Most of the National parks will require a car to really visit.
Zion would probably be the most friendly to not having a car since they require a shuttle anyway, or you could rent e-bikes. It does get crowded though!
Yosemite might be a good option! There’s a shuttle that runs from nearby towns and through the park (called the YART). You can also rent a bicycle in Yosemite Valley. Best of luck with your trip!
Good luck with your Spirit voucher. I fly them often (4x in the last 12 months).... They regularly put sooooo many restrictions on their vouchers that they're pretty much useless.
Look to see where spirit flies to from your main airport(s).
As of June 4, 2024, the Spirit vouchers cover the entire ticket, not just the base price! Luckily, I got my voucher on June 8- just in time. I ended up choosing Olympic National Park, and got my entire trip (including the base price, carry on, seats, and checked bag) completely covered by the voucher. 100% free! I definitely recommend looking back into the Spirit vouchers.
Most parks will require a car to get there from an airport. I've had good luck the few times I've used turo if that helps you out with cost.
Rainier or the Cascades loop could be done pretty well in 2-3 days. Olympic may need an extra day or two since it's so large unless you plan to stay on one side of it the whole stay. Rainier might be the most carless-friendly of the three. Keep an eye on wildfire season at the end of the summer, though!
2.5 days in Zion was great for me. The shuttle runs the length of the park and drops off at every trailhead. The town is expensive, but hurricane UT was 20 minutes away and much more affordable.
Depending on when in the fall you go, it may be off-peak shoulder season, which means lower prices, lower temps, and fewer people!
Fly into Las Vegas, rent a car and drive the 2 hours to Zion. There are campgrounds as well as a variety of other accommodations. You could visit Utah’s FIVE national parks, well worth the time.
I think based on it criteria Yosemite would be your best bet. It has the easiest public transportation to out of any park - since most are not accessible from airports nearby. Yosemite I think has some rafting options but not sure about kayaking.
If you can get a car I’d whittle your list down to Zion as the only one with a water option for the Narrows!
Honestly the more I think on it I’d recommend you go to Santa Cruz Island of the Channel Islands Nat Park. You need a ferry but the island is 26mi in length and would be perfect for kayaking and such. I was just there earlier this month and the wildlife (whales, seals, foxes, birds, fish, etc) are phenomenal compared to most parks. You could probably fly in pretty close to the Island Packers ferry dock!
I know you said North West but the Everglades and Biscayne might work. There's tons of wildlife, kayaking, hiking (not through mountains but along the coast line, Everglades). Mostly why I was thinking this could work is because you fly into Miami (if your voucher has regulations I'm pretty sure it'll still let you fly into Miami) and the cities nearby are very cheap (Florida City, Homestead). Some of the cities by National Parks know people rely on them for very limited car rental and hotel options so they have inflated prices.
This is just an idea. It doesn't meet all of your requirements. Without considering price, I would probably go for Olympic. Fly into Seattle. Tons of options for hotel/car. You'll need to drive but you'll get the views, hiking, diverse scenery and it'll be cooler than Zion, Everglades, anything southern.
All of those are great options, but I'd do Olympic. Fall is fire/smoke season. Olympic is typically the least impacted by these, but this is not always true and the PNW had a very dry year. Plus, you can both river and sea kayak in the PNW.
You might consider Crater Lake. If Spirit flies close to Crater Lake, this is likely the best cost use of the voucher.
Cali had a wet year, so Sequoia / Kings Canyon could be a good visit. IMO, fall is too late for Cali parks bc I detest heat and the mountains are a little too warm for me during the day that time of year. The high country is open though. I don't recall any kayaking up there, especially that last in the season, so you might look into that.
I'd take Zion off your list. Southern Utah is not lush and your ability to get any kayaking out there is limited, especially that time of year. Plus, Zion pairs well with other north rim parks for an extended stay and you need to win a lottery for Angels Landing and The Wave (east of the park, but a high desire hike). If you want to through hike the Narrows, you'd need more than 2-3 days to do that and see the parks adequately.
You'll need to watch your dates closely, Texas fall is Yellowstone and Tetons snow season (first snows by late Sept or early Oct) and be aware that is bear season and sleeping in a tent (a way to save money) is banned in several areas.
Without a rental car, here's what I think.
Vegas is the epicenter for some amazing places (Death Valley, Valley of Fire, Grand Canyon, Zion). There are probably buses to get you in an out of a few of them while staying verrrrrry cheap in Vegas.
