Kids Love These 4 Western U.S. National Parks

National parks protect some of America’s most beautiful scenery and precious natural features. Those in the West are among the most spectacular, and some are especially attractive to families traveling with children. These are always a hit with kids.

The Arches
National parks don’t get much more family-friendly than The Arches in Utah. “Spectacular” doesn’t do it justice, with its towering red sandstone formations and massive arches, some so fragile-looking you wonder how they remain standing. Walking paths are manageable for small kids and some are even stroller-friendly. Pick up a Junior Ranger kit for activities to engage kids in the park’s formation and environment.

Redwood National Park
A chance to walk among the world’s largest trees makes Redwood National Park a priority for any trip to northern California. You can drive or bicycle through forests of towering Redwood trees or walk beneath them on the Grove of Titans Trail, where interpretive signs beside the raised boardwalk explain the natural features. A shorter hike beneath the redwoods to Trillium Falls is the park’s most family-friendly, at only half a mile long.

Olympic National Park
With 70 miles of Pacific coastline and glacier-covered mountains, Olympic National Park, in Washington, is one of the country’s most diverse, with a good variety of activities to keep kids engaged. Level walks lead through misty coastal forests to plunging waterfalls, where kids can look for sea creatures in tidal pools. Families can also rent canoes or kayaks at Crescent Lodge to explore the lake.

Death Valley National Park
You might not think of Death Valley as a place to take your family on vacation, but you’d be surprised at the variety of kid-friendly activities there. Sledding down sand dunes, for one, or hiking through deep canyons are just some of the activities families can enjoy. You can even go for a moonlight walk in the sand dunes to look for nocturnal animals. Kids can tell their friends back home they’ve been in the hottest place in the country and walked 282 feet below sea level.

At any of these parks, encourage your kids to talk to rangers and ask questions; they are a goldmine of information, accustomed to interpreting the park’s environment, and present information in lively and often humorous ways that spark kids’ interest.