An expert shares suggestions to help you stay safe, avoid the crowds and make the most of these national treasures while driving cross-country YinYang/Getty Visiting one of America’s 63 national parks is the perfect destination for any road trip, offering travelers the chance to see jaw-dropping scenery, engage with U.S. history and interact with wildlife.
But making the most of a visit to a National Park can require some preparation. The parks can be subject to closures due to weather conditions, like wildfires and snowstorms. And especially during the summer, some of the biggest-name parks ; Yellowstone and Yosemite each surpassed four million visitors last year, and that a majority of visitors feel the parks are too crowded.
To get an inside scoop on how to best enjoy the parks system, PEOPLE talked to Kathy Kupper, a representative for the National Parks Service (NPS). Whether exploring the whole country or just your home state, here are some expert tips to take full advantage of the National Park system. Plan ahead.
Cavan Images/Getty According to Kupper, one of the biggest keys to a successful visit to any of the Park Service’s 429 properties — which includes national parks, national preserves, national monuments and national historic sites, among other designations — is doing your research ahead of time, either on the or . “The best place to start your national park visit is online. If you're driving along in the car and you check out the app, it will tell yo.