Which national parks are the closest to Santa Fe?

(STACKER) – Approximately 237 million people visited American national parks in 2020, representing a 28% year-over-year decrease attributed to the coronavirus pandemic. Many parks were forced to close to combat the spread of the virus, but that’s not the whole story—when the parks were open, many of them saw record crowds as throngs of people desperate to safely enjoy nature descended onto parks.

President Woodrow Wilson, in 1916, signed the act creating the National Park Service to leave natural and historic phenomenons “unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.” Since then, our national parks have welcomed visitors from around the world to experience some of the best the country has to offer and showcase the country’s natural beauty and cultural heritage. Today, the country’s 63 national parks contain at least 247 species of endangered or threatened plants and animals, more than 75,000 archaeological sites, and 18,000 miles of trails.

Stacker compiled a list of the closest national parks to Santa Fe. National parks are ranked by closest straight line distance, measured from representative points in Santa Fe, NM Metro Area, and each national park. Estimated driving times are from Here.com and are only available within the lower 48 states. All featured distances and driving times are estimated using representative locations from the center of each metro and national park—for some places within the metro area, the actual distance may be slightly shorter or longer to reach the closest entryway to a park.

#1 Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado)

Distance: 155 miles
Driving time: 3.6 hours
Date founded: September 24, 2004
Park area: 107,341.87 acres

#2 Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado)

Distance: 182 miles
Driving time: 5.3 hours
Date founded: June 29, 1906
Park area: 52,485.17 acres

#3 White Sands National Park (New Mexico)

Distance: 189 miles
Driving time: 4.1 hours
Date founded: December 20, 2019
Park area: 146,344.31 acres

#4 Petrified Forest National Park (Arizona)

Distance: 218 miles
Driving time: 4.0 hours
Date founded: December 9, 1962
Park area: 221,390.21 acres

#5 Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (Colorado)

Distance: 232 miles
Driving time: 6.7 hours
Date founded: October 21, 1999
Park area: 30,779.83 acres

#6 Carlsbad Caverns National Park (New Mexico)

Distance: 247 miles
Driving time: 4.8 hours
Date founded: May 14, 1930
Park area: 46,766.45 acres

#7 Guadalupe Mountains National Park (Texas)

Distance: 256 miles
Driving time: 5.9 hours
Date founded: October 15, 1966
Park area: 86,367.10 acres

#8 Canyonlands National Park (Utah)

Distance: 287 miles
Driving time: 11.9 hours
Date founded: September 12, 1964
Park area: 337,597.83 acres

#9 Arches National Park (Utah)

Distance: 295 miles
Driving time: 7.2 hours
Date founded: November 12, 1971
Park area: 76,678.98 acres

#10 Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado)

Distance: 338 miles
Driving time: 7.3 hours
Date founded: January 26, 1915
Park area: 265,807.25 acres

#11 Capitol Reef National Park (Utah)

Distance: 343 miles
Driving time: 9.3 hours
Date founded: December 18, 1971
Park area: 241,904.50 acres

#12 Saguaro National Park (Arizona)

Distance: 344 miles
Driving time: 7.8 hours
Date founded: October 14, 1994
Park area: 92,867.42 acres

#13 Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona)

Distance: 349 miles
Driving time: 7.6 hours
Date founded: February 26, 1919
Park area: 1,201,647.03 acres

#14 Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)

Distance: 374 miles
Driving time: 11.0 hours
Date founded: February 25, 1928
Park area: 35,835.08 acres

#15 Zion National Park (Utah)

Distance: 414 miles
Driving time: 11.1 hours
Date founded: November 19, 1919
Park area: 147,242.66 acres

#16 Big Bend National Park (Texas)

Distance: 460 miles
Driving time: 10.0 hours
Date founded: June 12, 1944
Park area: 801,163.21 acres

#17 Great Basin National Park (Nevada)

Distance: 518 miles
Driving time: 12.1 hours
Date founded: October 27, 1986
Park area: 77,180.00 acres

#18 Wind Cave National Park (South Dakota)

Distance: 571 miles
Driving time: 10.7 hours
Date founded: January 9, 1903
Park area: 33,970.84 acres

#19 Joshua Tree National Park (California)

Distance: 578 miles
Driving time: 11.3 hours
Date founded: October 31, 1994
Park area: 795,155.85 acres

#20 Badlands National Park (South Dakota)

Distance: 597 miles
Driving time: 11.8 hours
Date founded: November 10, 1978
Park area: 242,755.94 acres

#21 Death Valley National Park (California, Nevada)

Distance: 611 miles
Driving time: 11.7 hours
Date founded: October 31, 1994
Park area: 3,408,406.73 acres

#22 Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming)

Distance: 622 miles
Driving time: 13.7 hours
Date founded: February 26, 1929
Park area: 310,044.36 acres

#23 Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming, Montana, Idaho)

Distance: 671 miles
Driving time: 14.8 hours
Date founded: March 1, 1872
Park area: 2,219,790.71 acres

#24 Kings Canyon National Park (California)

Distance: 709 miles
Driving time: 18.4 hours
Date founded: March 4, 1940
Park area: 461,901.20 acres

#25 Sequoia National Park (California)

Distance: 715 miles
Driving time: 17.3 hours
Date founded: September 25, 1890
Park area: 404,062.63 acres

#26 Hot Springs National Park (Arkansas)

Distance: 735 miles
Driving time: 12.9 hours
Date founded: March 4, 1921
Park area: 5,554.15 acres

