After the most beautiful cities in the Americas, it’s time for the most stunning national parks! From North to South America, including Central America, every country we traveled through revealed extraordinary places we never imagined existed. National parks play a crucial role in preserving ecosystems and local wildlife. Visiting them is not only a visual feast but also a way to support the protection of these untouched natural spaces. Because beyond breathtaking landscapes and wildlife, national parks offer a rare opportunity to experience nature in its purest, most preserved, and unspoiled form.
From the jungle to the desert, through mountains and the high Andean plateaus, here is our list of the 10 most beautiful national parks in the Americas!
Denali National Park, United States
Denali National Park taught us what true wilderness is. A beautiful and grandiose nature, wild and hostile, stretching as far as the eye can see, where humans pass through but do not stay. Out there, in this vastness, grizzlies, caribou, and moose roam freely, and one thing we’ve learned on this journey is that seeing animals in their natural habitat is an immense privilege. We visited twice—once in July 2022 at the beginning of our trip when nature was lush and green, and again in August 2024 on our way back, when the park’s landscapes were adorned with stunning autumn colors (yes, fall arrives early in the Far North!). Both times, we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Mount Denali, the highest peak in North America, standing at 6,190 meters.
Kenai Fjords National Park, United States
The Kenai Peninsula, or Alaska in all its splendor. Kenai Fjords National Park offered us some of the most stunning landscapes in this legendary American state. We visited twice—first in July 2022 and again in August 2024—to see the exact same scenery! But how could we ever get tired of it? Kenai is all about massive glaciers, spectacular ice fields, bays where whales and other marine mammals come to feed in the summer, and wild fjords untouched by human influence. Here, Nature reigns supreme and is protected, and that’s probably why Alaska is such a beautiful state.
Banff National Park, Canada
Arriving in the Canadian West for the first time is a real shock, a true one. In June 2022, at the very beginning of our journey, we discovered the famous Canadian Rockies. Never had we seen such beautiful, pure, and majestic mountains or such magnificent lakes. For three weeks, we hiked many trails to discover the most iconic spots in the park, like Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, and the Icefield Parkway, but also less visited places that are just as worthy of attention, like Paradise Valley.
Most of all, it was in Banff National Park that we were confronted, for the first time, with the most iconic inhabitant of the area: the grizzly. And the grizzly, we saw up close, very close… maybe even a little too close, during an emotional but unforgettable face-to-face encounter on a hiking trail. Memories that will forever be etched in our minds.
Canyonlands National Park, United States
Canyonlands is the American West as we had always dreamed of. The views of the canyon are breathtaking, and the reddish rock formations are iconic of Utah. The sunrise under Mesa Arch remains one of the most beautiful sunrises we have ever had the chance to admire!
Canyonlands National Park also offers extreme trails that allow you to explore the heart of the American West in your own expedition vehicle. The Shafer, Potash, and White Rim trails gave us the chance to experience incredible adventures, right next to the dizzying cliffs of the canyon, and spend nights far from civilization, in the impenetrable silence of the Utah desert.
The Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica
A radical change of atmosphere in Central America! The wild beaches of the Pacific coast stretching as far as the eye can see. A hiking trail far from any civilization, where we barely met anyone. River crossings for a bit of adventure. A lush, noisy jungle full of life. Animals everywhere: howler monkeys, spider monkeys, coatis, anteaters, frogs, macaws. Corcovado National Park is an isolated, wild, and sparsely visited park, unlike other overcrowded national parks in Costa Rica. Getting there requires effort, but the journey is absolutely worth it! We were mesmerized by the beauty of this park left untouched by man, with no infrastructure, where wildlife has the freedom to evolve peacefully.
The Cotopaxi National Park, Ecuador
Without a doubt, Cotopaxi is one of the most beautiful volcanoes we saw during the trip… and we saw many! With its perfect cone rising to 5,897 meters above sea level, it dominates the landscapes of the national park that bears its name. The volcano was particularly active when we were there, in October 2023, so we couldn’t make the trip to the summit. However, we still climbed up to 4,800 meters to reach the refuge and, beyond that, the impressive glacier of the volcano.
Huascarán National Park, Peru
Huascarán National Park is located in the heart of the Peruvian Cordillera Blanca. It contains some of the highest peaks in Peru, many of which rise above 6,000 meters! The highest of them all is Mount Huascarán, which reaches an altitude of 6,768 meters. Huascarán National Park is home to unreal-colored lakes, imposing glaciers, and dizzying roads typical of Peru. It is within this park that we trekked t</a>he stunning Santa Cruz trek, one of the most beautiful treks in South America. For three days and two nights, we crossed breathtaking valleys, climbed mountains, and passed a pass at 4,780 meters. Long and difficult days of walking at high altitude with lots of gear, but in the end, an unforgettable memory.
Eduardo Avaroa National Park, Bolivia
Eduardo Avaroa National Park, the most beautiful national park in the Americas? Perhaps! It is located in the Southern Lipez region, an iconic area in the south of Bolivia and one of the most beautiful places we visited during our journey across the Americas. Enchanting lagoons, incredible desert landscapes, tracks in the middle of nowhere, flamingos, and vicuñas: we spent a week exploring Southern Lipez and fell in love with this incredible Bolivian region.
Perito Moreno National Park, Argentina
Perito Moreno National Park, not to be confused with the Perito Moreno Glacier, is undoubtedly our favorite national park in Argentina. Far from the typical tourist routes in the country, it is well worth the detour. When we were there in March 2024, entry was free… and so was the night in the refuge! We took the opportunity to do a two-day trek in this incredible park, between glacial lakes with electric blue waters and stunning landscapes. And, to top it off: a warm night in a beautiful wooden refuge in the heart of nature.
Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina
It’s impossible to mention the most beautiful national parks in the Americas without mentioning Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina. It is one of the most well-known and visited parks in the country. And for good reason! This park is a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts. We did many incredible hikes there, whether for a day or several days, discovering the park’s iconic peaks, Cerro Torre and Fitz Roy, as well as the Patagonian Ice Field, one of the largest in the world.
Bonus: Grand Teton National Park, United States
The United States, the country par excellence for national parks. It’s in this country that we visited the most, and we could have listed 10 national parks just there. So as a bonus, Grand Teton National Park is one of the parks that impressed us the most. With its stunning rocky peaks illuminated by the rising sun, its beautiful hikes, and abundant wildlife, Grand Teton certainly deserves its place among the most beautiful national parks in the Americas. We visited it twice, once in September 2022 on the way to our road trip and a second time on the way back in July 2024.
