-run RV campgrounds accounted for roughly 4.5 million overnight stays—nearly half of all overnight accommodations in national parks—signaling a strong demand for soft-adventure options.

Where Are National Park Visitors Opting for Soft Adventure?

Visitors of national parks in Arkansas and western states most often stay at in-park lodging or park-run RV camps

Sources:

Dunhill Travel Deals analysis of National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics data

The preference for soft-adventure accommodations is strongest across the western United States, where many of the country’s largest and most visited national parks feature historic lodges and extensive developed campgrounds. Arkansas stands out as the lone exception outside the West, while much of the Midwest and Southeast recorded lower shares of overnight stays at in-park lodging or park-run RV campgrounds.

Arkansas ranked first, with 93.3% of overnight stays at Hot Springs National Park occurring in either in-park lodging or park-run RV campgrounds. Arizona followed at 65.1%, driven largely by overnight stays at the South Rim lodges and developed campgrounds in Grand Canyon National Park. Further north, states connected by Yellowstone National Park—North Dakota (64.4%), Montana (59.0%), and Wyoming (50.6%)—also ranked highly, although the park’s overnight stays are fully attributed to all three states. Idaho (58.9%), Nevada (54.5%), and Utah (52.5%) round out the states where more than half of overnight stays fell into these soft-adventure accommodation categories.

While state rankings highlight regional trends, the individual national parks behind those figures offer a closer look at where travelers are most likely to find soft-adventure accommodations. Not all national parks offer the same overnight experience. While some feature historic lodges, cabins and park-operated RV campgrounds, others provide only tent camping or backcountry sites, and several offer no overnight accommodations at all. For travelers planning a soft-adventure getaway, choosing a national park with the right mix of lodging and camping options can be just as important as selecting the destination itself. The parks below stand out for offering comfortable overnight accommodations that make it easier for visitors of all ages and abilities to experience some of the nation’s most remarkable landscapes.

Best U.S. National Parks for Soft-Adventure Travel

National park	Rank	State	Share of all national park stays at in-park lodging or park-run RV camps (2025)	Total national park stays at in-park lodging (2025)	Total national park stays at park-run RV camps (2025)	Total national park stays (2025)	Total national park stays (2019)	Percentage change in total national park stays (2019–2025)
Hot Springs National Park	1	AR	93.3%	0	31,944	34,240	25,706	+33.2%
Mesa Verde National Park	2	CO	71.0%	15,610	31,800	66,808	81,478	-18.0%
Bryce Canyon National Park	3	UT	68.7%	51,596	54,052	153,740	108,202	+42.1%
Grand Canyon National Park	4	AZ	65.3%	571,786	56,121	961,440	1,152,329	-16.6%
Theodore Roosevelt National Park	5	ND	64.4%	0	23,996	37,237	40,422	-7.9%
Yosemite National Park	6	CA	60.9%	666,379	264,908	1,528,346	1,549,795	-1.4%
Glacier National Park	7	MT	59.1%	107,227	123,525	390,524	399,925	-2.4%
Yellowstone National Park	8	WY, MT, ID	58.9%	692,725	37,261	1,238,983	1,337,747	-7.4%
Zion National Park	9	UT	57.8%	81,055	84,450	286,122	319,573	-10.5%
Death Valley National Park	10	CA, NV	57.5%	40,165	69,231	190,301	206,573	-7.9%
Wind Cave National Park	11	SD	56.0%	0	10,672	19,049	8,221	+131.7%
Sequoia National Park	12	CA	53.2%	69,341	65,715	253,809	301,510	-15.8%
Arches National Park	13	UT	52.4%	0	25,744	49,118	38,906	+26.2%
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve	14	AK	48.7%	17,525	0	36,018	37,141	-3.0%
Capitol Reef National Park	15	UT	45.9%	0	25,271	55,005	56,406	-2.5%
United States	–	N/A	46.4%	2,881,556	1,612,526	9,687,812	9,862,444	-1.8%

Methodology

Researchers at Dunhill Travel Deals analyzed data from the National Park Service’s 2025 National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics dataset to identify the U.S. national parks best suited for travelers seeking a “soft adventure” experience.

The analysis examined overnight stays across the National Park Service’s 63 national parks and calculated the share of all overnight stays occurring at in-park lodging (concessioner lodging) and park-run RV campgrounds (RV campers). These two accommodation types were selected because they offer visitors the opportunity to experience national parks while maintaining access to amenities and greater comfort than traditional backcountry camping.

The concessioner campers category was excluded from the analysis because it combines both RV and tent campers, making it impossible to isolate RV stays. State-level rankings include overnight stays from national parks that span multiple states, with each park’s overnight stays attributed to every state in which the park is located.

For additional context, researchers also calculated the total national park stays at in-park lodging, total national park stays at park-run RV camps, total national park stays in any accommodations for both 2019 and 2025, and the percentage change in total national park stays from 2019 to 2025.

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