How Crowded Is Greenbelt Park in January?

January runs about 0.4× Greenbelt Park's average month, which makes it a very quiet month here — roughly 3% of the park's yearly visitors come in January.

In a typical January the park sees roughly 2,800 recreation visits, based on National Park Service monthly counts from 1979 to 2025.

It is the quietest month of the year at Greenbelt; by contrast May, the busiest, runs about 1.8× the average — so January is the easiest time to have the place largely to yourself.

On our Best Time to Visit score January rates 78/100 ("Excellent") — the single best-rated month at Greenbelt, balancing crowds against daylight.

Because June, July and August together draw about 36% of annual visitors, choosing January instead steps outside that summer crush — the single biggest lever on how crowded the park feels.

You'll have about 9.6 hours of daylight in January to explore — near the year-round minimum.

Park-wide, 2025 drew 130,314 recreation visits, up 67.8% from 77,642 in 2024.

Across the past decade overall visitation has eased about 44%, so January may feel a touch quieter than it once did.