Monday newsletters always feature top 10 travel lists to inspire.

The first National Park was founded in 1872, when US President Ulysses S. Grant signed a pact, establishing Yellowstone National Park in Montana and Wyoming “as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people” and placed it “under exclusive control of the Secretary of the Interior”. The idea quickly spread, and today, there are more than 1,000 national parks in over 100 nations, protecting sites of dazzling natural beauty, geographic wonders, and unique flora and fauna, that are open to the public and not altered by man. Though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, here’s my selection of the world’s most magnificent National Parks (or at leasts those parks that impressed me the most during my extensive travels around the globe).

There is more information below the slide show. Think I missed one? Leave a comments!

*** Follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter or Facebook for a daily moment of travel inspiration ***

10. CANAIMA NATIONAL PARK, VENEZUALA

Canaima National Park is the sixth-largest National Park in the world, spread over 3 million hectares in south-eastern Venezuela along the border between Guyana and Brazil. The majority of the park’s surface is covered by table mountains (tepui) which form a fabulous landscape of sheer cliffs and waterfalls. The tepuis are of great geological interest as they represent unique biogeological entities. Canaima is also home to Angels Falls, which is the world’s highest waterfall (979 m or 3211 ft). The falls are named after Jimmy Angel, an American bush pilot and gold-hunting adventurer, who discovered the in 1937. The height of the falls is so great that before getting anywhere near the ground, the water is atomized by the strong winds and turned into mist.

• Official website: Canaima
• Other accolades: Canaima also features in my top 10 list of the world’s most spectacular waterfalls.

9. KAKADU NATIONAL PARK, AUSTRALIA

Kakadu National Park is Australia’s largest National Park, covering a wilderness area that’s nearly half the size of Switzerland! This timeless place, located a three hours’ drive from Darwin in the Northern Territory, is recognized as a global treasure, UNESCO World Heritage listed for both its environment and living Aboriginal culture. Aboriginal people have lived here for more than 50,000 years, representing the oldest living culture on earth. The park is also famous for its thundering waterfalls, lush rainforests, and wandering wetlands. Exotic wildlife includes 280 different types of birds (around a third of all the bird species in Australia) and its 10,000 crocodiles (which are abundantly present in Cahill’s Crossing and Yellow Water Wetlands).

• Official website: Kakadu
• Other accolades: Kakadu also features in my top 10 list of most epic once-in-a-lifetime trips.

8. CORCOVADO NATIONAL PARK, COSTA RICA

The National Park of Corcovado, located on the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica’s southwest corner, is one of the most intense biological places on earths, and the wild beauty of its old-growth wet forests, cloud forests, mangrove swamps, and deserted beaches is breathtaking. The heart of this national park, around the Serena Ranger Station, is teeming with tropical wildlife, such as Red Macaws, tapirs, quetzals, red-eyed tree frogs, boa constrictor boas and various species of monkeys to name just a few. Call yourself extremely lucky when you spot a mountain lion or jaguar hunting for turtles, encounter a tapir on the beach, walk into a herd of peccaries (sainos) or observe the fins of a bull shark when it enters the rivers along the beach.

• Official website: Corcovado
• Other accolades: Corcovado also features in my top 10 lists of the world’s best wildlife adventures and the world’s most spectacular scenery.

7 YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, USA

Yellowstone was established in 1872 as America’s first National Park – an idea that spread worldwide – to protect the majority of the earth’s geysers, as well as other thermal wonders that make up an otherworldly landscape composed of steam, bubble, and boiling mud. Located largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho, Yellowstone’s vast wilderness includes mountain ranges, lakes, waterfalls and geologic wonders like the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River. Grand Teton National Park, located just south of Yellowstone, offers even more amazing scenery. The main reason for most tourists to visit Yellowstone is to observe the amazing wildlife: grizzly and black bear, bison, bighorn sheep, elk and moose roam the plans and valleys.

• Official website: Yellowstone and  Grand Teton
• Other accolades: Yellowstone and Grand Teton also feature in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the world’s most spectacular scenery, the most epic once-in-a-lifetime trips, and the world’s best wildlife adventures.

