State Parks

Amicalola Falls drops more than 700 feet through the north Georgia mountains, making it the tallest cascading waterfall in the eastern United States and one of the most spectacular short hikes a family can take in the Southeast. The state park sits at the southern approach to the Appalachian Trail, so even a weekend visit carries the feeling of something larger just beyond the ridge.

Fall Creek Falls State Park in Tennessee is home to one of the tallest waterfalls in the eastern United States, a gorge full of swinging bridges and old-growth hemlocks, and enough well-marked trails to keep families busy for a long weekend. The park pairs that wild scenery with solid facilities: a campground, cabins, a lodge, a lake, and a nature center built for kids.

Hunting Island State Park packs a climbable lighthouse, wild Atlantic beach, and some of the best loggerhead turtle nesting habitat on the East Coast into one barrier island off South Carolina's Lowcountry. It is one of the most visited state parks in South Carolina for good reason, and families with kids of nearly any age will find something to get genuinely excited about here.