Olympic National Park Named Third-Best in United States

As I renewed my tabs a few weeks ago, I was given a prompt to pay an additional $30 for a Discover Pass. To this day, I've never grabbed a pass but I think I've been making a mistake this whole time. After all, one of the benefits of living in Washington is taking in its natural beauty, whether you're on the eastern or western sides of the state.

Photo by Jachan DeVol on Unsplash

Olympic National Park in Washington was named third best in the country by Travel Lens.

Travel Lens revealed their criteria for how they ranked their list; total size of the park, number of visitors, how much it costs to get in, how many reviews mentioned the word "beautiful," and how close the park is to the nearest city. I think Olympic National Park had a realistic shot at being number one if not for its $15 entrance fee, which sounds like a steal when you consider how beautiful it is.

Photo by Jake Blucker on Unsplash

Other Washington parks ranked high on the list.

Mt. Rainier National Park and North Cascades National Park ranked at #23 and #28, respectively. Of the Washington national parks, only North Cascades admits people in for free. One interesting note; Yellowstone National Park ranked #51.

RANKED: Here are the most popular national parks

To determine the most popular national parks in the United States, Stacker compiled data from the National Park Service on the number of recreational visits each site had in 2020. Keep reading to discover the 50 most popular national parks in the United States, in reverse order from #50 to #1. And be sure to check with individuals parks before you visit to find out about ongoing, pandemic-related safety precautions at www.nps.gov/coronavirus.

LOOK: Stunning vintage photos capture the beauty of America's national parks

Today these parks are located throughout the country in 25 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The land encompassing them was either purchased or donated, though much of it had been inhabited by native people for thousands of years before the founding of the United States. These areas are protected and revered as educational resources about the natural world, and as spaces for exploration.

Keep scrolling for 50 vintage photos that show the beauty of America's national parks.