6. FIORDLAND NATIONAL PARK, NEW ZEALAND

Fiordland National Park on New Zealand’s Southern Island was established in 1952 and is part of the larger Te Wāhipounamu wilderness, a UNESCO World Heritage Area. Covering 1.2 million hectares, Fiordland National Park is home to lush rainforests, pristine rivers, crystal clear lakes, mighty cliffs, snow-capped summits, majestic ice-carved fiords, and unique flora and fauna that has been in existence since New Zealand was part of the supercontinent Gondwanaland. Even on the frequent rainy days, the scenery is spectacular, with entire valley walls turning into thundering waterfalls. Highlight is the stunning Milford Sound with Mitre Peak, rising 1692 m (5551 ft) above sea level and one of the most photographed peaks in the country.

• Official website: Fiordland
• Other accolades: Fiordland also features in my top 10 lists of the most epic once-in-a-lifetime trips, the world’s most beautiful roads, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the world’s most epic hikes.

5. YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, USA

First protected in 1864 and one of the first parks in the National Park Service, California’s Yosemite is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The park’s central feature is Yosemite Valley, which is surrounded by towering granite summits, densely forested with pines, and spectacular waterfalls. But the Park is so much more than just a great valley with waterfalls: within Yosemite’s vast wilderness area, you find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and more than 800 miles (1300 km) of spectacular hikes. The park has a distinct appeal no matter what time of year: spring brings gushing waterfalls, summer allows for tackling all outdoor pursuits, fall boasts colorful trees and fewer crowds, and winter becomes a snowy wonderland for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

• Official website: Yosemite
• Other accolades: Yosemite also features in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the world’s most spectacular waterfalls, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the best once-in-a-lifetime trips.

4. SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK, TANZANIA

Tanzania’s oldest and most popular National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was recently proclaimed a 7th world-wide wonder. The Serengeti is famous for its annual Great Migration, a 1,200-mile odyssey of 1.5 million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras, all of them chasing the rains in a race for life, while being purchased by an incredible amount of predators. Your chances of watching a kill are pretty high when you visit the area in the right season, when 40 km (25 mile) long columns of animals plunge through crocodile-infested waters on the annual exodus north (June) or when they replenish their species in a brief population explosion that produces more than 8,000 calves daily (February).

• Official website: Serengeti
• Other accolades: the Serengeti also features in my top 10 lists of the best once in a lifetime trips and the world’s best wildlife adventures.

3. GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, USA

The one million acre Glacier National Park wilderness area is located in the state of Montana and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. The Park, not to be confused with Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park, was established in 1910 to preserve its pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, glacially carved valleys, and spectacular lakes. Its diverse habitats support healthy populations of grizzly & black bears, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, moose, wolverines, wolves and mountain lions. With over 740 miles (1200 km) of trails, Glacier is a hiker’s paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude.

• Official website: Glacier
• Other accolades: Glacier also features in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the best once-in-a-lifetime trips, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the world’s most beautiful roads.

2. NAMIB-NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK, NAMIBIA

One of the most scarcely populated countries in the world, Namibia is not the right place to get lost. But it is a top destination for those who enjoy unrivaled natural scenery and wildlife viewing. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Namib-Naukluft National Park, the largest game park in Africa, encompassing part of the Namib Desert (considered the world’s oldest desert) and the Naukluft mountain range. The most spectacular area of the park is Sossusvlei and Deadvlei, home to otherworldly looking landscapes with black tree skeletons and red colored dunes, which rank amongst the highest in the world (the highest being the one nicknamed Big Daddy, about 380 m or 124 ft high).

• Official website: Namib-Naukluft
• Other accolades: Namib-Naukluft also features in my top 10 lists of the best things to see & do on Namibia, the best once-in-a-lifetime trips and the world’s most spectacular scenery.

1. TORRES DEL PAIN NATIONAL PARK, CHILE

Declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1978, the Torres del Paine National Park (situated in the Magallanes 12th region in Chile) is internationally recognized as one of the planet’s most uncontaminated. Its breathtaking natural beauty includes vertical granite peaks, immense rivers of ice, wind-swept plains and native beech forest that is home to guanacos, foxes, and pumas. While the most spectacular views will require a bit of effort, anyone can enjoy the park’s main landmarks by driving around, although multiday trekkings are the real thing here. Don’t miss the sunrise, when the horns of the Torres del Paine Massif turn purple and then red.

• Official website: Torres Del Paine
• Other accolades: Torres Del Paine also features in my top 10 lists of the most spectacular scenery in the world, the best once-in-a-lifetime trips, the world’s most epic hikes, and the most amazing places to visit in South America.