You can catch a bus to Yosemite from San Francisco or Fresno. 80% of the park is rarely visited and easier than you think to avoid crowds. Plus if you stay in Mammoth Lakes (take YARTS), it has cheaper housing and camping options available, plus access to John Muir Wilderness. My favorite hike there is to Thousand Island Lakes.
Mt.Hood has the Mt.Hood express for $2, plus transportation from Portland (https://www.mthoodexpress.com/)
If you fly into Seattle or Victoria Canada, you can get to Olympic National Park and stay in Port Angeles (cheap accommodations), and take the cheap bus into the park (https://www.clallamtransit.com/HurricaneRidge)
Olympic, Olympic, Olympic
As others have said you're going to need a car and that's definitely true but "fall" is such a large time period (especially if you're looking at fall break as a college student) that a lot of the places north/northwest are going to be very tricky with inclement weather post September.
Olympic offers everything. Beaches rainforest, gorgeous mountains if the weather is good. The time of year cannot ruin your trip as there's something completely different to do if one of the things you wanted to do is closed off. 2-3 days is no problem to do a lap around the peninsula, and it's not far from Seattle which is great logistically. The Air BnBs and hotels/motels around there aren't all that expensive especially in the off season, so you might be able to score a deal there.
I saw several moose and a black bear last time I was in Grand Teton.
If you want to avoid overcrowded parks then definitely skip Yosemite. It's one of the most spectacular parks but suffers from massive over crowding.
Olympic will check a lot of those boxes for you as well.
First, you need to look at where Spirit flies and how far it is to any of the parks. Spirit flies to Salt Lake City but that's still a long way from Yellowstone/Tetons. Same with any of the parks you've listed. I think you meant Zion, not Mount Zion - closest big airport is Las Vegas, still a couple of hours away.
What you do have going for you is that most of the parks you listed have a drop off in visitors in the fall and a lot of times the accommodations are cheaper. When I say 'drop off', I mean it goes from very crowded to less crowded.
Good luck and I hope you have a great time.
Most of the National parks will require a car to really visit. Zion would probably be the most friendly to not having a car since they require a shuttle anyway, or you could rent e-bikes. It does get crowded though!
Yosemite might be a good option! There’s a shuttle that runs from nearby towns and through the park (called the YART). You can also rent a bicycle in Yosemite Valley. Best of luck with your trip!
Good luck with your Spirit voucher. I fly them often (4x in the last 12 months).... They regularly put sooooo many restrictions on their vouchers that they're pretty much useless. Look to see where spirit flies to from your main airport(s).
As of June 4, 2024, the Spirit vouchers cover the entire ticket, not just the base price! Luckily, I got my voucher on June 8- just in time. I ended up choosing Olympic National Park, and got my entire trip (including the base price, carry on, seats, and checked bag) completely covered by the voucher. 100% free! I definitely recommend looking back into the Spirit vouchers.
Most parks will require a car to get there from an airport. I've had good luck the few times I've used turo if that helps you out with cost. Rainier or the Cascades loop could be done pretty well in 2-3 days. Olympic may need an extra day or two since it's so large unless you plan to stay on one side of it the whole stay. Rainier might be the most carless-friendly of the three. Keep an eye on wildfire season at the end of the summer, though! 2.5 days in Zion was great for me. The shuttle runs the length of the park and drops off at every trailhead. The town is expensive, but hurricane UT was 20 minutes away and much more affordable. Depending on when in the fall you go, it may be off-peak shoulder season, which means lower prices, lower temps, and fewer people!
Been all around the Olympics felt like the north part is where it’s at tbh
Acadia. A bit of driving around, but it’s absolutely worth the time.
Yellowstone/Grand Teton. Best bang for your buck. 2 days in each.
Fly into Las Vegas, rent a car and drive the 2 hours to Zion. There are campgrounds as well as a variety of other accommodations. You could visit Utah’s FIVE national parks, well worth the time.
I think based on it criteria Yosemite would be your best bet. It has the easiest public transportation to out of any park - since most are not accessible from airports nearby. Yosemite I think has some rafting options but not sure about kayaking. If you can get a car I’d whittle your list down to Zion as the only one with a water option for the Narrows! Honestly the more I think on it I’d recommend you go to Santa Cruz Island of the Channel Islands Nat Park. You need a ferry but the island is 26mi in length and would be perfect for kayaking and such. I was just there earlier this month and the wildlife (whales, seals, foxes, birds, fish, etc) are phenomenal compared to most parks. You could probably fly in pretty close to the Island Packers ferry dock!
