Best Parks by Month · September 2026 · 2 min read
Best National Parks to Visit in September
The September parks that score highest for the balance of light crowds, good weather and daylight — ranked from real NPS visitation and NOAA climate data.
September is the connoisseur’s month. Summer weather lingers, kids are back in school, and crowds fall off a cliff at parks that were mobbed just weeks earlier.
For many of the busiest parks in the country, September is the best-value week-of-your-life window.
The best parks to visit in September
Ranked by our Best Time to Visit score for September — which blends how crowded each park is that month (from NPS visitation records), the climate normals, and daylight. A higher score means a better balance of thin crowds and comfortable conditions.
Scores 89/100 for September — average at about 0.9× its average month, average highs near 77°F.
Scores 84/100 for September — quiet at about 0.8× its average month, average highs near 84°F.
Scores 84/100 for September — quiet at about 0.7× its average month, average highs near 80°F.
Scores 81/100 for September — very quiet at about 0.5× its average month, average highs near 76°F.
Scores 79/100 for September — quiet at about 0.8× its average month, average highs near 84°F.
Scores 79/100 for September — average at about 0.9× its average month, average highs near 77°F.
Scores 78/100 for September — quiet at about 0.8× its average month, average highs near 85°F.
Scores 78/100 for September — quiet at about 0.6× its average month, average highs near 86°F.
Scores 77/100 for September — average at about 0.9× its average month, average highs near 80°F.
Scores 77/100 for September — quiet at about 0.8× its average month, average highs near 86°F.
Scores 76/100 for September — quiet at about 0.6× its average month, average highs near 82°F.
Scores 76/100 for September — quiet at about 0.7× its average month, average highs near 92°F.
Crowd figures are each month’s share of a park’s own annual visits, so “1.0×” means an average month for that park. See the full method on our methodology page.
Where the crowds are in September
Not every park follows the same rhythm. In September, the most concentrated crowds tend to show up at Gauley River, Governors Island, Yellowstone, while Stonewall, Virgin Islands, Lowell sit among the quietest relative to their own averages.
That is the whole point of ranking by month rather than by raw popularity: a famous park can be a poor September choice, and a lesser-known one can be perfect. Use the score to match the month to the park.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Cabrillo tops our September ranking with a Best Time to Visit score of 89/100 · 0.9× crowds. The full ordered list above weighs crowds, weather and daylight together for September.
September is one of the best months of the year. The ranking above shows exactly which parks are at their best.
Relative to their own averages, Stonewall, Virgin Islands, Lowell are among the quietest parks in September. You can also see the full quietest-parks list for the month.
Parks in this guide
Keep reading
Sources: National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics and NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020. Rankings and figures update as new NPS monthly data is released. Last updated 2026-10-11.