New research has named the Lake District as the second most popular national park in the UK.

The research, undertaken by Go Outdoors, looked at data, including number of visitors each year, to determine the UK’s most and least popular national parks.

The top 10 most popular national parks in the UK:

  1. South Downs, Sussex
  2. Lake District, Cumbria
  3. Peak District, Derbyshire
  4. The Broads, Norfolk, Suffolk
  5. North Yorkshire Moors
  6. Snowdonia, Wales
  7. Pembrokeshire Coast, Wales
  8. Yorkshire Dales
  9. Cairngorms, Scotland
  10. Brecon Beacons, Wales

The most popular national park was South Downs with 2.31 million visitors in 2019. Stretching from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne, the park covers 628 square miles. With 3,300km of footpaths, bridleways, and byways, there are plenty of opportunities to walk, cycle or even ride on horseback at Beachy Head in the South Downs.

The Lake District National Park is the second most popular national park on the list with 2.17 million visitors.

The third most popular national park in the UK is the Peak District National Park. Hosting 1.77 million visitors in 2019 and spanning close to 555 square miles.