Contact: John Schadl [email protected] 651-602-1508 Saint Paul – Regional parks and trails in the seven-county metro region continue to be hugely popular, seeing 69.4 million visits in 2023. Of these, parks attracted 49.2 million visits and trails attracted 20.2 million visits. The Minneapolis Chain of Lakes Regional Park saw the most visitation with 7.6 million people walking, biking, swimming, sailing, listening to concerts, and enjoying other activities in the park. Mississippi Gorge Regional Park and Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park in Minneapolis, and the Como Regional Park, Zoo, and Conservatory in Saint Paul, were also among the most visited parks in 2023. Among regional trails, the Minnehaha Parkway Regional Trail was the most popular, drawing in nearly 2.9 million visits. “Parks and trails offer many benefits to our region – habitat preservation, connection to nature, gathering places for family and friends – and they contribute to the health and well-being of residents of all ages,” said Susan Vento, Met Council member and liaison to the Metropolitan Parks and Open Space Commission. “We know people inside and outside the metro region value these places because they show up to enjoy them. The numbers reaffirm the importance of our investments in the parks and trails system.” Estimated visitation grew less than 1% from 2022 – a smaller rise than in recent years – in part because of an increase in hot and smoky summer days in 2023, said Darcie Vandegrift, Metropolitan Council parks researcher. Visitation numbers inform planning, equitable use, and funding Since 1995, the Met Council has produced annual use estimates for the regional parks and trails system. These estimates highlight the value of the system and inform planning, evaluation and strengthening of equitable usage of regional parks and trails, and allocation of funds. Visits are estimated from data collected at 128 regional parks, trails, park reserves, and special recreation features from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The Met Council partners with regional park agencies to plan, acquire land, and develop regional parks and trails. Ten parks agencies own and operate the parks and trails system. Listen to a presentation about the 2023 annual use estimate at the Metropolitan Parks and Open Space Commission. Posted In: Parks