15 best national parks in the UK for unforgettable landscapes

The United Kingdom has 15 national parks, each protected for its landscape, wildlife, cultural heritage and opportunities for people to experience the outdoors. They range from the high mountains of the Cairngorms and Eryri to the wetlands of the Broads, the chalk hills of the South Downs and the only predominantly coastal national park in Britain.

British national parks are not untouched wildernesses. They contain villages, farms, roads, working landscapes and communities whose histories are closely connected with the land. Entry to the parks themselves is free, although parking, attractions, activities and some visitor facilities may charge separately.

This guide covers all 15 national parks in the UK. It is not a rigid ranking. Instead, it explains what makes each park distinctive, where first-time visitors should begin and how to experience these protected landscapes responsibly.

The best national parks to visit in the UK

1. Explore the Lake District National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres, boat services and attractions keep separate seasonal hours
• Mountain access depends on weather, daylight and local conditions

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and attractions

The Lake District contains England’s highest mountains, its largest natural lakes and one of the country’s most celebrated cultural landscapes.

Popular bases such as Keswick, Ambleside and Windermere provide access to lakes, valleys and walking routes of every difficulty. Scafell Pike attracts experienced hikers, while Derwentwater, Grasmere and Ullswater offer boat trips, low-level paths and historic villages.

Its international reputation brings heavy traffic and pressure on the most famous locations, particularly during summer and bank holidays.

Pro tip:

Choose one lake or valley per day and use buses, boats or local walking routes instead of repeatedly driving across the park.

2. Discover Eryri National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and mountain transport operate separate seasonal schedules
• Conditions on high ground can change rapidly

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and activities

Eryri is Wales’s largest national park and contains its highest mountain, Yr Wyddfa.

The park combines glacial valleys, lakes, forests, slate landscapes and communities where Welsh remains an everyday language. Yr Wyddfa receives the greatest attention, but Cadair Idris, the Rhinogydd, the Carneddau and quieter valleys provide equally rewarding experiences.

The landscape is inseparable from Welsh culture, industrial history and the communities that live within it.

Pro tip:

Use park-and-ride or public transport for popular trailheads and choose a route appropriate for the forecast rather than reputation.

3. Experience the Cairngorms National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres, ski facilities and attractions keep separate hours
• Winter mountain travel requires specialist skills and equipment

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and activities

The Cairngorms is the UK’s largest national park and contains an extraordinary mixture of mountains, forests, rivers, moorland and wildlife habitats.

Ancient Caledonian pinewoods survive around areas such as Rothiemurchus and Glenmore, while the high plateau supports rare alpine species. Aviemore is the best-known base, but Braemar, Ballater, Grantown-on-Spey and Tomintoul reveal different sides of the park.

Its scale means that no single visit can cover the whole landscape properly.

Pro tip:

Choose one side of the park as a base and avoid spending entire days driving between distant valleys.

4. Walk through the Peak District National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and attractions use separate schedules
• Some moorland paths may close temporarily for safety or conservation

Price: Free landscape access, with parking charges

The Peak District became Britain’s first national park and remains one of its most accessible.

The southern White Peak contains limestone dales, dry-stone walls and villages, while the Dark Peak is characterised by gritstone edges, reservoirs and open moorland. Routes around Mam Tor, Stanage Edge and Dovedale are especially popular.

Its central location makes it easy to reach, but that convenience creates congestion at famous trailheads.

Pro tip:

Choose either the White Peak or Dark Peak for a day rather than losing time driving between both landscapes.

5. Explore Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside and loch shores are accessible throughout the year
• Boat services, visitor centres and attractions operate seasonally
• Camping byelaws apply in selected management zones

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and activities

Loch Lomond and The Trossachs provides the most accessible introduction to Highland scenery from Glasgow and central Scotland.

The park includes Britain’s largest lake by surface area, wooded lochs, mountain ranges and communities extending from Balloch to Breadalbane. Visitors can take boat trips, walk sections of the West Highland Way or climb hills ranging from accessible viewpoints to major Munros.

Busy roads around Loch Lomond can disguise how much quieter the park becomes away from its main corridor.

Pro tip:

Use a ferry, waterbus or linear walking route to experience the loch without spending the entire day in road traffic.