*** Follow me on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter or Facebook for a daily moment of travel inspiration ***

The post Top 10 most beautiful National Parks in the world appeared first on the Luxury Travel Expert.

Monday newsletters always feature top 10 travel lists to inspire.

The first national park was founded in 1872, when US President Ulysses S. Grant signed a pact, establishing Yellowstone National Park in Montana and Wyoming “as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people” and placed it “under exclusive control of the Secretary of the Interior”. The idea quickly spread, and today, there are more than 1,000 national parks in over 100 nations, protecting sites of dazzling natural beauty, geographic wonders, and unique flora and fauna, that are open to the public and not altered by man. Though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I hereby present you my selection of the world’s most magnificent national parks (those that impressed me the most during my extensive travels around the globe).

There is more information below the slide show. Think I missed one? Share your favorite National Park in the comments section, or take my poll below!

*** Follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for a daily moment of travel inspiration ***

10. CANAIMA NATIONAL PARK, VENEZUALA

Canaima National Park is spread over 3 million ha in south-eastern Venezuela along the border between Guyana and Brazil. The majority of the park’s surface is covered by table mountains (tepui) which form a fabulous landscape of sheer cliffs and waterfalls. The tepuis are of great geological interest as they represen unique biogeological entities. Canaima is also home to Angels Falls, which is the world’s highest waterfall (979 m or 3211 ft). The falls are named after Jimmy Angel, an American bush pilot and gold-hunting adventurer, who discovered the in 1937. The height of the falls is so great that before getting anywhere near the ground, the water is atomized by the strong winds and turned into mist.

• Official website: Canaima National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Canaima National Park also features in my top 10 list of the world’s most spectacular waterfalls.

9. KAKADU NATIONAL PARK, AUSTRALIA

Kakadu National Park is Australia’s largest national park, covering almost 20,000 square kilometres. That’s nearly half the size of Switzerland! This timeless place, located a 3 hour drive from Darwin in the Northern Territory, is recognised as a global treasure, World Heritage listed for both its environment and living Aboriginal culture. Aboriginal people have lived here for more than 50,000 years, representing the oldest living culture on earth. The park is famous for its 280 different types of birds (around a third of all the bird species in Australia) and its 10,000 crocodiles, which are abundantly present in Cahill’s Crossing and Yellow Water Wetlands.

• Official website: Kakadu National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Kakadu National Park also features in my top 10 list of trips of a lifetime.

8. CORCOVADO NATIONAL PARK, COSTA RICA

The National Park of Corcovado, located on the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica’s southwest corner, is one of the most intense biological places on earths, and the beauty of its old-growth wet forests, cloud forests, mangrove swamps, and wild beaches is beyond words. The heart of this national park, around the Serena Ranger Station, is teeming with tropical wildlife, such as Red Macaws, tapirs, quetzals, red-eyed tree frogs, boa constrictor boas and various species of monkeys to name just a few. Call yourself extremely lucky when you spot a mountain lion or jaguar on the beach hunting for turtles, but be careful for herds of voracious peccaries in the dark jungle.

• Official website: Corcovado National Park (Spanish)
• Other top 10 accolades: Corcovado National Park also features in my top 10 lists of the world’s best wildlife adventures and the world’s most spectacular scenery.

7 YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, USA

Yellowstone was established in 1872 as America’s first national park – an idea that spread worldwide – to protect the majority of the earth’s geysers, as well as other thermal wonders that make up an otherworldly landscape composed of steam, bubble, and boiling mud. Besides thermal features, Yellowstone’s vast wilderness includes mountain ranges, lakes, waterfalls and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Grand Teton National Park, located just south of Yellowstone, offers even more amazing scenery. The main reason of most tourists for visiting Yellowstone is to observe the amazing wildlife: grizzly and black bear, bison, bighorn sheep, elk and moose roam the plans and valleys.

• Official website: Yellowstone National Park and  Grand Teton National PArk
• Other top 10 accolades: Yellowstone and Grand Teton also feature in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the world’s most spectacular scenery, the best once in a lifetime trips, and the world’s best wildlife adventures.

