For hikers and road trippers eager to see vibrant fall colors, many U.S. national parks have impressive displays this time of year. Makes sense—where there are trees, after all, there are usually leaves.
Of course, some trees have more potential for color than others, and some parks have more miles of trails to get you closer to more reds, oranges, and yellows.
To help narrow things down, the digital navigation platform onX, which provides maps and other resources for outdoor recreationists via a suite of mobile apps, has identified nine national parks that have the best fall foliage, according to the company’s research.
The company came up with the list by using the onX Hunt app’s “Deciduous Tree Layer” filter. With it, analysts found the national parks with the highest density of trees known for colorful leaves—oak, maple, hickory, birch, and so on.
The ranking also takes into account the amount of trail mileage in each park, ensuring that visitors can actually get to see a large proportion of the leaves on display.
And to help with trip timing, onX’s leaf-peeping pros relied on satellite imagery to determine when each park reached peak fall color in 2023 so that you can take that factor into account when planning your autumn travels for 2024. (Another key variable affecting fall foliage is the weather—click here to see what forecasters are predicting for this year).
Based on that criteria, onX ended up with a top nine that includes an intriguing mix of autumn standbys and underrated spots deserving more attention.
Below, you'll find the company's ranking of the best national parks by fall foliage potential, along with each park's total of trail miles, the types of trees you'll see there, and dates when each location reached peak autumn colors last year.
The Best National Parks to Visit for Fall Foliage, According to onX
- 1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee
- Trail miles: 1,025
- Tree types: oak, maple, beech, hickory, birch
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 2. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
- Trail miles: 664
- Tree types: oak, maple, birch, ash
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 3. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
- Trail miles: 311
- Tree types: hickory, maple, beech, aspen
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 4. Acadia National Park, Maine
- Trail miles: 186
- Tree types: oak, maple, birch, aspen
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 5. Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
- Trail miles: 186
- Tree types: aspen, birch, beech, elm, ash, cottonwood, oak
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 2–30
- 6. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota
- Trail miles: 157
- Tree types: aspen, birch, maple
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 7. Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky
- Trail miles: 76
- Tree types: oak, ash
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
- 8. New River Gorge National Park, West Virginia
- Trail miles: 73
- Tree types: oak
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–Nov. 13
- 9. Indiana Dunes National Park, Indiana
- Trail miles: 13
- Tree types: oak, ash, maple, beech
- 2023 peak fall dates: Oct. 16–30
Related: Frommer's favorite national parks to visit in fall
Pictured at top: Great Smoky Mountains National Park
