Congaree, Dry Tortugas national parks broke visitation records in 2023
Feb. 23 (UPI) -- The National Park Service announced its list of 20 parks that broke visitation records in 2023.
The agency reported a total of 325.5 million guests had visited some 400 of the nation's federally owned parks in 2023, an increase of 13 million people.
In a statement Thursday, National Park Service Director Chuck Sams said visitors to America's parks have been re-discovering the agency's hidden gems over the last year.
"From Kaloko Honokōhau National Historic Park in Hawai'i to Congaree National Park in South Carolina, parks are attracting more visitors each year to learn about our shared history," he said in a release.
The 20 parks that broke visitation records in 2023 are:
Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
Congaree National Park
Dry Tortugas National Park
Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument
John Muir National Historic Site
Joshua Tree National Park
Kaloko Honokōhau National Historic Park
Keweenaw National Historic Park
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
Lincoln Memorial
Longfellow House Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park
Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Memorial
Minidoka National Historic Site
Mojave National Preserve
New River Gorge National Park & Preserve
Nez Perce National Historic Park
Ninety Six National Historic Site
The National Park Service also compiled 15 of the least-visited national parks of 2023, which included Pinnacles National Park, Channel Islands National Park, Katmai National Park and Preserve, National Park of American Samoa and the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve.