National Park Playlist
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Thanks for celebrating National Park Week 2025! It's never too late to queue up your National Park Playlist.
Image designed by the National Park Service
Love national parks? There's a holiday for that! Thanks for joining us for National Park Week April 19 to April 27, 2025. We look forward to celebrating everything "parks" again with you next year. In the meantime...there are more than 400 national parks of different shapes, sizes, and kinds to experience. Also discover what the National Park Service does to preserve natural and cultural heritage and provide recreational opportunities in communities across the country—and even the world!
Five Easy Ways to Celebrate
- Follow the fun on social media using #NationalParkWeek. Join conversations with our parks and programs and share your own posts about your love of parks to inspire others.
- Find a national park and come visit! Entrance fees to national parks are waived on April 19, 2025, to kick off the celebration.
- Kids, grab your family and friends to come out for National Junior Ranger Day! You can also earn your official Junior Ranger badge any time at most parks throughout the week.
- Look around your community to learn how National Park Service programs and partners are involved in your community. Find national historic landmarks or national natural landmarks near you. Or enjoy recreational opportunities and spaces enhanced by programs and partners.
- Get involved as a volunteer or partner! Many parks are also celebrating National Volunteer Week.
Ballad of National Park Week in Western Pennsylvania
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From the battlefield of Fort Necessity to the flight path of Flight 93, the national parks of western Pennsylvania preserve the stories of courage, sacrifice, and the shaping of a nation. Sing along with park rangers celebrating National Park Week at five parks where history was made.
2025 Theme: National Park Playlist
Drum roll, please! This year's theme of National Park Playlist celebrates musical connections to national parks and the American story. Are you ready to press play on an amazing visit to a national park? There's a record collection of things to do and see during National Park Week, but here are a few themes to get you started.
Try these suggestions any day of park week—or really any time of year!
- Playlist Challenge: Create your own national park playlist of favorite songs, trips, or park memories inspired by your own travels and experiences. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Discover: Learn about music in parks including what the National Park Service does to celebrate and preserve our nation’s musical heritage and communities around the country.
- Visit: Visit a national park during National Park Week or any time of year to experience musical performances or learn about music history and heritage.
- Playlist: Create a playlist, album, or story inspired by your greatest memories, experiences, or accomplishments in national parks. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Visit: Find a national park and learn what makes it great, whether for its history, nature, or unique experiences it offers. To kick off National Park Week, entrance fees are waived on April 19, 2025!
- Kids: It’s also National Junior Ranger Day, so bring your family and friends! Many parks have Junior Ranger badges you can earn.
- Close to Home: Find places in your community that are national natural landmarks, national historic landmarks, or sites on the National Register of Historic Places. Learn what makes these places and your community great.
- Playlist: As an alternative, download the NPS App on your smartphone and use the new CarPlay feature to listen to National Park Service podcasts and audio tours in your car.
- Visit: Try an alternative experience when you visit national parks, like a new trail, activity, or park to visit that you didn’t consider before.
- Discover: Try something new! Explore different outdoor activities and adventures you can have in national parks.
- Close to Home: Use the NPS App to find the nearest national park to your home. You might not have to go as far as you think.
- Playlist: Put together your VIP playlist. In celebration of National Volunteer Week, look up and make a list of opportunities to lend your talent and time as a “Volunteer In Parks.”
- Visit: Try a popular activity or place in a national park to experience the hype for yourself. (Tip: Check ahead if reservations are required for very highly visited parks or activities.)
- Discover: Get prepped for your photoshoot ahead of your visit. Find tips and info about photography and watching wildlife in parks. Oops, you did it again...Remember to always keep safety in the picture!
- Close to Home: Pop over to our free streaming service of webcams, which often have stunning views or landscapes and critters.
- Playlist: Hey, what’s that sound? Capture sounds in nature or use our sound gallery to create your own symphony or music video. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Visit: Visit a national park to listen as well as see. Get to a safe place and close your eyes to hear incredible soundscapes.
- Discover: Learn about natural sounds in national parks, what we do and what you can do to protect them.
- Close to Home: Protect national parks’ ecosystems and wildlife your neighborhood through conservation at home.
- Playlist: Go through pictures of classic family vacations, including to national parks, and create an album. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Visit: One sight we cannot take for granite in every national park...a rock. In additional to some pretty inspiring geological formations, also check out how rocks have been used to create monuments and memorials, petroglyphs pictographs, and gardens in parks.
- Discover: Learn about geology and caves and karst, found in national parks and what the National Park Service does to protect amazing natural and cultural rock features.
- Playlist: Metal is one of the most common building materials. Create artwork inspired by national parks. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Visit: Go on a scavenger hunt in a national park to find your favorite metal statues, sculptures, bridges, or other metal-based sculptures.
- Close to Home: Find them in your own neighborhood too. Get tips or learn about historic preservation that is likely happening to preserve these special structures.
- Discover: Learn about the important infrastructure in national parks and what the National Park Service is doing to enable visitors to experience national parks in a safe and accessible environment.
- Playlist: Create a poem or soulful song inspired by a national park or place in your community that inspired you.
- Discover: Rhythm and blues is often influenced by contemporary society around the musicians. Explore the unique hsitory of our country to learn what may have shaped music you listen to.
- Visit: Find a park to learn about that history in the places where it happened. Many parks have performances of historical and contemporary music throughout the year.
