Today our National Park Service turns 100. To celebrate this monumental milestone, the NPS offers free admission to all 412 of our nation's national parks from today, August 25 through August 28. There will be plenty of park activities, such as astronomy night hikes and guided tours, to celebrate the centennial.
Here is our list of the top ten U.S. national parks that are also available as film locations. If you're looking for an epic national park setting for your next production, all ten of these beautiful parks (and many more) are listed on LocationsHub.
1. Redwood National Park
Movies filmed at Redwood National Park includes E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial, Star Wars Episode IV: Return of the Jedi; The Lost World, Jurassic Park; and Outbreak.
If you're interested on filming at Redwood National Park, visit the Redwood National Park listing on LocationsHub for more information.
2. Grand Canyon National Park
Among the many movies shot at the Grand Canyon National Park are Into The Wild, National Lampoon's Vacation, Next, Maverick, The Guilt Trip, Fools Rush In, and Grand Canyon, Photo via Google.
If you're interested on filming at Grand Canyon National Park, visit the Grand Canyon National Park listing on LocationsHub for more information.
3. Yosemite National Park
Among the many movies filmed at Yosemite National Park are Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Caine Mutiny, Maverick, Order of the Eagle, and the Ken Burns documentary National Parks: America's Best Idea.
If you're interested on filming at Yosemite National Park, visit the Yosemite National Park listing on LocationsHub for more information.
4. Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park has been the setting for many movies including Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Samsara, Heart of Glass, The Big Trail, and The Mountain Men.
If you're interested on filming at Yellowstone National Park, visit the Yellowstone National Park listing on LocationsHub for more information.
5. Zion National Park
Among the movies filmed at Zion National Park are The Deadwood Coach, The Big Trail and Buffalo Bill, and my favorite Paul Newman film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Image via Google.
If you're interested on filming at Zion National Park, visit the Zion National Park listing on LocationsHub for more information.
6. Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park was the film location of many movies, including Star Wars: The New Hope.
For information on filing at Death Valley National Park, visit the Death Valley National Park listing on LocationsHub.
7. Arches National Park
Movies that were shot at Arches National Park include Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, City Slickers II, and Thelma and Louise. Photo via Google.
If you're interested in filming at Arches National Park, check out the Arches National Park listing on LocationsHub.
8. Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park was the film location for many movies, including The Shining and Forrest Gump.
For information on filming at Glacier National Park, visit the Glacier National Park listing on LocationsHub.
9. Grand Teton National Park
Movies filmed at Grand Teton National Park includes Rocky IV and Shane.
For information on filming at Grand Teton National Park, visit the Grand Teton National Park listing on LocationsHub.
10. Canyonlands National Park
Canyonlands National Park has been the star in many movies, including Samsara, The Greatest Story Ever Told, Baraka, and our own favorite Thelma & Louise. Photo via Google.
It was a difficult task to choose only ten because we have many more favorite national parks on our list that are also available for filming. Among the ones we didn't get a chance to include on the above list are Pisgah National Park (The Hunger Games, The Last of the Mohicans), Canyon de Chelly (The Lone Ranger), Tongass National Forest (The Thing), and Gallatin National Forest (A River Runs Through It).
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PHOTO CREDITS: All photos (unless otherwise noted) are from LocationsHub.