These National Parks Made NatGeo’s Best Places to Travel 2026

National Geographic just released its Best of the World list for best places to travel in 2026, and several national parks across the globe got a nod. The list of 25 destinations includes places like Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in Australia and Akagera National Park in Rwanda. Other destinations were selected because of their proximity to a specific national park. Examples include Quebec, Canada, which offers access to the newly created Nibiischii Park, Banff, Canada (Banff National Park), and the North Dakota badlands (Theodore Roosevelt National Park).

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The option to travel to a national park (or multiple parks) enhances several other destinations on NatGeo’s list. Examples include Turkey’s Black Sea Coast (Kaçkar Dağları National Park) and South Korea, which the outlet says has 23 national parks.

Here’s the list of top 25 destinations according to National Geographic:

1. Dolomites (Italy)
2. Québec (Canada)
3. Beijing (China)
4. Dominica (Caribbean)
5. Rabat (Morocco)
6. Hull (England, UK)
7. North Dakota Badlands (USA)
8. Metro Manila (Philippines)
9. Turkey’s Black Sea Coast (Türkiye)
10. Khiva (Uzbekistan)
11. Akagera National Park (Rwanda)
12. Vancouver (Canada)
13. Yamagata Prefecture (Japan)
14. Route 66 in Oklahoma (USA)
15. Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park (Australia)
16. Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
17. Oulu (Finland)
18. South Korea
19. Guimarães (Portugal)
20. Basque Country (Spain)
21. Maui (Hawaiʻi, USA)
22. Pittsburgh (USA)
23. Coastal Oaxaca (Mexico)
24. Fiji (South Pacific)
25. Medellín (Colombia)

Which national parks (or destinations near national parks) would you add to NatGeo’s top 25 places to travel in 2026?

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Header stock image from Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park by Ignacio Palacios/Getty Images

Read more facts about the national parks:

• Great Smoky Mountain National Park
• Rocky Mountain National Park
• Isle Royale National Park
• Big Bend National Park
• Zion National Park
• Voyageurs National Park
• Glacier National Park
• Joshua Tree National Park
• Grand Canyon National Park
• Dry Tortugas National Park
• Yosemite National Park

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