Canada is positively bursting with natural wonders. The massive, sparsely populated country has huge swaths of gorgeous untouched nature, as well as 48 national parks—some of which are far more crowded than others. In 2025, more than 4.2 million people visited Banff National Park in Alberta; that’s more than 1 percent of Canada’s population. Pacific Rim National Park Reserve in British Columbia saw 1.2 million visitors; Jasper National Park and Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park weren’t far behind in popularity.
These parks are so popular because they’re outright spectacular, but plenty of other national parks in Canada are just as stunning and see far fewer visitors. Here are six less-crowded Canadian national parks to visit in 2026, plus one provincial park that’s especially cool for kids.
Cape Breton Highlands National Park
How to get there: Fly to Halifax (YHZ) and drive four hours northeast or fly to JA Douglas McCurdy Sydney Airport (YQY) and drive two hours northwest. You can also reach Cape Breton Island by ferry; from Bar Harbor, Maine to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, the ferry takes 3.5 hours, followed by a 6.5-hour coastal drive. Cape Breton Highlands National Park is open May to October, with the Cabot Trail open year round.
Price: Entry to the park costs CA$9 (US$7) and free for ages 17 and under.
In 2025, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve saw nearly 1.2 million visitors. Equally gorgeous Cape Breton Highlands National Park, on the opposite side of Canada, saw fewer than 276,000 people. Cape Breton spans its namesake island, flanked on one side by the Gulf of St. Lawrence and on the other by the Atlantic. The park has 26 hiking trails, ranging from flat and easy walks that visitors can complete in less than an hour to more strenuous hikes that involve climbing 1,500 feet in elevation and take up to four hours.
These hikes overlook the island’s rugged coasts, and if you hike between May and September on trails on the Gulf of St. Lawrence side of the park, you might even spot whales. For those with less mobility or young kids in tow, consider driving (or biking) along the Cabot Trail, a scenic roadway that runs for 185 miles, 66 of which are inside Cape Breton Highlands National Park.
Where to stay
The eight campgrounds in Cape Breton Highlands National Park are open mid-May through October, and four have simple cabins for a slightly less rugged camping experience.
More comfortable options are found in the tiny town of Chéticamp, less than 10 minutes’ drive from the park. These include the eight-room Archie & Isidore Hotel and waterfront tiny houses LaPointe Chalets, overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence. On the Atlantic side of the park, five minutes’ drive from the entrance, Lantern Hill & Hollow has four guest rooms in its main lodge and six cabins practically on North Bay beach, a popular spot for bonfires.
For the same beautiful vistas found in Banff but without the crowds, visit Mount Revelstoke National Park.
Photo courtesy of Parcs Canada
Mount Revelstoke National Park
How to get there: The Trans-Canada Highway is the main route there, and it will take you six hours to drive from Vancouver or 4.5 from Calgary. Mount Revelstoke National Park is open year-round, but some visitor centers and higher elevation trails are closed in winter.
Price: Park admission is CA$11 (US$8) and free for ages 17 and under.
Located along Highway 1 between the Banff and Pacific Rim national parks and alongside the (Canadian) Glacier National Park is Mount Revelstoke National Park. While it’s compact by Canadian outdoor standards (some 100 square miles compared to Banff’s 2,500 square miles), it’s big on scenery thanks to its alpine mountain vistas and verdant forests and fields. In fact, it offers the only inland temperate rain forest in the world, meaning arboreal old growth is on the itinerary.
During spring, summer, and early fall, Revelstoke is a popular destination among hikers looking to meander through meadows dappled with bright wildflowers and mossy forests of giant cedars. In winter, it becomes an off-the-beaten-path skiing destination for experienced powder hounds who hit up nearby ski resorts for its challenging terrain. No matter when you go, this park offers no shortage of outdoor delights.
Where to stay
There are campgrounds on-site, but you’ll have to reserve a spot well in advance. For a hotel, try Eleven Revelstoke Lodge, mere minutes from the park. It’s a great jumping-off point for hiking during the warmer months and heli-skiing adventures when the snow hits.
Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve is a national marine conservation area and home to the Haida Heritage Site, reachable only by boat or seaplane.
Photo by Jesse Delgrosse, courtesy of Parks Canada
Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve
How to get there: Fly two hours from Vancouver (YVR) to either Sandspit (YZP) on Moresby Island or Masset (ZMT) on Graham Island, both part of the Haida Gwaii archipelago. There is a ferry (6.5-8 hours) from Prince Rupert across the strait to Skidegate, a Haida community on Graham Island from where many tours leave.
