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When Petrified Forest is busiest and quietest

Petrified Forest draws about 584,000 recreation visits in a typical year. June is the peak, with 13.9% of the year's visits. November is the quietest month that still draws a normal share, at 5.2%.

JuneBusiest month
NovemberQuietest open month
2.7xPeak month visits vs the quietest open month
82,045Visits in a typical June

Share of the year's visits, by month

Petrified Forest: share of yearly visits by month4.0%Jan4.0%Feb8.7%Mar8.7%Apr11.2%May13.9%Jun12.8%Jul9.7%Aug8.3%Sep8.1%Oct5.2%Nov5.3%Dec

BusiestQuietest open monthOther months

Low months are not always the best months. January and February each draw under 4% of the year's visits. That usually reflects snow, closed roads or reduced services, so check the park's own conditions page before planning around them. The quietest month overall is February.

Typical visits per month

MonthTypical visitsShare of year
January 21,808 4.0%
February 23,250 4.0%
March 51,354 8.7%
April 50,457 8.7%
May 64,265 11.2%
June 82,045 13.9%
July 76,405 12.8%
August 57,527 9.7%
September 48,483 8.3%
October 48,997 8.1%
November 29,888 5.2%
December 29,264 5.3%

How this was worked out

We averaged 9 years of National Park Service recreation visitor counts (2015 to 2025, leaving out 2020 and 2021). Each month is shown as its share of that year's total, then averaged. The counts are monthly, so this cannot tell you about holiday weekends or a specific week. It is history, not a forecast. Full details are on the methodology page.