The Optimal Itinerary for a US National Park Road Trip, Mapped

RANDY OLSON, a computer science and engineering Ph.D. candidate at Michigan State University, is a man who likes to design road trips. He has previously organized the ultimate US road trip and the best cross-Canada journey and, this time, Olson created an itinerary that would allow travelers to see every single national park in the 48 contiguous states without wasting any time (or stuffing their backpacks too full). Since Olson’s map was released in 2016, four new national parks have been added to the system. So Matador Network added them to a new map, creating the ultimate national park road trip.

Before you head out, stock up on the best backpacking gear for your epic trip — you’ll be glad you did.

Here is Olson’s original map form 2016:

Map: Randy Olson / Google

This ultimate national park road trip covers 16,847 miles and it would take you about two months to complete the loop if you’re going “at a breakneck speed.” In other words, you’d better take a few months off work before getting on the road.

This, of course, isn’t an exhaustive list of the national park system. There’s a national park (or national monument, or national forest) nearby just about everywhere there’s people in the US — as well as many places where there aren’t a whole lot of people. If you want to just find the closest national park regardless of where you are, there’s a map for that, too, that covers all 423 sites. Just make sure you have the proper entry permits for the type of activities you want to do no matter which park you go to. After all, there’s a national park that’s a good fit for just about every type of traveler.

Here’s Matador Network’s new ultimate national park road trip map:

Here’s a list of all the national parks included in this new itinerary. Note that you can start the trip at any stop in the loop.

• Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
• Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
• Saguaro National Park, Arizona
• Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas
• Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico
• White Sands National Park, New Mexico
• Big Bend National Park, Texas
• Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas
• Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky
• Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri
• Indiana Dunes National Park, Indiana
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee
• Everglades National Park, Florida
• Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida
• Biscayne National Park, Florida
• Congaree National Park, South Carolina
• Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
• New River Gorge National Park, West Virginia
• Acadia National Park, Maine
• Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
• Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
• Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota
• Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota
• Badlands National Park, South Dakota
• Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota
• Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
• Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Colorado
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado
• Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
• Canyonlands National Park, Utah
• Arches National Park, Utah
• Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
• Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
• Zion National Park, Utah
• Great Basin National Park, Nevada
• Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
• Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
• Glacier National Park, Montana
• North Cascades National Park, Washington
• Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
• Olympic National Park, Washington
• Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
• Redwood National and State Parks, California
• Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
• Yosemite National Park, California
• Kings Canyon National Park, California
• Sequoia National Park, California
• Pinnacles National Park, California
• Channel Islands National Park, California
• Joshua Tree National Park, California
• Death Valley National Park, California

To find out more about this particular itinerary and Olson’s research, visit his website.

A version of this article was previously published on May 26, 2017, and was updated on August 2, 2021, and March 3, 2022, with more information.