Skilled seafarers can go by private boat or a two-day kayak journey, but your most comfortable journey will be with one of Parks Canada’s licensed boat tour operators. Gwaii Haanas National Park is open year-round, but some tour operators may be closed in winter.
Price: Entry to the park is CA$26 (US$19) and free for ages 17 and under.
It takes some legwork to get to Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, on the southern half of the remote Haida Gwaii archipelago off the coast of northern British Columbia. This national park, marine preserve, and Haida Heritage Site can be reached only via boat or seaplane. But for unending green forests and insight into Indigenous cultures, it’s worth the effort, especially because you could have the park all to yourself; in 2025, 3,000 people visited Gwai Haanas.
Here you’ll find the ruins of a 19th-century Haida village, which today is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Members of the Haida Nation have lived in the territory for at least 14,000 years—although these days the site itself is unoccupied, as the Haida mostly live in Skidegate and Masset. The village still bears remains of traditional totem poles and wooden longhouses.
The park is also home to carefully protected forest and marine ecosystems and has been widely praised for its sustainable management practices. A key aspect of this, for example, is the Watchmen program in which the Haida people appoint members to monitor the grounds. Between May and October, visitors can chat with them to learn more about the park and the history of the Haida.
Where to stay
There is no formal camping on the island, but you are allowed to pitch a tent anywhere outside the cultural sites—though Parks Canada requests that you choose a place where you’ll make minimal impact, such as on sand or stone. On the upper part of the archipelago, you can stay at the Haida-owned hotel Haida House at Tillal, located between the forest and the sea. Nearby is Haida Gwaii Glamping Co., owned by a local pair of sisters.
Bird-watching and kayaking are two of the main activities at Mingan National Park Reserve, famous for its limestone formations on Île Quarry.
Photo by Levis Landry, courtesy of Parks Canada
Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve
How to get there: The archipelago is about a two-hour drive east of the city of Sept-Îles. Once you reach the towns of Longue-Pointe-de-Mingan, Havre-St.-Pierre, Baie-Johan-Beetz, or Aguanish, take a boat, stand-up paddle, or kayak tour, or a taxi boat. Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve is open June to September only.
Price: Park admission is CA$6.50 (US$4.75), which does not include the boat ride. Entry to the park is free for ages 17 and under.
In the far remote areas of upper Quebec, just south of Newfoundland, is Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve. On this tiny island chain, accessible only between early June and mid-September, you’ll find wooden boardwalk trails for hiking, strange rock formations that stand amid the tide pools like surrealist monoliths, and puffins.
While the islands are home to a variety of marine bird species—razorbills, terns, guillemots, kittiwakes, and the like—puffins are the star of the show here, attracting bird-watchers every spring who come to view and photograph these seasonal feathered residents as they nest and feed.
Where to stay
The only hotel on the islands is the Auberge de l’Île aux Perroquets, which has two comfortable, homey rooms in the former lighthouse keepers’ quarters, decorated with hand-stitched quilts and other artwork from local female artisans. The other options on the islands are tent camping and wooden tented cabins oTENTik and Ôasis. Even on the mainland in Havre-St.-Pierre, there aren’t many places to stay; book in advance to secure one of Chalets Didoche‘s five snug, modern tiny houses.
From August to April, there’s a good chance of seeing the aurora borealis at Wood Buffalo National Park, the world’s largest Dark Sky Preserve.
Photo by John David McKinnon, courtesy of Parks Canada
Wood Buffalo National Park
How to get there: Wood Buffalo National Park is a 12-hour drive north from Alberta’s capital Edmonton (YEG) and six hours south from Yellowknife (YZF), around Great Slave Lake. Northwestern Air Lease runs charter flights from those two airports to Fort Smith, NT and Fort Chipewyan, AB, short drives from the park entrances. Wood Buffalo National Park is open year-round, but some roads may be closed due to snow. In winter, the visitor center is open only Monday to Friday.
Price: Entry to the park itself is free; prices for fishing, camping, and boat permits and rentals vary.
At a sprawling 17,300 square miles, Wood Buffalo National Park is both Canada’s largest park (it spans the border between two provinces) and the world’s largest Dark Sky Preserve. This wild and remote place also offers visitors encounters with wild buffalo, salt plains, beaver marshes, and flocks of whooping cranes.
The thing to do here is hiking, and lots of it. The park is a relatively flat, open region, save for a smattering of boreal forests, so you’ll likely spend most of your time walking through the flats or along scenic trail loops, scoping out an array of wildlife. Check out the Angus Sinkhole (located at one of the first rest areas and interpretive centers along Highway 5 once you enter the Northwest Territories) and the Nyarling River (which snakes along the northern border of the park before mysteriously disappearing underground). From August to April, kick back to take in the stars and aurora borealis.
