Every NPS unit in California.
California's 34 NPS units: 7 National Monuments · 6 National Parks · 5 National Historic Trails · 4 National Historic Sites · 3 National Recreation Areas · 2 Others · 2 National Historical Parks · 1 National Preserve · 1 National Memorial · 1 National Seashore · 1 National and State Parks · 1 National Parks. Combined 5-year-average annual visits: 35,788,264 (multi-state units count their full visits in every state they touch — see methodology). The most-visited unit is Golden Gate National Recreation Area at about 15.45M annual visits.
| Unit | Designation | 5-yr avg visits | Busiest month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Gate National Recreation Area | National Recreation AreaGOGA | 15,448,318 | August |
| Yosemite National Park | National ParkYOSE | 3,850,487 | August |
| Joshua Tree National Park | National ParkJOTR | 3,063,523 | March |
| San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park | National Historical ParkSAFR | 2,622,344 | July |
| Point Reyes National Seashore | National SeashorePORE | 2,428,752 | July |
| Death Valley National Park | National ParkDEVA | 1,227,133 | March |
| Fort Point National Historic Site | National Historic SiteFOPO | 1,001,431 | August |
| Whiskeytown National Recreation Area | National Recreation AreaWHIS | 963,619 | July |
| Cabrillo National Monument | National MonumentCABR | 775,417 | July |
| Muir Woods National Monument | National MonumentMUWO | 763,022 | July |
| Mojave National Preserve | National PreserveMOJA | 762,761 | April |
| Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area | National Recreation AreaSAMO | 749,478 | May |
| Redwood National and State Parks | National and State ParksREDW | 625,749 | June |
| Lassen Volcanic National Park | National ParkLAVO | 417,466 | July |
| Pinnacles National Park | National ParkPINN | 332,477 | April |
| Channel Islands National Park | National ParkCHIS | 292,202 | July |
| Lava Beds National Monument | National MonumentLABE | 128,460 | July |
| Devils Postpile National Monument | National MonumentDEPO | 113,968 | July |
| Manzanar National Historic Site | National Historic SiteMANZ | 105,798 | May |
| John Muir National Historic Site | National Historic SiteJOMU | 42,158 | April |
| Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park | National Historical ParkRORI | 32,976 | July |
| César E. Chávez National Monument | National MonumentCECH | 18,179 | April |
| Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site | National Historic SiteEUON | 17,908 | May |
| Tule Lake National Monument | National MonumentTULE | 3,803 | July |
| Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial | National MemorialPOCH | 835 | July |
| Alcatraz Island | —ALCA | — | — |
| Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail | National Historic TrailBUOV | — | — |
| California National Historic Trail | National Historic TrailCALI | — | — |
| Castle Mountains National Monument | National MonumentCAMO | — | — |
| Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail | National Historic TrailJUBA | — | — |
| Old Spanish National Historic Trail | National Historic TrailOLSP | — | — |
| Pony Express National Historic Trail | National Historic TrailPOEX | — | — |
| Presidio of San Francisco | —PRSF | — | — |
| Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks | National ParksSEKI | — | — |
Methodology
Unit list and per-unit visit counts come from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025. The "5-year average visits" column is the mean of 2021-2025 Recreation Visits. Multi-state NPS units (Yellowstone, Death Valley, Great Smoky Mountains and others) are listed under every state they touch; the per-unit visit count is the unit's total, not a per-state share. Independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service.
Independent site. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Data comes from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025; editorial analysis is ours. The NPS Arrowhead and other NPS marks are not used.