6. FIORDLAND NATIONAL PARK, NEW ZEALAND

Fiordland National Park on New Zealand’s Southern Island was established in 1952 and has international World Heritage status as part of Te Wāhipounamu, South West New Zealand World Heritage Area. This is the kind of landscape that gives hobbits wet dreams, with lush rainforests, pristine rivers, crystal clear lakes, mighty cliffs, snow-capped summits, and majestic ice-carved fiords. Even on the frequent rainy days, the scenery is spectacular, with entire valley walls turning into thundering waterfalls. Highlight is the stunning Milford Sound with Mitre Peak, rising 1692 m (5551 ft) above sea level and one of the most photographed peaks in the country.

• Official website: Fiordland National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Fiordland National Park also features in my top 10 lists of the best once in a lifetime trips, the world’s most beautiful roads, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the world’s most epic hikes.

5. YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, USA

First protected in 1864 and one of the first parks in the National Park Service, California’s Yosemite is a World Heritage site. The park’s central feature is Yosemite Valley, which is surrounded by towering granite summits, densely forested with pines, and famous its spectacular waterfalls. But the Park is so much more than just a great valley with waterfalls; it’s a shrine to human foresight, the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, the persistence of life, and the tranquility of the High Sierra. Within Yosemite’s vast wilderness area, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and more than 800 miles (1300 km) of spectacular hikes.

• Official website: Yosemite National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Yosemite also features in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the world’s most spectacular waterfalls, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the best once in a lifetime trips.

4. SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK, TANZANIA

Tanzania’s oldest and most popular national park, also a world heritage site and recently proclaimed a 7th world-wide wonder, the Serengeti is famed for its annual Great Migration, a 1,200-mile odyssey of 1.5 million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras, all of them chasing the rains in a race for life, while being purchased by an incredible amount of predators. Your chances of watching a kill are pretty high when you visit the area in the right season, when 40km (25 mile) long columns of animals plunge through crocodile-infested waters on the annual exodus north (June) or when they replenish their species in a brief population explosion that produces more than 8,000 calves daily (February).

• Official website: Serengeti National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Serengeti National Park also features in my top 10 lists of the best once in a lifetime trips and the world’s best wildlife adventures.

3. GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, USA

The one million acre Glacier National Park wilderness area is located in the state of Montana and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. The Park, not to be confused with Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park, was established in 1910 to preserve its pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, glacially carved valleys, and spectacular lakes. Its diverse habitats support healthy populations of grizzly & black bears, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, moose, wolverines, wolves and mountain lions. With over 740 miles (1200 km) of trails, Glacier is a hiker’s paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude.

• Official website: Glacier National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Glacier also features in my top 10 lists of the most beautiful National Parks in the USA, the best once in a lifetime trips, the world’s most spectacular scenery, and the world’s most beautiful roads.

2. NAMIB-NAUKLUFT NATIONAL PARK, NAMIBIA

One of the most scarcely populated countries in the world, Namibia is not the right place to get lost. But it is a top destination for those who enjoy unrivaled natural scenery and wildlife viewing. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Namib-Naukluft National Park, the largest game park in Africa, encompassing part of the Namib Desert (considered the world’s oldest desert) and the Naukluft mountain range. The most spectacular area of the park is Sossusvlei and Deadvlei, home to unearthy looking landscapes with black tree skeletons and red coloured dunes, which rank amongst the highest in the world (the highest being the one nicknamed Big Daddy, about 380 m or 124 ft high).

• Official website: Namib-Naukluft National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Namib-Naukluft National Park also features in my top 10 list of the best once in a lifetime trips and the world’s most spectacular scenery.

1. TORRES DEL PAIN NATIONAL PARK, CHILE

Declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1978, the Torres del Paine national park (situated in the Magallanes 12th region in Chile) is internationally recognized as one of the planet’s most uncontaminated. Its spectacular, beauty includes vertical granite peaks, immense rivers of ice, wind-swept plains and native beech forest that is home to guanacos, foxes, and pumas. While the most spectacular views will require a bit of effort, anyone can enjoy the park’s main landmarks by driving around, although multiday trekkings are the real thing here. Don’t miss the sunrise, when the horns of the Torres del Paine Massif turn purple and then red.

• Official website: Torres Del Paine National Park
• Other top 10 accolades: Torres Del Paine National Park also features in my top 10 lists of the most spectacular scenery in the world, the best once in a lifetime trips, the world’s most epic hikes, and the most amazing places to visit in South America.

*** Follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for a daily moment of travel inspiration ***

The post Top 10: the world’s most beautiful National Parks appeared first on the Luxury Travel Expert.

Today (August 11, 2014): Top 10: most beautiful National Parks of the USA.

The United States of America is fortunate to have an abundance of gorgeous places to visit, with the majestic National Parks rightfully being atop the bucket list of most tourists. Whether you are enjoying the shorelines of the East Coast, traveling along the magnificent West Coast, or hiking in the majestic Rockies, there are more than enough opportunities to explore the great outdoors in one of these spectacular parks. All National Parks, 58 in total, represent an extraordinary variety of pristine natural environments and ranking them would be unfair since they all offer different experiences. Nonetheless, I hereby present you my top 10 list of the most beautiful National Parks of the USA, based on overall scenery, wildlife viewing, hiking opportunities, and our own experience.

There is more information below the slide show. Think I missed one? Share your favorite National Park in the comments section, or take my poll below!

*** Follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for a daily moment of travel inspiration ***

10. GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK (ARIZONA)

A powerful and inspiring landscape, Grand Canyon National Park is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States (so be prepared to share it with the crowds). Unique combinations of geologic color and erosional forms carved by the Colorado River decorate a canyon that is 277 river miles (446km) long, up to 18 miles (29km) wide, and a mile (1.6km) deep. The Grand Canyon reveals nature’s sheer force with its towering buttes, pinnacles and mesas, and its immense size leaves many visitors weak in the knees. Another way to weaken your knees is to hike to the canyon’s floor, an incredible adventure not to be undertaken lightly (especially not in a single day).

• Official website: Grand Canyon NP
• Highlights: Bright Angel Trail,  North Kaibab Trail, rafting on the Colorado River, and the many vistas along the North and South Rim.

9. DENALI NATIONAL PARK (ALASKA)

Denali is six million acres of wild land, bisected by one ribbon of road, where solitude, tranquility and wilderness await. Travelers to Denali will see the relatively low-elevation taiga forest give way to high alpine tundra and snowy mountains, culminating in North America’s tallest peak, 20,237 feet or 6,168 m high Mount McKinley (unfortunately obscured by clouds 4 out of 5 days). Wild animals, large and small, roam unfenced lands, living as they have for ages, creating outstanding opportunities for spotting them, like the occasional grizzly bear along the road, herds of caribou on the plains and dall sheep high on the cliffs.

• Official website: Denali Canyon NP
• Highlights: Park Road, Mount McKinley, Alpine  tundra scenery, and wildlife viewing.

8. YELLOWSTONE (WYOMING, MONTANA & IDAHO)

Yellowstone was established in 1872 as America’s first national park – an idea that spread worldwide – to protect the majority of the earth’s geysers, as well as other thermal wonders that make up an otherworldly landscape composed of steam, bubble, and boiling mud. Besides thermal features, Yellowstone’s vast wilderness includes mountain ranges, lakes, waterfalls and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. The main reason of most tourists for visiting Yellowstone is observing the amazing wildlife: grizzly and black bear, bison, bighorn sheep, elk and moose roam the plans and valleys. Unfortunately, you will have to share Yellowstone’s wonders with many other visitors.

• Official website: Yellowstone NP
• Highlights: Old Faithful geyser and other thermal features, the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, Mammoth Hot Springs, and wildlife viewing in the Lamaar Valley.

7. HALEAKALA NATIONAL PARK (HAWAII)

Atop this volcano, located on Hawaii’s second largest island Maui, you can hike above the clouds across an otherworldly desert (is this the planet Mars?) with incredible vistas towards the Pacific Ocean. The park also cares for endangered species, some of which exist nowhere else, such as the Nene (Hawaiian goose). Perhaps just as spectacular are Haleakala’s world-famous sunsets are the bright, starry skies revealed at night. As the park stretches out towards the sea, the desolate volcanic landscape gives way to lush bamboo forests and thundering waterfalls.

• Official website: Haleakala National Park
• Highlights: watching the sunrise or sunset atop Haleakala peak, hiking in the crater, and Pools of Oheo area.

