Scenic California state park among best — and most affordable — to visit in US
Dreaming of an outdoorsy getaway at a scenic state park this fall? California has one of the best and most affordable options in the U.S., according to a new list.
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park is “big on natural beauty and outdoor fun, but easy on the wallet,” according to The HomeToGo 2025 State Park Index.
The online marketplace for vacation rentals ranked the top 100 “most spectacular outdoor getaways that won’t drain your vacation budget” and scored them by “size, trails, wildlife, scenic wow-factor,” solitude and access to close-by accommodations for a great value.
“From the redwood-shaded trails of Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park in the west to the granite peaks of Franconia Notch State Park in the east, and from Florida’s underwater wonderland at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park to Utah’s desert vistas at Sand Hollow State Park, the 2025 State Park Index is full of ideas for every kind of escape into nature,” the HomeToGo editors wrote.
Here’s what earned Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park its spot at No. 55 on the list:
What makes Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park the best option for an adventurous getaway?
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park scored 42.41 overall out of the hypothetical perfect score of 60, according to HomeToGo’s analysis.
HomeToGo used its internal pricing data to shortlist the 100 state parks “with the lowest median nightly cost per person for vacation accommodation for stays with a check-in date during July 15, 2025 — December 31, 2025,” the marketplace said.
It ranked the state parks using six data points: “the median nightly cost per person for vacation accommodation, the search volume for vacation rental stays in the area, the size of each state park, the number of trails in each location, the number of wildlife species in each destination, and each park’s scenic appeal.”
The marketplace ranked these data points on a scale between five and 10, with 10 being the best in each category.
So in terms of affordability, parks with the lowest median nightly price per person for vacation rentals were given a top score of 10. Remaining parks were given a score of five or higher.
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park scored 5.30 on HomeToGo’s affordability scale, according to the online marketplace’s calculations. The median rental price for a stay near the park was $84.24.
Where Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park might lack in accommodation affordability, at least compared to the other parks on the list, it more than made up for in the other categories.
Here’s how it ranked among the remaining categories:
- Hidden gem score: 9.78. HomeToGo used its demand data to calculate search volume for vacation rentals around each park, then gave the area with the lowest search volume a top score of 10 and the remaining locations a score of five or higher.
- Size score: 6.84: The largest park was given a score of 10 and the remaining were scored at five or higher.
- Trails score: 6.67: The park with the highest number of trails on apps such as AllTrails got 10, the rest scored five or higher. And the park just reopened the Pfeiffer Falls Trail, offering redwoods and waterfalls, after it reconstructed a damaged pedestrian bridge on the trail over two years. The trail is one of the park’s biggest draws for its 750,000 yearly visitors.
- Wildlife score: 5.80. The parks with the most species spotted on apps like iNaturalist got a score of 10, the rest scored five or higher.
- Scenic score: 8.02. The most frequently photographed park on Flickr got a score of 10, the rest scored five or higher.
What were the top 10 most affordable state park destinations?
According to HomeToGo, they were as follows:
1. Ohiopyle State Park in Pennsylvania
2. Pocahontas State Park in Virginia
3. Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire
4. DeSoto State Park in Alabama
5. Hueston Woods State Park in Ohio
6. Patapsco Valley State Park in Maryland
7. Starved Rock State Park in Illinois
8. Garner State Park in Texas
9. Fall Creek Falls State Park in Tennessee
10. Turkey Run State Park in Indiana
This story was originally published September 18, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Scenic California state park among best — and most affordable — to visit in US."
