Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The park recorded 11,527,939 recreation visits in 2025, the highest total of any U.S. national park. It covers 522,427 acres in North Carolina and Tennessee. Great Smoky Mountains National Park covers 522,427 acres, described by the park as 800 square miles, divided almost evenly between North Carolina and Tennessee. Elevations range from about 875 feet at the mouth of Abrams Creek to 6,643 feet at Clingmans Dome, and 16 peaks exceed 6,000 feet. The park reports 848 miles of trail, including 74 miles of the Appalachian Trail, 384 miles of road, and 2,900 miles of streams. It lists more than 22,744 documented species. UNESCO designated it a World Heritage Site on December 6, 1983, after an International Biosphere Reserve designation on October 26, 1976. The National Park Service counted 11,527,939 recreation visits in 2025. The park's own statistics page, last updated June 2, 2025, said it had more than 12 million recreational visits in 2024.