- Close to Home: Teachers and parents can find educational resources in the Educators Portal that help students explore how music and dance have been used throughout American history.
- Playlist: Dance like nobody’s watching! Create a dance inspired by your favorite national park or place in your community. Then let others watch it! Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Visit: Swing into a national park for a performance or program. Find events happening in parks that get you moving around, including dancing, yoga, biking, paddling, and more. You can also find these park events in the NPS App.
- Close to Home: Check our social media or multimedia gallery for dance tutorials.
- Playlist: Time to step up to the plate! Create a hype song for your favorite national park or place in your community. Share it with family and friends, including on social media using #NationalParkWeek and #NationalParkPlaylist.
- Discover: Learn about the diverse natural landscapes and wonders you can walk up to in national parks.
- Visit: Pick your favorite walk up or walking trail or hike in a national park. Get some tips about trails and hiking to prepare for your walk in the park.
- Close to Home: Find trails in the National Trails System, which are all around the country.
Featured Park Playlists
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Kids Park PlaylistCheck out these videos, audio, songs, and virtual tours that bring the wonders of parks to you.
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PodcastsPeruse podcasts created by National Park Service parks and programs on a variety of topics.
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Music from the ParkEnjoy the smooth sounds musicians performing at New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park.
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Sound GalleryListen in on sounds that you may hear in national parks made by nature, people, and more
Visit a Park
Find a Park
There are more than 400 national parks across the country. Search for parks by state or an activity or topic of interest to you.
The NPS App
One app, every park at your fingertips. Experience and explore national parks using a new app for mobile devices.
NPS App
Plan your trip and get around parks with interactive maps, tours of park places, on-the-ground accessibility information, and much more.
Featured Events
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APRIL 19, 2025National Junior Ranger DayCalling kids of all ages. Get ready to "explore, learn, and protect" while earning your Junior Ranger badge!
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April 20-26, 2025National Volunteer WeekMeet our volunteers and see how you can get involved as a steward of national parks.
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APRIL 22, 2025Earth DayLearn about the National Park Service's role in earth sciences and how you can get involved as a steward of the parks.
Find an Event
Check out these featured events or set the calendar to April to find in-person and virtual programs for National Park Week at any of the more than 400 national parks around the country.
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By State
By Event Type
News Releases
Members of the press can find news releases about National Park Week from around the country. Email us press inquiries about National Park Week.
Showing results 1-10 of 236
- Type: News
- Locations: Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail
- Date Released: 2025-04-22
Seventh graders from Washington, D.C. explored nature, history, and fishing at Fletchers Cove during an Earth Day event hosted by the National Park Service and Friends of Fletchers Cove. Hands-on activities fostered environmental awareness, sparked curiosity, and highlighted the value of accessible outdoor experiences in urban communities.
- Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes NP premieres Kūpuna Talk Story videos during National Park Week and Merrie Monarch Festival
- Type: News
- Locations: Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
- Date Released: 2025-04-18
To celebrate both National Park Week and the Merrie Monarch Festival, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park will debut a new video series that features community kūpuna (elders) sharing knowledge through native traditions.
- Steamtown National Historic Site
Celebrate Junior Ranger Day at Steamtown National Historic Site
- Type: News
- Locations: Steamtown National Historic Site
- Date Released: 2025-04-10
Steamtown NHS invites the public, including families, park enthusiasts, and future Junior Rangers to celebrate Junior Ranger Day on Saturday, April 19, 2025, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Hampton National Historic Site
Ann's story at Hampton
- Type: Article
- Locations: Hampton National Historic Site
Ann is with our friend's group Historic Hampton Inc (HHI). She has played a role in supporting and helping Hampton for decades! It all started when her friend invited her to a meeting. She told us all about her experience with Hampton, click to learn more!
- Big Thicket National Preserve
Experience the Park After Dark at Big Thicket National Preserve
- Type: News
- Locations: Big Thicket National Preserve
- Date Released: 2025-04-07
For the first time, Big Thicket is celebrating Junior Ranger Day at night! Head over to the visitor center to learn about bats, walk a night trail, and stargaze with us.
- George Washington Birthplace National Monument
Washington’s Birthplace to host events for National Park Week
- Type: News
- Locations: George Washington Birthplace National Monument
- Date Released: 2025-04-04
Get ready to celebrate and explore the great outdoors this spring! Staff at George Washington Birthplace National Monument invite you to enjoy special activities and demonstrations during National Park Week on the weekends of April 19-20 and April 26-27.
- Type: Article
- Locations: Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
Lou is one of our passionate and knowledgeable volunteers! Learn his story!
- Type: Article
- Locations: Hampton National Historic Site, Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
Phyllis is one of Hampton’s volunteers! She is very passionate and knowledgeable! Learn more about how much she helps!
- Type: Article
- Locations: Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Hampton National Historic Site, Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
Volunteer Charles and maintenance team member Bud work together each week to keep the parks’ engines humming, to ensure the historic landscapes are beautiful and inviting to visitors, and habitats preserved for the animals that call its meadows and trees home.
- Type: Article
- Locations: Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Hampton National Historic Site, Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
Burt has been a volunteer with the National Park Service for a couple decades. He is passionate and a hard worker. Jeff was inspired by Burt, who is his father, to begin volunteering as well.
Last updated: April 28, 2025
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