National Geographic names 7 natural wonders of America
National Geographic and ABC News unveiled the Seven Natural Wonders of America during the Disney Celebrates America broadcast on July 4, 2026. The curated wonders america list spans the Grand Canyon, coastal redwoods, Niagara Falls, the Appalachian Mountains, the Everglades, Yellowstone National Park, and Hawai'i volcanoes—landmarks spotlighted in a live afternoon ABC and Nat Geo segment. The reveal paired on-the-ground reporting with expert commentary on some of the country's most awe-inspiring landscapes.
Key Takeaways
- National Geographic's seven natural wonders are the Grand Canyon, coastal redwoods, Niagara Falls, the Appalachian Mountains, the Everglades, Yellowstone, and Hawai'i volcanoes.
- Good Morning America teamed up with National Geographic to reveal the list during ABC's 24-hour Disney Celebrates America event starting July 3 at 10 p.m. ET.
- Yellowstone holds more than 10,000 geothermal features and nearly two-thirds of the planet's geysers atop an active super volcano.
- The Everglades watershed covers one-third of Florida across 1.5 million acres and nine separate habitats.
- Replay coverage is available the day after the live event on Disney+ and Hulu.
What are National Geographic's seven natural wonders of America?
The National Geographic list highlights seven iconic U.S. landscapes. The Grand Canyon draws more than six million visitors annually, with rock layers descending to Vishnu schist dating back 1.8 billion years—what one expert calls "a time machine."
Coastal redwoods in Redwood National and State Parks and Sequoia National Park rank among the tallest trees on Earth. Niagara Falls straddles the U.S.–Canada border, while the Appalachian Mountains near Asheville, North Carolina, showcase ancient metamorphic rocks that shaped America's East.
The Everglades protect more than a dozen threatened and endangered species, including alligators and Florida panthers. Yellowstone, the world's first national park, features waterfalls twice the height of Niagara and its own millennia-old canyon. Hawai'i sits atop a tectonic hot spot where magma continually rises toward the surface.
When and where can you watch the Disney Celebrates America broadcast?
Good Morning America teamed up with National Geographic to reveal America's seven wonders during ABC's 24-hour Disney Celebrates America event, which began July 3 at 10 p.m. ET. The dedicated ABC News and National Geographic segments aired from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 4.
Full 24-hour live coverage ran across Disney+, Hulu, ESPN, Nat Geo, FX, and Freeform. The special became available to stream again the following day on Disney+ and Hulu. For more on where to catch similar live events, see our Streaming & TV Alerts coverage.
Why does National Geographic's wonders list matter now?
The collaboration turns a curated travel list into a live television moment, bringing National Geographic Explorers together with ABC News anchors for on-the-ground reporting. Journalist and National Geographic Explorer James Edward Mills called Yellowstone "geologically wonderful" while emphasizing the park's sheer grandeur of space.
President Theodore Roosevelt's words about the Grand Canyon still resonate: it is among the great sights every American, if they can travel at all, should see. The broadcast also extended to regional stories, including Yosemite National Park fun facts shared during Disney Celebrates America coverage.
What Yosemite fun facts surfaced during the broadcast?
As part of the broader Disney Celebrates America programming, ABC highlighted Yosemite National Park, known as the crown jewel of the National Park System. The park welcomes about four million visitors per year and offers skiing, rock climbing, hiking, rafting, and art classes through the Yosemite Conservancy.
Queen Elizabeth II visited in 1983 and dined at The Ahwahnee, where Disney Imagineers later drew inspiration for the Grand Californian and Walt Disney World's Fort Wilderness Lodge. Landscape photographer Ansel Adams played a key role in Yosemite's conservation, and the Every Kid Outdoors Program grants fourth graders a free pass to national parks including Yosemite.