How Crowded Is John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site in October?

October runs about 3.4× John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site's average month, which makes it a very busy month here — roughly 28% of the park's yearly visitors come in October.

In a typical October the park sees roughly 6,400 recreation visits, based on National Park Service monthly counts from 1979 to 2025.

It is the single busiest month of the year at John Fitzgerald Kennedy; January, the quietest, runs only about 0.1× the average — a 43-to-1 swing between high and low season.

On our Best Time to Visit score October rates 10/100 ("Poor"), versus the top-rated April at 85/100 — the best overall balance of crowds and daylight.

Because June, July and August together draw about 44% of annual visitors, choosing October instead steps outside that summer crush — the single biggest lever on how crowded the park feels.

You'll have about 10.8 hours of daylight in October to explore — between the 8.9-hour midwinter low and the 15.1-hour summer high.

Park-wide, 2024 drew 18,180 recreation visits, down 26.8% from 24,838 in 2019.

Across the past decade overall visitation has risen about 19.2%, so a October visit is likely to feel busier than it did a few years ago.