Travel Dispatch: Summer Guide to State Parks
Wherever you are, there’s one nearby.
Travel Dispatch
June 17, 2026

Many of America’s national parks have hit all-time visitation records in recent years. To avoid the crowds, you might try a state park instead.

Here are three stories to get you started.

Article Image

Robert Rausch for The New York Times

Wherever You Are, There’s a State Park Nearby →

A group of cyclists rides along a paved road that cuts through a desert landscape at Snow Canyon State Park, in Utah. There are large, reddish-brown rock formations in the background.

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

5 State Parks That Feel Like National Parks →

Yellow and purple wildflowers spring from dusty soil in the foreground, with patches of grass behind it and rocky hills visible in the distance.

John Francis Peters for The New York Times

7 State Parks That You Told Us You Love →

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