A new National Park Service report shows Indiana Dunes National Park is the 36th most-visited NPS property, with more than 2.65 million visits in 2024.
That puts it in the top 10% of all 398 NPS properties with reported data.
Among its peers with national park designation, Indiana Dunes National Park ranks 13th, between Cuyahoga Valley, at 2.8 million, and Bryce Canyon, at nearly 2.5 million.
Among 1,824 federal units across various agencies, Indiana Dunes National Park ranks 70th, putting it in the top 5%.
Indiana Dunes Tourism figures in the past have lumped together Indiana Dunes National Park and Indiana Dunes State Park to show that the two destinations combined would be among the most visited national parks in the nation.
Indiana Dunes State Park received about 2 million visitors a year. Combined, the two parks would rank just below Yellowstone National Park.
In March, Indiana Dunes Tourism President and CEO Christine Livingston said the 4.6 million visitors coming to the Indiana Dunes state and national parks account for 2,600 jobs and over $140 million in economic development for Porter County.
The NPS report showed Indiana Dunes National Park had nearly 2.34 million visits involving sightseeing, a category that includes enjoying landscapes and wildlife, photography and viewing cultural resources, according to a Wednesday news release.
About 1.27 million visits involved hiking, walking or running while nearly 279,000 involved interpretation, education or nature study.
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Other activity estimates include 57,979 biking visits; 39,209 motorized boating visits; 33,825 nonmotorized boating visits; 24,137 fishing visits and 21,368 camping visits.
“People make millions of visits to Indiana Dunes each year, experiencing the park in many different ways,” acting Superintendent Leo Lestino said in a news release. “Some come to spend the day along Lake Michigan while others hike through forests and wetlands, ride bikes, paddle, fish, camp or participate in ranger programs. These numbers show both the tremendous scale of public use and the breadth of experiences the park provides.”
The new report describes what visitors do rather than the setting they visit. Enjoying the beach might be seen as sightseeing, while walking along the beach is categorized as hiking, walking and running. Swimming would be listed as other recreation.
Because a visitor may participate in several activities during a single trip, the activity estimates overlap and shouldn’t be added together.
“These new numbers reflect what we’ve been seeing since the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore became a national park. The designation introduced the Indiana Dunes to a new audience of hikers, birders, photographers and national park enthusiasts from across the country and the world,” Michelle Senderhauf, Indiana Dunes Tourism’s digital marketing director, said Wednesday.
“Ranking among the most visited national parks in the country is a testament to the appeal of our park. When you consider the combined visitation to the Indiana Dunes National Park and state park, it reinforces that the Indiana Dunes area is one of America’s premier outdoor recreation destinations,” she said.
“At Indiana Dunes Tourism, we strive to help visitors experience everything our region has to offer through initiatives like the Indiana Dunes Discovery Trail, Sand + Steel, our new Indiana Dunes Tourism app and our partnerships with the parks and local communities. We encourage people to travel beyond the beach and discover our local restaurants, shops and attractions throughout Porter County,” Senderhauf said.
According to the report, definitions and data collection methods may also vary among agencies and individual units.
Unlike some federal properties, Indiana Dunes National Park has porous borders that don’t send visitors through an entrance where counting visitors would be easier.
“This information helps us better communicate how the public uses Indiana Dunes National Park and why continued investment in visitor services, trails, facilities, public safety and resource protection matters,” Lestino said in the release.
“Every one of these visits depends on the work of park employees, volunteers and partners who help make meaningful experiences possible while protecting the resources visitors come here to enjoy.”
The FY2024 Interagency Recreation Visitation Data Report was developed by the Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation under the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Act, enacted in January 2025. The law calls for more consistent, transparent visitation estimates for federal recreation sites and common categories for reporting recreational activities across agencies.
The report notes the federal government manages hundreds of millions of acres involving diverse recreation opportunities. Agencies reporting data include the Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Park Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Forest Service.
The National Park Service had the most visitors, at more than 332.6 million, followed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, at more than 260.4 million.
Doug Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.