One of the first parks in the National Park Service, California's Yosemite is a World Heritage site. Its most famous scenery includes mountain peaks like Half Dome and El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, giant sequoias, and sub-alpine lakes. Adventure travel expert Matt Villano recommends Hetch Hetchy, an uncrowded area in the park’s northwest corner, for unparalleled hiking.
Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, Japan
Southwest of Tokyo, this national park is one of Japan’s most popular. A dormant volcano more than 12,000 feet high, Mt. Fuji is, according to Fodor’s, “utterly captivating in the ways it can change in different light and from different perspectives. Its symmetry and majesty have been immortalized by poets and artists for centuries.” It is also often shrouded in clouds in spring and summer.
Grand Canyon National Park, United States
Probably the world’s most famous national park, if not the most photographed, Arizona’s Grand Canyon did not achieve national park status until 1919, three years after the National Park Service was created. Some five million people visit it annually, to see its glorious canyon one-mile deep and ten miles across, carved by the Colorado River over millions of years. Visitors can take in both the South Rim, which offers the park’s renowned panoramic views, and the North Rim, which is 1,000 feet higher and features wildflower meadows, aspen and spruce.
Guilin and Lijiang River National Park, China
Located in southeastern China, this park is renowned for its karsts, limestone cones, cylinders and hills with colorful names like “Elephant Trunk,” “Dragon Head” and “Five Fingers”; these have inspired countless Chinese poets and artists and even been depicted on the country’s paper currency. The best way to drink in this breathtaking scenery is to take a 30-mile boat trip along the Lijiang River, from Guilin to Yangshuo.
