Last month, Travel + Leisure released its 2026 World’s Best Awards, now in its 31st year of ranking the world’s top travel destinations based entirely on reader votes. This year’s survey drew more than 661,000 votes, covering everything from city escapes to hotels around the globe. Among the categories was a ranking of America’s best national parks, and California landed three parks on the list.
Yosemite National Park
Coming in at No. 5 overall with a score of 87.44, Yosemite National Park remains one of California’s most iconic natural landmarks. Spanning nearly 1,200 square miles of the Sierra Nevada, the park is defined by towering granite formations like El Capitan and Half Dome, along with dramatic waterfalls that thunder to life each spring as snowmelt fills the valley. Beyond its famous cliffs, Yosemite is also home to several groves of giant sequoias, alpine meadows, and hundreds of miles of hiking trails ranging from short valley walks to strenuous backcountry treks.
Redwood National Park
Ranking No. 13 with a score of 84.46, Redwood National Park earned its place thanks to a landscape unlike anywhere else in the country. Located along California’s rugged North Coast, the park protects nearly half of the world’s remaining old-growth coast redwoods, trees that can live for 2,000 years and grow taller than a 30-story building. Walking among them, especially in the fog that regularly rolls in off the Pacific, gives the forest an almost prehistoric feel. Beyond the trees themselves, Redwood National Park also offers rugged coastline, tide pools, and herds of Roosevelt elk, giving visitors a very different California experience than the granite peaks and desert landscapes the state is more commonly associated with.
Sequoia National Park
Rounding out California’s showing at No. 15 with a score of 83.52, Sequoia National Park is home to arguably the most famous tree in the country: the General Sherman Tree, widely recognized as the largest tree on Earth by volume. The park sits just south of Kings Canyon in the southern Sierra Nevada, and beyond its namesake giant sequoia groves, it offers dramatic granite peaks, deep canyons, and access to Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States.
🎯 Where California ranked overall
Topping the full list was Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, a six-time winner of the award, followed by Grand Teton National Park, also in Wyoming, and Katmai National Park in Alaska. California’s three parks, Yosemite, Redwood, and Sequoia, placed comfortably within the top 20 nationally, reflecting the state’s continued reputation as one of the country’s premier destinations for outdoor recreation.
