Ranked: America’s most dog-friendly national parks

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From accessible trails and pet-friendly campsites to kennel services and wildlife safety, these are America’s most dog-friendly national parks

Many of America’s national parks have strict policies in place for bringing along your dog – and for good reason. Some parks are home to dangerous trails, sensitive ecosystems, extreme weather or wild animals – from porcupines to grizzly bears – that you really don’t want your dog interacting with. Not only that, your dog can be a danger to them.

Luckily, there are several national parks which welcome pups and have almost no restrictions in place. Some with stricter rules have opened up trails to make them as dog-friendly as possible. Others have dog-friendly lodgings and kennel facilities nearby so you know your hound will be safe during your visit.

Wherever you take your pooch, never leave it unattended in a vehicle and always follow these basic rules in line with the National Park Service (NPS) BARK Ranger guidance:

  • Bag your pet’s waste
  • Always leash your pet
  • Respect wildlife
  • Know where you can go

There is more information on the NPS website. Always check NPS regulations before you visit any national park. We’ve linked to these for every national park in the US in the complete ranking at the end of the article.

10 most dog-friendly national parks

These are the 10 most dog-friendly national parks in the USA.

  1. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
  2. Acadia National Park, Maine
  3. Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
  4. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, West Virginia
  5. White Sands National Park, New Mexico
  6. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
  7. Wrangell–St Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  8. Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky
  9. Congaree National Park, South Carolina
  10. Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
A Labrador Retriever in Shenandoah national park – one of the most dog-friendly in America
JOSEPH GRUBER/SHUTTERSTOCK Shenandoah is America’s most dog-friendly national park

What makes them dog-friendly?

What makes a national park dog-friendly depends on several metrics including how many miles of dog-accessible trails the park has, how safe it is for your dog and the local flora and fauna, if there are pet-friendly lodgings (including campgrounds) nearby, if there are local kennel services available, if viewpoints are accessible to dogs, and if there are any travel restrictions which could stop you and your dog accessing the park.

We’ve ranked Shenandoah National Park in Virginia as the most dog-friendly national park in America.

A woman and two dogs in White Sands National Park
Sandra Foyt/Shutterstock White Sands is great for dogs

Of its 800km (500mi) of hiking trails, only 32km (20mi) are off-limits to dogs. This includes the 186km (115.5 mi) of the Appalachian Trail that traverses the park. The park is also within easy reach of Washington DC and allows dogs in all campgrounds and in pullouts on Skyline Drive, the stunning public road running 169km (105mi) along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Shenandoah is closely followed by Acadia – New England’s only national park – which has 161km (100mi) of hiking trails and 72km (45mi) of carriage roads where dogs are allowed. Some trails are off-limits to pets while others are not recommended for safety reasons. Service animals are allowed throughout.

Other top-performing national parks are Petrified Forest, New River Gorge and White Sands, which are all pretty lenient with where dogs can go. Some of the more urban parks, such as Hot Springs (12th), have almost no restrictions on where dogs can go. However, these parks haven’t ranked as highly as others because they have fewer trails – just 42km (26mi) in Hot Springs’ case – and therefore don’t provide an enjoyable experience for dogs or their owners.

A dog in Grand Canyon national park – one of the most dog-friendly in America
Kara Arceneaux/Shutterstock Grand Canyon is ranked 10th

The wilds of Alaska should, in theory, be a pooch’s paradise. America’s 49th state is home to six of the 10 least-visited national parks as well as some of the country’s largest tracts of wilderness. However, not only are Alaska’s parks extremely remote, making them challenging to access, particularly for people with dogs, they are also home to wildlife such as wolves, grizzly bears and moose, all of which are exceptionally dangerous to pups.

In seventh place, Wrangell–St. Elias is the highest-ranked Alaskan national park. It has almost no restrictions for dogs along its trails, in its backcountry or in the Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark area. The lowest-ranked is Glacier Bay in 60th which only allows leashed pets in a handful of developed areas.

A dog in Yosemite – one of the most dog-friendly in America
Imasillypirate/Shutterstock Yosemite in 11th is good for dogs

At the bottom of the table, unsurprisingly, are the island-based national parks of Isle Royal in Michigan and the Channel Islands in California. To protect the islands’ unique wildlife, neither park allows any pets to enter. Service dogs are permitted on Isle Royale as long as they have a permit whereas service animals are only welcome in the mainland visitor centre on the Channel Islands, hence its position in last place.

Complete ranking

We created our ranking of America’s most dog-friendly national parks using the latest available information on the NPS website. Below is the complete ranking of every national park according to how dog-friendly it is. Each one links to the pet section of its NPS listing.

  1. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
  2. Acadia National Park, Maine
  3. Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona
  4. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, West Virginia
  5. White Sands National Park, New Mexico
  6. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
  7. Wrangell–St Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  8. Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky
  9. Congaree National Park, South Carolina
  10. Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
  11. Yosemite National Park, California
  12. Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas
  13. North Cascades National Park, Washington
  14. Olympic National Park, Washington
  15. Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri
  16. Indiana Dunes National Park, Indiana
  17. Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Colorado
  18. Crater Lake National Park, Oregon
  19. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota
  20. Zion National Park, Utah
  21. Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
  22. Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  23. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
  24. Badlands National Park, South Dakota
  25. Death Valley National Park, California and Nevada
  26. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado
  27. Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee
  28. Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  29. Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota
  30. Joshua Tree National Park, California

  1. Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming
  2. Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota
  3. Glacier National Park, Montana
  4. Saguaro National Park, Arizona
  5. Redwood National Park, California
  6. Great Basin National Park, Nevada
  7. Big Bend National Park, Texas
  8. Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico
  9. Virgin Islands National Park, Virgin Islands
  10. Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas
  11. Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
  12. Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
  13. Everglades National Park, Florida
  14. Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
  15. Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  16. Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
  17. Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  18. Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
  19. Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska
  20. Sequoia National Park, California
  21. Kings Canyon National Park, California
  22. Pinnacles National Park, California
  23. Biscayne National Park, Florida
  24. Arches National Park, Utah
  25. Canyonlands National Park, Utah
  26. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii
  27. Haleakala National Park, Hawaii
  28. Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska
  29. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida
  30. Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska
  31. National Park of American Samoa, American Samoa
  32. Isle Royale National Park, Michigan
  33. Channel Islands National Park, California

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Atlas & Boots is an award-winning outdoor travel blog, founded by bestselling author Kia Abdullah and travel writer Peter Watson. They have been to over 100 countries and all seven continents.