National Park System units within a drive of Los Angeles
Three National Park System units sit within an estimated two hours of Los Angeles, five between two and four hours, and 18 between four and eight. The closest is Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, about 50 minutes by road from the metro's Census centroid. Channel Islands National Park is the nearest unit carrying the National Park designation within four hours. The metro is the Los Angeles area as the Census Bureau defines it, home to 12,927,614 people in the 2024 estimates.
Each drive time is an estimate made from the straight-line distance between the metro's Census centroid and the unit's listed coordinates, multiplied by 1.25 for roads and divided by 55 mph, so a real trip will often take longer.
Metro centroid Free to enter Charges an entrance fee
Under 2 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area National Recreation Area · CA | 0.8 h | Free | 722,626 | 1 |
| Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail National Historic Trail · AZ, CA | 1.3 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| César E. Chávez National Monument National Monument · CA | 1.8 h | Free | 31,497 | 0 |
2 to 4 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel Islands National Park National Park · CA | 2.3 h | Free | 227,186 | 7 |
| Cabrillo National Monument National Monument · CA | 2.6 h | Fee | 769,336 | 0 |
| Joshua Tree National Park National Park · CA | 3.1 h | Fee | 2,932,644 | 9 |
| Mojave National Preserve National Preserve · CA | 3.8 h | Free | 569,844 | 3 |
| Death Valley National Park National Park · CA, NV | 4 h | Fee | 1,320,134 | 12 |
4 to 8 hours
| Unit | Est. drive | Entry | 2025 visits | Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manzanar National Historic Site National Historic Site · CA | 4.1 h | Free | 95,764 | 0 |
| Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks National Parks · CA | 4.1 h | Fee | no count | 15 |
| Castle Mountains National Monument National Monument · CA | 4.4 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument National Monument · NV | 5.1 h | Free | 51,964 | 0 |
| Pinnacles National Park National Park · CA | 5.4 h | Fee | 343,208 | 1 |
| Devils Postpile National Monument National Monument · CA | 5.6 h | Free | 99,652 | 0 |
| Lake Mead National Recreation Area National Recreation Area · AZ, NV | 5.7 h | Fee | 6,135,586 | 16 |
| Yosemite National Park National Park · CA | 6.1 h | Fee | 4,278,413 | 16 |
| Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument National Monument · AZ | 6.8 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site National Historic Site · CA | 7.6 h | Free | 14,881 | 0 |
| Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument National Monument · AZ | 7.7 h | Fee | 174,623 | 2 |
| Alcatraz Island Part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area · CA | 7.9 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| John Muir National Historic Site National Historic Site · CA | 7.9 h | Free | 38,384 | 0 |
| Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial National Memorial · CA | 7.9 h | Free | 782 | 0 |
| Presidio of San Francisco Part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area · CA | 7.9 h | Free | no count | 0 |
| San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park National Historical Park · CA | 7.9 h | Free | 2,944,483 | 0 |
| Fort Point National Historic Site National Historic Site · CA | 8 h | Free | 1,010,870 | 0 |
| Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park National Historical Park · CA | 8 h | Free | 33,689 | 0 |
Metro boundaries and population from the Census Bureau Vintage 2024 population estimates; centroids from the Census Bureau 2026 Gazetteer, CBSA internal points. Unit coordinates, fees, campgrounds and 2025 recreation visits from the NPS API and Visitor Use Statistics. Data refreshed October 14, 2026. Other metros.