6. Walk the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Coast paths and open landscapes are accessible throughout the year
• Tides, erosion and storms can affect particular sections
• Visitor attractions and boat trips operate separate schedules

Price: Free landscape access, with parking and activity charges

Pembrokeshire Coast is the UK’s only national park designated primarily for its coastline.

Cliffs, beaches, islands, estuaries, harbours and small coastal communities stretch around west Wales. The Pembrokeshire Coast Path links much of the park, while St Davids, Tenby, Stackpole and the northern cliffs provide very different starting points.

Wildlife, archaeology and maritime history make the park far more than a collection of beaches.

Pro tip:

Use coastal buses to create a one-way walk and check the tide before entering coves or walking beneath cliffs.

7. Explore the Yorkshire Dales National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and attractions keep separate schedules
• Weather and flooding can affect rural roads and paths

Price: Free landscape access, with parking charges

The Yorkshire Dales is a landscape of limestone, waterfalls, green valleys, moorland and traditional stone-built settlements.

Malham Cove, Aysgarth Falls and the Three Peaks are its best-known landmarks, but Swaledale, Wensleydale and the park’s western valleys reward slower exploration. Historic railways, abbey ruins and market towns add variety for visitors who do not want a full day of hiking.

Narrow roads make cross-park journeys slower than they appear on a map.

Pro tip:

Stay within one dale for the day and explore it on foot instead of attempting to collect landmarks across the entire park.

8. Discover Dartmoor National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Military training can restrict access to selected ranges
• Weather on exposed moorland can change quickly

Price: Free landscape access, with parking charges

Dartmoor is defined by granite tors, open moorland, wooded valleys, rivers and layers of prehistoric and industrial history.

Short walks around accessible tors provide broad views, while longer routes lead into remote ground where navigation becomes essential. Villages, ancient stone rows, clapper bridges and mining remains reveal a landscape shaped by people over thousands of years.

Mist can remove visibility rapidly, even when conditions appear settled at lower elevations.

Pro tip:

Carry a map and compass for longer routes and check military firing notices before planning walks across range areas.

9. Walk the South Downs National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Public paths and open landscapes are accessible throughout the year
• Visitor attractions and transport services keep separate schedules
• Coastal cliff paths may close because of erosion

Price: Free landscape access, with parking and attraction charges

The South Downs stretches from Winchester to Eastbourne across chalk hills, farmland, woodland and dramatic coastline.

The South Downs Way provides the park’s main long-distance route, while Seven Sisters, Devil’s Dyke, the Meon Valley and historic towns offer manageable day visits. Its proximity to London and the south coast makes it one of Britain’s easiest national parks to explore without a car.

The park is a working landscape, and many paths cross farmland and grazing areas.

Pro tip:

Use railway stations and local buses to create a linear walk rather than returning to the same car park.

10. Explore Northumberland National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and heritage sites keep separate hours
• Remote upland areas have limited mobile reception and facilities

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and attractions

Northumberland is England’s least populated national park and one of its strongest destinations for solitude and dark skies.

The park includes sections of Hadrian’s Wall, the Cheviot Hills, broad valleys and remote moorland near the Scottish border. Historic forts and museums provide cultural context, while the International Dark Sky Park designation makes clear nights especially valuable.

Distances, exposure and limited services require more preparation than in heavily developed parks.

Pro tip:

Combine one Hadrian’s Wall site with a manageable walk and remain after sunset only when properly equipped for the conditions.

11. Discover Exmoor National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and attractions keep separate hours
• Steep coastal roads can be difficult in poor weather

Price: Free landscape access, with parking charges

Exmoor combines high moorland, wooded valleys, rivers and one of England’s most dramatic stretches of coast.

The park’s northern edge rises above the Bristol Channel in steep cliffs and wooded combes, while inland areas contain open grazing land and historic villages. Exmoor ponies, red deer and dark skies strengthen its wildlife appeal.

Its compact size encourages rushed driving, but the narrow roads make slow exploration far more rewarding.

Pro tip:

Choose one coastal section and one inland walk rather than trying to cross the park repeatedly.

