Gateway Arch National Park is America’s most Instagrammable national park; new research has revealed. A study carried out by travel information site Places To Travel examined Instagram hashtag data and the size of each US national park to find the one with the highest ‘hashtags per acre’.
The study revealed that Gateway Arch National Park situated in Missouri is the most Instagrammable national park in the US. The park is set on a total of just 90.9 acres and has 11,221 hashtags on Instagram making it top of the list with 123.44 hashtags per acre.
In second place is Bryce Canyon National Park, which has the ninth-highest number of Instagram hashtags at 728,221. Located in Utah, the park is distinguished by the canyon’s steep red cliffs and offers many opportunities for hiking. It sits on 35,835.08 acres of land resulting in the second-highest number of hashtags per acre of 20.32.
Acadia National Park, situated in the state of Maine, comes in third with 11.80 hashtags per acre. Famous for its rocky beaches and granite peaks, and with 579,344 hashtagged Instagram posts, this national park set on 49,075 acres of land is clearly a great location for photos.
Just outside of the top three is Zion National Park in Utah. With a total of 147,237 acres and 1,428,038 hashtags on Instagram, Zion National Park has 9.69 hashtags per acre overall. In fifth place is Arches National Park with 8.72 hashtags per acre. The national park spans across 76,678 acres and has a total of 669,062 hashtags on the platform.
Hot Springs National Park and Haleakalā National Park rank sixth and seventh respectively. Hot Springs National Park has 8.61 hashtags per acre as a result of 5,548 acres and 47,815 total hashtags, whilst Haleakalā National Park spans across 33,264 acres and has a total of 261,253 hashtags, resulting in 7.85 hashtags per acre.
In eighth place is American Samoa National Park, based across four islands in the territory of American Samoa. It is situated across 8,256 acres with 59,542 total hashtags on Instagram, resulting in 7.21 hashtags per acre.
Rounding out the top ten is Indiana Dunes National Park in ninth with 6.12 hashtags per acre and Yosemite National Park in tenth with 4.46 hashtags per acre.
| National Park | Acres | Hashtag count | Hashtags per Acre | Rank |
| Gateway Arch | 90.9 | 11,221 | 123.44 | 1 |
| Bryce Canyon | 35,835.08 | 728,221 | 20.32 | 2 |
| Acadia | 49,075.26 | 579,344 | 11.80 | 3 |
| Zion | 14,7237 | 1,428,038 | 9.69 | 4 |
| Arches | 76,678.98 | 669,062 | 8.72 | 5 |
| Hot Springs | 5,548.01 | 47,815 | 8.61 | 6 |
| Haleakalā | 33,264.62 | 261,253 | 7.85 | 7 |
| American Samoa | 8,256.67 | 59,542 | 7.21 | 8 |
| Indiana Dunes | 15,067 | 92,337 | 6.12 | 9 |
| Yosemite | 761,747.5 | 3,404,670 | 4.46 | 10 |
A spokesperson for Places To Travel commented on the findings: “Social media continues to play a pivotal role in where we decide to travel to for vacation or for a weekend trip, with many social media users taking to their favorite platform to see the best beauty spots at their chosen destination.
This study provides a great insight into which locations are the most photogenic and can guarantee visitors the ‘perfect Insta pic’.”