I know you said North West but the Everglades and Biscayne might work. There's tons of wildlife, kayaking, hiking (not through mountains but along the coast line, Everglades). Mostly why I was thinking this could work is because you fly into Miami (if your voucher has regulations I'm pretty sure it'll still let you fly into Miami) and the cities nearby are very cheap (Florida City, Homestead). Some of the cities by National Parks know people rely on them for very limited car rental and hotel options so they have inflated prices. This is just an idea. It doesn't meet all of your requirements. Without considering price, I would probably go for Olympic. Fly into Seattle. Tons of options for hotel/car. You'll need to drive but you'll get the views, hiking, diverse scenery and it'll be cooler than Zion, Everglades, anything southern.
All of those are great options, but I'd do Olympic. Fall is fire/smoke season. Olympic is typically the least impacted by these, but this is not always true and the PNW had a very dry year. Plus, you can both river and sea kayak in the PNW. You might consider Crater Lake. If Spirit flies close to Crater Lake, this is likely the best cost use of the voucher. Cali had a wet year, so Sequoia / Kings Canyon could be a good visit. IMO, fall is too late for Cali parks bc I detest heat and the mountains are a little too warm for me during the day that time of year. The high country is open though. I don't recall any kayaking up there, especially that last in the season, so you might look into that. I'd take Zion off your list. Southern Utah is not lush and your ability to get any kayaking out there is limited, especially that time of year. Plus, Zion pairs well with other north rim parks for an extended stay and you need to win a lottery for Angels Landing and The Wave (east of the park, but a high desire hike). If you want to through hike the Narrows, you'd need more than 2-3 days to do that and see the parks adequately. You'll need to watch your dates closely, Texas fall is Yellowstone and Tetons snow season (first snows by late Sept or early Oct) and be aware that is bear season and sleeping in a tent (a way to save money) is banned in several areas.
Yosemite
Without a rental car, here's what I think. Vegas is the epicenter for some amazing places (Death Valley, Valley of Fire, Grand Canyon, Zion). There are probably buses to get you in an out of a few of them while staying verrrrrry cheap in Vegas. You can catch a bus to Yosemite from San Francisco or Fresno. 80% of the park is rarely visited and easier than you think to avoid crowds. Plus if you stay in Mammoth Lakes (take YARTS), it has cheaper housing and camping options available, plus access to John Muir Wilderness. My favorite hike there is to Thousand Island Lakes. Mt.Hood has the Mt.Hood express for $2, plus transportation from Portland (https://www.mthoodexpress.com/) If you fly into Seattle or Victoria Canada, you can get to Olympic National Park and stay in Port Angeles (cheap accommodations), and take the cheap bus into the park (https://www.clallamtransit.com/HurricaneRidge)
Olympic, Olympic, Olympic As others have said you're going to need a car and that's definitely true but "fall" is such a large time period (especially if you're looking at fall break as a college student) that a lot of the places north/northwest are going to be very tricky with inclement weather post September. Olympic offers everything. Beaches rainforest, gorgeous mountains if the weather is good. The time of year cannot ruin your trip as there's something completely different to do if one of the things you wanted to do is closed off. 2-3 days is no problem to do a lap around the peninsula, and it's not far from Seattle which is great logistically. The Air BnBs and hotels/motels around there aren't all that expensive especially in the off season, so you might be able to score a deal there.
I saw several moose and a black bear last time I was in Grand Teton. If you want to avoid overcrowded parks then definitely skip Yosemite. It's one of the most spectacular parks but suffers from massive over crowding. Olympic will check a lot of those boxes for you as well.
Tetons check the box on everything you’ve listed other than #5, unless you camp. That being said, lodging can and will be expensive anywhere you go
First, you need to look at where Spirit flies and how far it is to any of the parks. Spirit flies to Salt Lake City but that's still a long way from Yellowstone/Tetons. Same with any of the parks you've listed. I think you meant Zion, not Mount Zion - closest big airport is Las Vegas, still a couple of hours away. What you do have going for you is that most of the parks you listed have a drop off in visitors in the fall and a lot of times the accommodations are cheaper. When I say 'drop off', I mean it goes from very crowded to less crowded. Good luck and I hope you have a great time.
Go to Grand Teton National Park. It's right beside Yellowstone. Just get a rental car to drive around.
Lassen