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Planning a fall trip? These U.S. landmarks will be jam-packed

Be prepared for crowds if you're heading to NYC this fall

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Biltmore Estate
The Biltmore Estate Biltmore / Facebook

If you want to take an autumn vacation, then you might want to plan ahead. A new study from student travel company Rustic Pathways has crunched Tripadvisor reviews and Google search data to find the U.S. attractions most likely to be jam-packed this fall. And if you’re heading to New York, be ready – seven of the top 15 most crowded attractions are scattered across the city.

The Empire State Building takes the crown as the busiest spot, earning an “overcrowded score” of 67.48 out of 100. Between September and November, it racks up an average of nearly 620,000 Google searches each month, almost triple the typical attraction, and more than one in ten visitor reviews mention crowds or long waits.

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Central Park is a razor-thin second, with an almost identical score of 67.47 and even more Google searches, though fewer visitors gripe about the crowds. Down south, North Carolina’s Biltmore Estate comes in third, where over a quarter of all reviews are posted in the fall. 

The busiest fall tourist attractions: The full list

Central Park
Central Park 12019 / Pixabay
  1. Empire State Building
  2. Central Park
  3. Biltmore Estate
  4. Grand Central Terminal
  5. The High Line
  6. Statue of Liberty
  7. The National 9/11 Memorial & Museum
  8. Alcatraz Island
  9. San Diego Zoo
  10. Fountains of Bellagio
  11. The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  12. San Antonio River Walk
  13. Grand Ole Opry
  14. Griffith Observatory
  15. Clearwater Beach
  16. Universal Islands of Adventure
  17. Fenway Park
  18. Chihuly Garden and Glass
  19. Freedom Trail
  20. The Art Institute of Chicago
  21. Grand Canyon South Rim
  22. Garden of the Gods
  23. La Jolla Cove
  24. The National WWII Museum
  25. Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area
  26. USS Midway Museum
  27. Pearl Harbor National Memorial
  28. Louisville Mega Cavern
  29. NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
  30. John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
Amanda Teague
Amanda Teague
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Amanda, an accomplished freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio, is a dedicated explorer of both the world and the written word…
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