Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Utah national parks see major leap in visitation in 2016

National parks across the country saw record-breaking attendance in 2016, and Utah's parks were no exception. A new government report indicates there were 330.97 million total recreation visits to national parks, a 7.72 percent increase over 2015. In Utah, Zion National Park saw a 17 percent jump in visitation in 2016. Bryce Canyon National Park saw a 26 percent jump and there were similar increases at Arches, Canyonlands and Capitol Reef. In all, Zion National Park ranked fifth for the most-visited national parks in the country.

Officials attribute the boost in visitation to a strong economy, good weather, low gas prices and the National Park Service's Find Your Park marketing campaign, which aimed to draw more visitors to celebrate the 100th anniversary of its creation. Deseret News