Where to stay
Backcountry camping is allowed anywhere in the park, and a number of established campgrounds are around. The only hotels are a 30-minute drive from the park, in Fort Smith, where the eponymous Wood Buffalo Inn is the best in the lot.
In warm weather, visitors to remote Kluane National Park can canoe or kayak across Lake Kathleen.
Photo courtesy of Parks Canada
Kluane National Park and Reserve
How to get there: Fly into Yukon’s capital city, Whitehorse (YXY), a two-hour drive west. Coming from Alaska, you can take the Alaska Marine Highway car ferry service from Juneau to Haines (five hours) or to Skagway (six hours) and then drive three to four hours over the border to the park entrance. Kluane National Park is open year-round, but campsites and the visitor center are only open mid May to September.
Price: Entry to the park is free; fees vary for camping and fishing.
If Wood Buffalo is remote, Kluane National Park and Reserve is at the ends of the earth. Home of the world’s largest ice fields outside the Poles, this park runs along the southwest Yukon border with Alaska. You’ll find 17 of Canada’s 20 tallest mountains here—including Mount Logan, the tallest—plus a slew of wildlife-viewing experiences.
The main activities at Kluane National Park are concentrated around its edges. First, you can drive along the highways bordering the park, spying Dall sheep, mountain goats, and bears along the way. Second, you can hike in the park via a combination of day trails (like Kathleen Lake Cottonwood Trail off Highway 3) or extensive backcountry treks (see the stunning Alsek Valley Trail, which starts near the Mount Logan EcoLodge).
Canoeing and kayaking on Kathleen Lake is popular, but you’ll need to rent your boat in Whitehorse two hours’ drive weest (contact Up North Adventures). To raft down the class-three and four rapids of the Upper Tatshenshini river, book a day excursion with Tatshenshini Expediting (CA$195/adult; CA$170/kids 13 and under).
At 8,500 square miles, Kluane National Park is wild and sprawling; to see its snow-covered peaks and gleaming ice fields without intense trekking, consider a flightseeing tour (from CA$240/two hours).
Where to stay
The best option less than an hour’s drive from Kluane National Park is Mount Logan Ecolodge. Book one of three homey guest rooms or a yurt or rustic pod (neither has electricity or running water). The ecolodge is surrounded by evergreen trees and snow-capped mountain peaks in every direction and is a prime spot for seeing the northern lights. The lodge offers guided trips through the park, plus other outdoor activities such as snowshoeing, ice-fishing, or dogsledding. Room rates include a three-course dinner and breakfast.
If you plan to stay overnight in the park’s backcountry (excluding Kathleen Lake Campground) you must register.
Related: A Plane Dropped Me Off in the Remote Arctic to Raft Canada’s Oldest River
Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta’s Badlands is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Photo by Jeremy Klager, courtesy Travel Alberta
Dinosaur Provincial Park
How to get there: By car, Dinosaur Provincial Park is 2.5 hours east of Calgary and less than five hours from Alberta’s capital, Edmonton. Linear Air runs 30-minute charter flights to Drumheller (CEG4) the closest big town to Dinosaur Provincial Park (about 1h45m away). These cost about US$7,500 for up to 5 people.
Dinosaur Provincial Park is open year-round, but the visitor center is closed mid October to mid April (it can be opened by appointment).
Price: Entry to the park is free; CA$2 (US$1.50) for the exhibit gallery
The landscape at this UNESCO World Heritage Site is desertlike, with hardpack dirt plains, jagged spires of rock, and craggy ravines, plus it’s home to some of the world’s greatest dinosaur fossil finds. You can see a few of these, as well as a skeleton of a duck-billed dinosaur, in the two outdoor fossil displays.
The place to stay here is in Drumheller, a midsize town about an hour and 45 minutes away from the park. Drumheller is surrounded by stunning rock formations (see the pale, mushroom-like Drumheller hoodoos). Landmarks include the “the World’s Largest Dinosaur”—a looming 86-foot-tall model of a T. Rex— and the Royal Tyrrell Museum, which is full of dino bones and other fossils and offers paleontology activities for kids.
Where to stay
There are basic canvas-walled tents available to book for a night in the park, or you can stay in Drumheller. Despite its name, the Tyrannosaurus Rest B&B is not dinosaur themed but rather a comfortable bed-and-breakfast with three rooms and a four-person suite, plus a homemade breakfast spread served each morning.
Related: 10 Less-Crowded Alternatives to the Most Popular U.S. National Parks
This article was originally published in 2023 and most recently updated on January 7, 2026, with current information. Sophie Friedman contributed to the reporting of this story.