6. ZION NATIONAL PARK (UTAH)

At Zion National Park, forces of nature have come together creating one of the American West’s most dramatic cliff-and-canyon scenery, that offers almost unlimited opportunities for hiking, camping, canyoning, and other wilderness experiences.  The main valley boasts some of the most iconic hikes in the National Park system, such as the (in)famous Angels Landing hike along a frighteningly narrow ridge, from where you can gaze up at massive sandstone cliffs of cream, pink, and red that soar into a brilliant blue sky. Wildlife such as mule deer, golden eagles, and mountain lions, also inhabit the Park.

• Official website: Glacier Bay NP
• Highlights: Angel’s Landing day hike, The Great White Throne monolith, and the Narrows slot canyon.

5. GLACIER BAY NATIONAL PARK (ALASKA)

Covering 3.3 million acres of rugged mountains, dynamic glaciers, temperate rainforest, wild coastlines, and deep fjords, Glacier Bay National Park is a highlight of Alaska’s Inside Passage and part of a 25-million acre World Heritage Site (one of the world’s largest protected areas). Long before global warming became a headline, the glaciers of Glacier Bay began a rapid retreat, which has created a 65-mile (104 mk) fjord of spectacular beauty that is still dominated by numerous large glaciers that cascade down from the surrounding mountain peaks. The most spectacular summer residents of Glacier Bay are the humpback and killer whales, and it’s easy to spot them.

• Official website: Glacier Bay NP
• Highlights: boat trip to the glaciers (often part of  cruise liner’s itinerary through the Inside Passage), kayaking with whales (this activity also features in my top 10 list of the world’s best wildlife holidays), and hiking in Barlett Cove.

4. OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK (WASHINGTON)

Olympic National Park is a land of such variety in climate and terrain that it’s hard to believe it’s just one park. It’s more like many magical parks in one.  A day’s exploration can take you from spectacular Pacific Ocean beaches with colorful tide pools to inspiring mountain scenery dotted with massive glaciers and alpine meadows of wildflowers. In addition, in the heart of Olympic National Park, you can hike through some of the largest remnants of ancient sopping-wet rainforests left in the USA. We suggest to take some time to explore its different faces, and to escape from the outside world in the largely untouched forests, the beautiful mountains, and desolate, wild beaches.

• Official website: Olymic NP
• Highlights: Hurricane Ridge, Ruby Beach, and the Hoh Rain Forest.

3. GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK (WYOMING)

Spectacular Grand Teton National Park is located just south of its more famous sibling Yellowstone. Rising above a flat valley rich with extraordinary wildlife and pristine lakes, the Teton Range stands monument to the people who fought to protect it. These are mountains of imagination, where you can explore over 200 miles (320 km) of trails, float the Snake River, observe grizzly bears and moose, or enjoy the serenity of this remarkable place. One of the convenient features of Grand Teton National Park is that it’s not a huge park (with less crowds as) compared to its neighbour Yellowstone, so everything is fairly close together and doesn’t require a lot of driving.

• Official website: Grand Teton NP
• Highlights: Grand Teton peaks, Jackson Lake,  trail to Inspiration Point & Hidden Falls, and wildlife viewing.

2. YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (CALIFORNIA)

First protected in 1864 and one of the first parks in the National Park Service, California’s Yosemite is a World Heritage site. The park’s central feature is Yosemite Valley, which is surrounded by towering granite summits, densely forested with pines, and its famous spectacular waterfalls. But the Park is so much more than just a great valley with waterfalls; it’s a shrine to human foresight, the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, the persistence of life, and the tranquility of the High Sierra. Within Yosemite’s vast wilderness area, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and more than 800 miles (1300 km) of spectacular hikes.

• Official website: Yosemite NP
• Highlights: granite monoliths of Half Dome and El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, giant sequoias, Tioga Pass, John Muir day hike.

1. GLACIER NATIONAL PARK (MONTANA)

The one million acre Glacier National Park wilderness area is located in the state of Montana and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. The Park, not to be confused with Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park (see above), was established in 1910 to preserve its pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, glacially-carved valleys, and spectacular lakes. Its diverse habitats support healthy populations of grizzly & black bears, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, moose, wolverines, wolves and mountain lions. With over 740 miles (1200 km) of trails, Glacier is a hiker’s paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude.

• Official website: Glacier NP
• Highlights: Going-To-The-Sun Road scenic drive (this drive also features in my top 10 list of the world’s most beautiful roads), the Highline day hike, Many Glacier area trails, and wildlife viewing.

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