12. Explore the New Forest National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open forest and common land are accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres and attractions use separate schedules
• Seasonal car park closures protect sensitive habitats

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for parking and attractions

The New Forest is an ancient landscape of heathland, woodland, wetlands and open grazing rather than a conventional dense forest.

Ponies, cattle and donkeys roam freely under a historic commoning system, while villages such as Brockenhurst, Lyndhurst and Beaulieu provide convenient bases. Cycling, low-level walking and wildlife watching make the park particularly accessible to families.

The free-roaming animals are not domesticated attractions and should never be fed or approached closely.

Pro tip:

Slow down on forest roads, give livestock space and explore beyond the busiest roadside pony-viewing areas.

13. Walk the North York Moors National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Heritage railway and visitor services operate separate timetables
• Moorland fire restrictions may apply during dry weather

Price: Free landscape access, with parking and attraction charges

The North York Moors brings together heather moorland, deep wooded valleys, historic villages and a rugged stretch of Yorkshire coast.

The park is especially striking during late-summer heather season, but routes around Sutton Bank, Rosedale, Goathland and the coastal villages remain rewarding throughout the year. The North Yorkshire Moors Railway provides another way to experience the landscape.

Its coastal and inland sections feel distinct enough to justify separate days.

Pro tip:

Use the railway or local transport for one day, then choose either the moors or coast for a focused walking route.

14. Explore Bannau Brycheiniog National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Open countryside is accessible throughout the year
• Visitor centres, caves and attractions use separate schedules
• Mountain weather can change quickly

Price: Free landscape access, with parking and attraction charges

Bannau Brycheiniog contains mountain ridges, waterfalls, caves, reservoirs and rural communities across south Wales.

Pen y Fan is the best-known summit, while Waterfall Country, the Black Mountain and the quieter western areas reveal a much broader landscape. The park is also recognised for its dark skies and strong connections with Welsh language, farming and industrial history.

Popular routes can become crowded, while equally impressive areas nearby remain much quieter.

Pro tip:

Do not make Pen y Fan the automatic choice; select a route based on weather, experience and crowd levels.

15. Discover the Broads National Park

Website

Operating hours:

• Waterways and public paths are accessible throughout the year
• Boat hire, visitor centres and attractions operate seasonally
• Navigation rules and speed limits apply on the waterways

Price: Free landscape access, with charges for boat hire, moorings and attractions

The Broads is unlike every other UK national park.

Its network of navigable rivers, shallow lakes, reedbeds, marshes and historic settlements was shaped in part by medieval peat digging and later flooding. Boating is the classic way to explore, but walking, cycling, wildlife watching and visits to windmills and churches reveal other sides of the landscape.

Water levels, tides and boat traffic require careful planning even on apparently calm waterways.

Pro tip:

Take a guided boat trip before hiring independently, particularly if you have no experience of navigation or mooring.

How to plan a visit to the UK’s national parks

The UK’s national parks are open landscapes rather than gated attractions. There is normally no admission fee, but car parks, boat trips, heritage sites, equipment hire and visitor attractions may charge separately.

A national park can cover hundreds or thousands of square miles, so selecting a specific valley, walking route, village or visitor centre is more useful than simply navigating to the park name. Trying to cross an entire park in one day often results in more driving than exploring.

Rail and bus travel work particularly well in parts of the Peak District, South Downs, Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, Eryri and Loch Lomond and The Trossachs. Public transport also reduces pressure on popular car parks and allows one-way walks.

Weather should determine the route. Mountain conditions in the Cairngorms, Eryri, Lake District and Bannau Brycheiniog can be completely different from conditions in the nearest town. Carry suitable clothing, food, water and navigation, and be prepared to choose a lower-level alternative.

Visitors should follow the relevant countryside access guidance, take litter away, keep dogs under control around livestock and wildlife, and avoid damaging paths, dunes, peatland or vegetation. Wild camping rules differ between England, Wales and Scotland and may also be affected by local byelaws.

Northern Ireland does not currently have a designated national park. Its protected landscapes include Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, country parks and major mountain and coastal areas, which deserve separate coverage rather than being inaccurately included in this list.

The strongest national park trips combine scenery with local communities. Use village shops, cafés, guides, accommodation and public transport where possible. These are living and working landscapes, and responsible tourism helps protect both their environment and their future.

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