This Arizona national park is among most popular in US. Here's many people visited in 2024
Arizona is home to one of the most popular national parks in the United States, according to recently released visitation data.
Grand Canyon National Park had the third most visitors of any U.S. park in 2024, just behind Great Smoky Mountains and Zion national parks.
Each year, millions of people from across the world come to northern Arizona to marvel at the wonder of nature. In 2024, more than 4.9 million people visited the park. This is about 200,000 more than in 2023; it is also the most tourists since before the COVID-19 pandemic when visitation plummeted.
Here's what to know about the most visited national parks in Arizona and the United States.
Arizona is home to three national parks, though there are 19 other national monuments and historic sites. Here is how the national parks ranked for visitation in 2024:
Grand Canyon National Park: Ranked third in the U.S. with 4.9 million visitors.
Saguaro National Park: Ranked 26th in the U.S. with 950,000 visitors.
Petrified Forest National Park: Ranked 37th in the U.S. with 560,000 visitors.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee: 12.1 million
in Utah: 4.9 million
Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona: 4.9 million
Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming: 4.7 million
Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado: 4.1 million
Yosemite National Park in California: 4.1 million
Acadia National Park in Maine: 3.9 million
Olympic National Park in Washington: 3.7 million
Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming: 3.6 million
Glacier National Park in Montana: 3.2 million
Roughly 1,000 National Park Service employees were laid off around Valentine's Day as part of the Trump Administration's efforts to reduce the size of the federal government workforce.
Park advocates like the independent National Parks Conservation Association and Coalition to Protect National Parks warned that fewer staff will lead to a reduction in the level of service and ability to protect and share park resources. Some parks have already trimmed hours or offerings, and some park visitors have already reported longer waits to enter parks ahead of their busy season.
A National Park Service spokesperson told USA TODAY: 'As always, NPS will continue to provide critical services and deliver excellent customer service. Our teams are dedicated to staffing to meet the evolving needs of our visitors, ensuring memorable and meaningful experiences for all. We're committed to keeping access to national parks seamless, so that everyone can enjoy the beauty and wonder of these treasured landscapes across the country.'
Hundreds of protesters showed up at Grand Canyon National Park, Saguaro National Park and several other Arizona sites on March 1 as part of a series of nationwide rallies against the cuts.
USA TODAY reporters Kathleen Wong and Eve Chen contributed to this article.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: This Arizona national park is among most popular in US
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For the 2012 London Olympics, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko — who is still its authoritarian leader today — was denied a visa despite also leading its national Olympic body. The IOC also suspended him from the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021. ___ AP Sports Writer Beth Harris in Los Angeles contributed to this report. ___ AP soccer: and AP Olympics at