#27 Yosemite National Park (California)

Distance: 768 miles
Driving time: 17.5 hours
Date founded: October 1, 1890
Park area: 761,747.50 acres

#28 Channel Islands National Park (California)

Distance: 772 miles
Date founded: March 5, 1980
Park area: 249,561.00 acres

#29 Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota)

Distance: 801 miles
Driving time: 15.4 hours
Date founded: November 10, 1978
Park area: 70,446.89 acres

#30 Pinnacles National Park (California)

Distance: 853 miles
Driving time: 16.0 hours
Date founded: January 10, 2013
Park area: 26,685.73 acres

#31 Gateway Arch National Park (Missouri)

Distance: 896 miles
Driving time: 14.7 hours
Date founded: February 22, 2018
Park area: 192.83 acres

#32 Lassen Volcanic National Park (California)

Distance: 914 miles
Driving time: 19.2 hours
Date founded: August 9, 1916
Park area: 106,589.02 acres

#33 Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)

Distance: 1,003 miles
Driving time: 21.9 hours
Date founded: May 22, 1902
Park area: 183,224.05 acres

#34 Glacier National Park (Montana)

Distance: 1,004 miles
Date founded: May 11, 1910
Park area: 1,013,125.99 acres

#35 Redwood National Park (California)

Distance: 1,055 miles
Driving time: 24.6 hours
Date founded: October 2, 1968
Park area: 138,999.37 acres

#36 Indiana Dunes National Park (Indiana)

Distance: 1,105 miles
Driving time: 19.9 hours
Date founded: February 15, 2019
Park area: 15,349.08 acres

#37 Mammoth Cave National Park (Kentucky)

Distance: 1,112 miles
Driving time: 19.0 hours
Date founded: July 1, 1941
Park area: 54,011.91 acres

#38 Voyageurs National Park (Minnesota)

Distance: 1,118 miles
Driving time: 22.8 hours
Date founded: April 8, 1975
Park area: 218,222.35 acres

#39 Mount Rainier National Park (Washington)

Distance: 1,131 miles
Driving time: 22.1 hours
Date founded: March 2, 1899
Park area: 236,381.64 acres

#40 North Cascades National Park (Washington)

Distance: 1,196 miles
Driving time: 24.6 hours
Date founded: October 2, 1968
Park area: 504,780.94 acres

#41 Olympic National Park (Washington)

Distance: 1,244 miles
Driving time: 25.4 hours
Date founded: June 29, 1938
Park area: 922,649.41 acres

#42 Isle Royale National Park (Michigan)

Distance: 1,245 miles
Driving time: 25.6 hours
Date founded: April 3, 1940
Park area: 571,790.30 acres

#43 Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina, Tennessee)

Distance: 1,261 miles
Driving time: 21.2 hours
Date founded: June 15, 1934
Park area: 522,426.88 acres

#44 Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio)

Distance: 1,378 miles
Driving time: 23.2 hours
Date founded: October 11, 2000
Park area: 32,571.88 acres

#45 New River Gorge National Park (West Virginia)

Distance: 1,387 miles
Driving time: 23.4 hours
Date founded: December 27, 2020
Park area: 7,021 acres

#46 Congaree National Park (South Carolina)

Distance: 1,436 miles
Driving time: 24.0 hours
Date founded: November 10, 2003
Park area: 26,476.47 acres

#47 Shenandoah National Park (Virginia)

Distance: 1,535 miles
Driving time: 26.5 hours
Date founded: December 26, 1935
Park area: 199,223.77 acres

#48 Dry Tortugas National Park (Florida)

Distance: 1,568 miles
Driving time: 31.9 hours
Date founded: October 26, 1992
Park area: 64,701.22 acres

#49 Everglades National Park (Florida)

Distance: 1,645 miles
Driving time: 30.1 hours
Date founded: May 30, 1934
Park area: 1,508,938.57 acres

#50 Biscayne National Park (Florida)

Distance: 1,679 miles
Driving time: 29.0 hours
Date founded: June 28, 1980
Park area: 172,971.11 acres

#51 Acadia National Park (Maine)

Distance: 2,075 miles
Driving time: 37.7 hours
Date founded: February 26, 1919
Park area: 49,076.63 acres

#52 Glacier Bay National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,125 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 3,223,383.43 acres

#53 Wrangell–St. Elias National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,365 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 8,323,146.48 acres

#54 Kenai Fjords National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,567 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 669,650.05 acres

#55 Denali National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,684 miles
Date founded: February 26, 1917
Park area: 4,740,911.16 acres

#56 Lake Clark National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,713 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 2,619,816.49 acres

#57 Katmai National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,718 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 3,674,529.33 acres

#58 Virgin Islands National Park (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Distance: 2,780 miles
Date founded: August 2, 1956
Park area: 15,052.53 acres

#59 Gates of the Arctic National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 2,887 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 7,523,897.45 acres

#60 Kobuk Valley National Park (Alaska)

Distance: 3,027 miles
Date founded: December 2, 1980
Park area: 1,750,716.16 acres

#61 Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park (Hawaii)

Distance: 3,185 miles
Date founded: August 1, 1916
Park area: 325,605.28 acres

#62 Haleakalā National Park (Hawaii)

Distance: 3,193 miles
Date founded: July 1, 1961
Park area: 33,264.62 acres

#63 National Park of American Samoa (American Samoa)

Distance: 5,440 miles
Date founded: October 31, 1988
Park area: 8,256.67 acres