NPS Sites Near Denver
Several National Park Service units lie within 150 miles of Denver. Rocky Mountain National Park, located 76.6 miles northwest, is by far the most visited, drawing approximately 4.17 million annual recreation visits. Great Sand Dunes Preserve, 118.1 miles south, attracts around 432,000 visitors yearly. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, the closest site at 41.4 miles southwest, receives approximately 63,680 annual visits.
Two additional historic sites are accessible within the region. Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site, situated 125 miles southeast, records roughly 7,190 annual visits, while Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site, 141.4 miles southeast, receives approximately 4,338 annual visits. These five units represent the range of natural and historical resources the National Park Service manages in the greater Denver area.
| NPS unit | Annual visits |
|---|---|
| Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument · 41.4 mi | 63,680 (2025) |
| Rocky Mountain National Park · 76.6 mi | 4,171,431 (2025) |
| Great Sand Dunes Preserve · 118.1 mi | 432,498 (2025) |
| Bents Old Fort National Historic Site · 125.0 mi | 7,190 (2025) |
| Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site · 141.4 mi | 4,338 (2025) |
| Curecanti National Recreation Area · 147.1 mi | 807,117 (2025) |
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Nearby-NPS units and their annual recreation visits are from the NPS Visitor Use Statistics package (haversine match within 150 mi of the city centroid), verified June 2026. Null visitation renders as “n/a”, never 0. How we compile this.