Trip Ideas

Looking for itinerary ideas to help you plan your next trip to a national park? This is the place to start! These trip ideas provide recommended activities designed to help you figure out how to spend your time. See the list of all trip ideas below or search for things to do and trip ideas by park, activity, topic, duration, and more.

For specific activities, check out Things to Do.

Featured Trip Ideas

  • Grass-covered mounds surrounded by trees and low fog
    Half Day at Hopewell Culture

    Spend a half day learning about the monumental mounds Native Americans built in southeast Ohio over 2,000 years ago at Hopewell Culture NHP.

  • Mothers walk with young children on a path in a park with bright autumn foliage.
    Half Day in Hoover's Hometown

    Spend a half day learning about the landscape that shaped the 31st president at Herbert Hoover National Historic Site in Iowa.

  • The front of a tall red brick building with a clock tower and many windows.
    Promenade in Pullman

    Spend a half day walking the historic Chicago neighborhood and learning about labor rights struggles at Pullman National Historical Park.

  • The front facade at Little Rock Central High School framed by blue skies and puffy clouds.
    Civil Rights History in Little Rock

    Spend a half day learning about school integration civil rights history at Little Rock Central High School NHS in Arkansas.

  • A wayside exhibit stands at the edge of drop off into badlands formations
    South Dakota and Wyoming Geology Tour

    Take a geology tour of Badlands, Jewel Cave, Wind Cave, and Devil's Tower in South Dakota and Wyoming.

  • The statue of a Black man and woman under a large building with Greek-style columns.
    Weekend in St. Louis

    Planning a visit to St. Louis? The area is home to three units of the National Park System and one national historic trail.

Trip Ideas

Showing results 1-10 of 27

  • Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site

    A Half Day at Central High School NHS

    • Type: Kid Friendly, Relaxed, Urban, Educational, Inspirational, Volunteer, Indoors, Outdoors, Road Trip, Group Friendly
    • Duration: Half Day
    • Topics: African American Heritage, US Army, Presidents, Social Movements, Civil Rights, Urban America, Architecture and Building, Schools and Education, Sculpture, Monuments and Memorials, Scenic Views
    • Activities: Museum Exhibits, Hands-On, Self-Guided Tours - Walking
    The front facade at Little Rock Central High School framed by blue skies and puffy clouds.

    Plan ahead and reserve an available ranger-led tour that goes by Little Rock Central High School. View the exhibits at the park's Visitor Center, learn about the Little Rock Nine, watch the park's interpretive film, and explore the other historic buildings and outdoor activities within the park. Earn your Junior Ranger badge by completing activities within the park. Stamp your passport book in our visitor center to capture memories from your visit to our site.

  • Hopewell Culture National Historical Park

    Indoor Activities at Hopewell Culture NHP

    • Type: Kid Friendly, Relaxed, Educational
    • Duration: Half Day
    • Topics: Animals, Archeology, Arts, Burial, Cemetery and Gravesite, Explorers and Expeditions, Forests and Woodlands, Military, US Army, Native American Heritage, Trails, Transportation, Canals, Wars and Conflicts, World War I
    • Activities: Junior Ranger Program, Park Film
    Snow blanketing mounds surrounded by trees

    If you happen to visit the park on a not-so-ideal weather day or if you don't want to venture outside on a rainy, snowy or cold day, there's plenty to do indoors at the park. Visitors will find a nice and warm building which houses the park's interpretive film. Guests can also engage their kids with the Junior Ranger program. Much of the booklet can be accomplished indoors. Just ask a ranger!

  • Pullman National Historical Park

    Promenade In Pullman

    • Type: Kid Friendly, Active, Urban, Educational, Indoors, Outdoors, Group Friendly
    • Duration: Half Day
    • Topics: African American Heritage, Architecture and Building, Industry, Laborer and Worker, Labor Movement, Social Movements, Civil Rights, Transportation, Trains and Railroads, Commerce, Engineering, Immigration, Factories, Urban America, Women's History
    • Activities: Junior Ranger Program, Museum Exhibits, Guided Tours, Self-Guided Tours - Walking
    A group of students stand around a ranger talking in front of a mural depicting pullman themes.

    Do you have half a day to explore Pullman National Historical Park? One of the features that went into the design of the 1880s historic Pullman town was that everything you needed was within walking distance. You can explore everything the Park has to offer on foot.

