U.S. National Park Series (6) – Grand Teton National Park

Most people visit Grand Teton and Yellowstone in one trip. We are no exception. These two national parks are so close to each other. The Yellowstone National Park entrance ticket actually also covers Grand Teton. 

Yellowstone is a national park that you always discover new surprises and always see tourists. Grand Teton, on the other hand, makes you feel quiet, relax, and peaceful. You also won’t see so many tourists, which allows you to enjoy the nature even more. 

U.S. National Park Series (5) – Yellowstone National Park

Everybody knows about Yellowstone national park and everybody wants to go there. That’s why you always see a lot of tourists in Yellowstone no matter when you go visit the park.

I love Yellowstone national park. Though it’s famous for its world’s largest collection of geysers, you will find out it’s actually much more than that – the Grand Canyon, waterfalls, mountains, and hot springs – you won’t be bored.

U.S. National Park Series (4) – Great Smokey Mountain National Park

Several years ago, I saw some pictures taken in the Great Smokey Mountain National park and fell love with the park the moment I saw those pictures. I finally went there in 2007 and it was just as beautiful as I thought it should be. No wonder it’s America’s most visited national park.
 

When to Visit

The park is open 365 days a year but I will definitely recommend visiting there in autumn. Specifically, you may want to check the fall foliage calendar to make sure you don’t miss the fall colors there. 

U.S. National Park Series (3) – Everglades National Park

Everglades National Park is one of the three national parks in Florida. It’s famous for its wetlands, American crocodiles, and mosquitoes (haha, kidding; but there are a lot of mosquitoes in Everglades for sure. Do bring insect repellents if you plan to go there.) 

Everglades has several different entrances. We went there from the Homestead entrance and drove all the way to the Flamingo visitor center, which is 38 miles away. If you choose the same route, you can hike some trails on your way to Flamingo, and from Flamingo you can choose to take different boat tours. 

U.S. National Park Series (2) - Dry Tortugas National Park

Dry Tortugas National Park is the tiniest national park that I have been to. It is also one of the remote national parks that I have been to. (The other one that I have been to and would consider remote is the Katmai national park in Alaska.) 

Located about 70 miles west of Key West, this national park is composed of some small islands. People usually go to the biggest one - Gardden Key - which has only 100-square miles and is accessible only by boat or by seaplane. The park is the home of Fort Jefferson, which is a unfinished coastal fort. I went there in 2008 when I was still in my graduate school in Florida. 

U.S. National Park Series (1) - Yosemite National Park

I want to begin this series by talking about the national parks that I have been to and really enjoyed visiting. :-) Of course, I will also share with you my travel tips. 

The first national park I visited in the U.S. is Yosemite National Park in California. I visited it again with Alex during our Northern California trip in 2011. 

When to Visit Yosemite

Yosemite national park is open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. I have been there in winter (December) and late spring (end of May). Personally, I would definitely recommend going there in lsummer or fall, depending on what you want to see. Summer is the best time to go see waterfalls in Yosemite (late May or June). If you go too early (say, April or early May) you may not be able to visit the Glacier Point due to snow. We were lucky last time and drove all the way up to the glacier point in late May, but on our way up, there was snow everywhere on roadside. 

What to See in Yosemite

Again, it depends on your vacation time, the places you want to visit, whether you want to do a lot of hiking or just driving around…a lot of factors. I would just share with you our itinerary.

We spent two days in Yosemite: Just enough time for us to try some hiking trails and visiting some scenery spots.