Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

administered by one of the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

s of a country, as opposed to a

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

. They are similar to

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

s in other countries. They are typically open to the public for recreation. Their environment may be more or less strictly protected.

Argentina

Provincial parks () in the

Misiones Province Misiones (, ''Missions'') is one of the Provinces of Argentina, 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia, Argentina, Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil ...

of Argentina include the

Urugua-í Provincial Park The Urugua-í Provincial Park () is a Provincial park in the Misiones Province in the northeast of Argentina. It protects an area of Alto Paraná Atlantic forests in the upper basin of the Urugua-í River. Location The Urugua-í Provincial Park ...

and Esmeralda Provincial Park. The

Ischigualasto Provincial Park Ischigualasto Provincial Park (), also called ''Valle de la Luna'' ("Valley of the Moon" or "Moon Valley"), due to its moon-like appearance, is a provincial protected area in the north-east of San Juan Province (Argentina), San Juan Province, nor ...

, also called Valle de la Luna ("Valley of the Moon" or "Moon Valley") due to its otherworldly appearance, is a provincial protected area in the north-east of San Juan Province, north-western Argentina. The

Aconcagua Provincial Park Aconcagua Provincial Park is a Provincial Park located in the Mendoza Province in Argentina. The Andes mountain range draws all types of thrill seekers ranging in difficulty including hiking, climbing, skiing, etc. Besides it draws history lover ...

is in

Mendoza Province Mendoza (), officially the Province of Mendoza, is a province of Argentina, in the western central part of the country in the Cuyo region. It borders San Juan to the north, La Pampa and Neuquén to the south, San Luis to the east, and the r ...

. The highest point is the north summit of the Cerro Aconcagua at . The Parque Provincial Pereyra Iraola is the largest

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

in the

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...

. It is the richest center of biodiversity in the province.

Belgium

Chevetogne Provincial Park - Play area Provincial parks in Belgium (, ) include Bois des Rêves, Chevetogne, Hélécine, Palogne, and Wégimont. These are typically public areas administered by the

for outdoor recreation such as swimming, canoeing, hiking and camping, with few or no fully protected portions.

Canada

Provincial parks file:Ischigualasto provincial park.jpg, Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other coun ...

in Canada are

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

s of land and/or water designated by one of the provincial governments to protect nature or historical sites and to support recreation, tourism and education. The first provincial park,

Queen Victoria Park Queen Victoria Park is the main parkland located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada opposite the American and Canadian Horseshoe Falls. Established by the Niagara Falls Park Act in 1885 and opened in 1888, the park is operated by the Niagara Pa ...

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...

, opened in 1888. The largest is the

Polar Bear Provincial Park Polar Bear Provincial Park is an isolated wilderness park in the far north of Ontario, Canada. It lies on the western shore where James Bay joins Hudson Bay. The terrain is part of the Hudson Bay Lowlands and features unspoiled low-lying tundra i ...

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

. Although provincial parks in Canada are not the same as

national parks A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

, their structures and purposes are very similar. The provincial and territorial parks systems generally have various park categories. Parks may be ecological reserves without facilities for use by the general public, day use parks or recreational parks that offer many services to visitors, often including

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

canoe A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ' ...

, or

kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...

rentals,

camping Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent. Camping can also include a recreational vehicle, sheltered cabins, a permanent tent, a shelter such as a Bivy bag ...

sites,

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trails and

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

es. In the province of

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, the provincial parks are labelled "national parks" and are all

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

category II protected areas (like at the federal level, and as opposed to many provincial parks), and are managed by

Société des établissements de plein air du Québec The ''Société des établissements de plein air du Québec'' (, ''Quebec Outdoor Establishments Company''), also known as ''Sépaq'', is the agency of the Government of Quebec that manages parks and wildlife reserves. Sépaq falls under the auth ...

. Many parks in the other provinces have the IUCN designation. On 24 February 2025,

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

said that it would change all parks labelled "

s" in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

to "provincial parks" on

Google Maps Google Maps is a web mapping platform and consumer application offered by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panorama, interactive panoramic views of streets (Google Street View, Street View ...

. This issue predated the Trump Administration but gained attention after Trump stated that he would like Canada to become the 51st state.

South Africa

Nwanedi Provincial Park Nwanedi Provincial Park, is a protected area in the northern part of the Limpopo province of South Africa. It is located about 20 km east of Tshipise and 35 km north of Thohoyandou, to the west of Kruger National Park. The Nwanedi park ...

is a scenic nature and game reserve on the foothills of the Venda mountains in the northern part of the

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. Mokolo Dam Provincial Park almost surrounds the Mokolo Dam on the

Mokolo River The Mokolo River is a major watercourse in Limpopo Province of South Africa. This river collects much of the drainage of the Waterberg Massif and discharges it to the Limpopo River. The river's catchment area comprises . Course The Mokolo River a ...

. It is located 32 km south of

Lephalale Lephalale, formerly known as Ellisras, is a coal mining town in the Limpopo province of South Africa immediately east of the Waterberg Coalfield. The town was established as Ellisras in 1960 and named after Patrick Ellis and Piet Erasmus who sett ...

, just northeast of the

Marakele National Park Marakele National Park is a National Park, part of the Waterberg Biosphere in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Flora and fauna Marakele is home to the big five (buffalo did not exist in the park, but 20 disease-free buffalo (nine cows and elev ...

and not far from the Lapalala Game Reserve. Letaba Ranch Provincial Park in Limpopo Province is north of

Phalaborwa Phalaborwa (translated to English as ''better than the south; phala'' means ''better than and borwa'' means ''south'') is a town in the Mopani District Municipality, Limpopo province, South Africa. Name The place was called "Phalaborwa" by the S ...

, next to the

Kruger Park Kruger National Park () is a national park in South Africa covering an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in the country's northeast. It extends from north to south and from east to west. The administrative headquarters are i ...

and has an area of about 42,000 ha. The

Letaba River The Letaba River (), also known as Leţaba, Lehlaba or Ritavi, is a river located in eastern Limpopo Province, South Africa. It is one of the most important tributaries of the Olifants River. Course It starts at the confluence of the Groot Leta ...

runs through the park.

References

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