Ranking UK’s National Parks by Elevation, Age & Size

What is the highest point in each of UK’s 15 national parks? Which UK national park is the largest by area? We have the answers to these questions below.

The Highest UK National Parks

The highest point in United Kingdom is Ben Nevis, which is located within the Cairngorms National Park. Ben Nevis stands 4,413 feet (1,345 meters) above sea level.

Rank	Name	Region	Max Point	Elevation
#1	Cairngorms National Park	Scotland	Ben Nevis	4,413 ft(1,345 m)
#2	Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park	Scotland	Ben More	3,852 ft(1,174 m)
#3	Snowdonia National Park	Wales	Snowdon	3,560 ft(1,085 m)
#4	Lake District National Park	England	Scafell Pike	3,209 ft(978 m)
#5	Brecon Beacons National Park	Wales	Pen y Fan	2,907 ft(886 m)
#6	Northumberland National Park	England	The Cheviot	2,674 ft(815 m)
#7	Yorkshire Dales National Park	England	Whernside	2,415 ft(736 m)
#8	Peak District National Park	England	Kinder Scout	2,087 ft(636 m)
#9	Dartmoor National Park	England	High Willhays	2,039 ft(621 m)
#10	Pembrokeshire Coast National Park	Wales	Foel Cwmcerwyn	1,759 ft(536 m)
#11	Exmoor National Park	England	Dunkery Beacon	1,700 ft(518 m)
#12	North York Moors National Park	England	Urra Moor – Round Hill	1,490 ft(454 m)
#13	South Downs National Park	England	Blackdown	919 ft(280 m)
#14	New Forest National Park	England	Pipers Wait	423 ft(129 m)
#15	The Broads National Park	England	Strumpshaw Hill-South Slope	131 ft(40 m)

The Largest UK National Parks

Cairngorms National Park also wins as the largest National Park in the UK. It has a total of 1.1 million acres or 4,528 sq km/1,748 sq miles. Lake District National Park is the second-largest, with just about half of Cairngorms’ size.

Rank	Name	Region	Acres
#1	Cairngorms National Park	Scotland	1,118,720
#2	Lake District National Park	England	566,124
#3	Yorkshire Dales National Park	England	538,213
#4	Snowdonia National Park	Wales	529,074
#5	Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park	Scotland	460,800
#6	South Downs National Park	England	405,327
#7	Peak District National Park	England	355,186
#8	North York Moors National Park	England	354,692
#9	Brecon Beacons National Park	Wales	333,697
#10	Northumberland National Park	England	259,103
#11	Dartmoor National Park	England	236,132
#12	Exmoor National Park	England	171,171
#13	Pembrokeshire Coast National Park	Wales	153,140
#14	New Forest National Park	England	143,260
#15	The Broads National Park	England	74,841

The Oldest UK National Park

Starting in 1951, England started to reclassify its parks. All of these parks were originally created many decades (even centuries) before. However, the dates below are when they were officially designated a ‘National Park’ by their respective countries. Four parks were classified in 1951, with two each also designated in 1952 and 1954. South Downs National Park is the newest UK national park, created in 2009.

Rank	Name	Region	Created
#1	Dartmoor National Park	England	1951
#2	Lake District National Park	England	1951
#3	Peak District National Park	England	1951
#4	Snowdonia National Park	Wales	1951
#5	Pembrokeshire Coast National Park	Wales	1952
#6	North York Moors National Park	England	1952
#7	Exmoor National Park	England	1954
#8	Yorkshire Dales National Park	England	1954
#9	Northumberland National Park	England	1956
#10	Brecon Beacons National Park	Wales	1957
#11	The Broads National Park	England	1989
#12	Cairngorms National Park	Scotland	2002
#13	Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park	Scotland	2002
#14	New Forest National Park	England	2005
#15	South Downs National Park	England	2009

UK Most Visited National Park

The most visited national park in the UK is South Downs due to its proximity to London (54 miles/86 km away). South Downs sees over 2.3 million visitors per year (according to 2019 data).

Rank	Name	Region	Visits
#1	Pembrokeshire Coast National Park	Wales	710
#2	Yorkshire Dales National Park	England	600
#3	Cairngorms National Park	Scotland	570
#4	Brecon Beacons National Park	Wales	530
#5	Exmoor National Park	England	500
#6	Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park	Scotland	430
#7	Dartmoor National Park	England	300
#8	Lake District National Park	England	2
#9	South Downs National Park	England	2
#10	The Broads National Park	England	1
#11	Peak District National Park	England	1
#12	Snowdonia National Park	Wales	1
#13	North York Moors National Park	England	1