  • Weekend Trip to St. Louis National Parks

    • Type: Kid Friendly, Active, Relaxed, Urban, Educational, Inspirational, Indoors, Outdoors, Road Trip, Group Friendly
    • Duration: Multiple Days
    • Topics: Architecture and Building, Enslavement, Farming and Agriculture, Plantations, Military, Presidents, Reconstruction, Civil Rights, Voting Rights and Suffrage, Civil War, African American Heritage, Bison, Asian American Heritage, Colonization and Settlement, Commerce, Trade, Engineering, Explorers and Expeditions, Forts, Grasslands, Hispanic American Heritage, Immigration, Industry, Latino American Heritage, Migrations, Monuments and Memorials, Mountains, Native American Heritage, Science, Technology and Innovation, Social Movements, Tragic Events, Trains and Railroads, Wars and Conflicts, Colonial/European Contact Conflicts, French and Indian War, Indian and Frontier Wars, Mexican War, Westward Expansion, Homesteading, The Gold Rush, Wilderness, Women's History
    • Activities: Guided Tours, Museum Exhibits, Park Film
    Gateway Arch from below illuminated by orange light against a blue, cloudy sky.

    The St. Louis area is home to three units of the National Park System: Gateway Arch National Park, Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, and Ste. Geneviève National Historical Park. Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail also passes through the area. Spend a weekend exploring these sites!

  • Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

    Plan a pet-friendly visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes

    • Duration: Full Day
    • Topics: Trails
    • Activities: Hiking
    a golden retriever sits on a sandy beach with a lake and dune in the background

    Plan a pet-friendly visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Find out where pets are welcome and how to prepare for your visit.

  • Cuyahoga Valley National Park

    Hike Three Popular Cuyahoga Valley Trails

    • Type: Active, Outdoors
    • Topics: Geology, River and Riparian, Scenic Views, Waterfalls, Forests and Woodlands, Rock Landscapes and Features, Trails
    • Activities: Hiking
    Two people walk side by side next to colorful rock cliffs; each carries a baby on their back.

    Want to hike some of the highlights of Cuyahoga Valley National Park? You can get your nature fix and a workout by visiting two waterfalls plus the stunning Ledges rock formations. You can spread these hikes out over multiple days, or try to squeeze them into one long day of hiking.

  • Isle Royale National Park

    Windigo Day Trip

    • Type: Solitary/Remote, Outdoors, Group Friendly
    • Duration: Full Day
    • Topics: Wilderness, Scenic Views, Trails
    • Activities: Hands-On, Junior Ranger Program, Front-Country Hiking, Paddling
    Through a stand of birch trees, Beaver Island can be seen in Washington Harbor, at Isle Royale.

    Windigo is located on the southwestern end of Isle Royale National Park, an isolated island in Lake Superior. Windigo is reachable by ferry, seaplane, or private boat. Acting as a portal to wilderness, Windigo provides visitors with front country amenities and support. Spend a day around Windigo- hike, paddle, fish, or attend a ranger program.

  • Isle Royale National Park

    Backpack the Minong Ridge Trail

    • Type: Active, Solitary/Remote, Outdoors
    • Duration: Multiple Days
    • Topics: Trails, Wilderness, Scenic Views
    • Activities: Backcountry Camping
    View of a forested island, interior lake, Lake Superior, and Canada.

    Backpack Isle Royale's most challenging trail and trek over 30 miles through isolated wilderness. The Minong Ridge Trail is considered the most challenging trail at Isle Royale because of its isolation, changing trail conditions, exposed rocky ridges, and steep ridge climbs and descents.

  • Isle Royale National Park

    Backpack the Feldtmann Loop

    • Type: Active, Solitary/Remote, Outdoors
    • Duration: Multiple Days
    • Topics: Trails, Wilderness
    • Activities: Backcountry Camping
    A boardwalk staircase a part of the trail in a forest.

    Backpack over 30 miles around the Feldtmann Loop and experience the most varied trail at Isle Royale,

  • Isle Royale National Park

    Backpack the Harbor to Hills Loop

    • Type: Active, Solitary/Remote, Outdoors
    • Duration: Multiple Days
    • Topics: Scenic Views, Trails, Wilderness, Wetlands
    • Activities: Backcountry Camping
    View of rocky outcropping surrounded by trees along water with islands in the distance.

    Backpack along Rock Harbor Channel and on top of the Greenstone Ridge on the eastern end of Isle Royale. Hike over 25 miles through remote wilderness.

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Last updated: December 30, 2022

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