National Recreation Area is a designation for a protected area in the United States, usually centered on large reservoirs and emphasizing water-based recreation for a large number of people. Unlike U.S. National Monuments, which can be established by Presidential proclamation under the Antiquities Act, National Recreation Areas can only be established by acts of the United States Congress. Areas with this designation are managed by different federal agencies, most of which operate within the Department of the Interior or the Department of Agriculture. Some national recreation areas are under the National Park Service (Interior), some under the Bureau of Land Management (Interior), and others are managed by the U.S. Forest Service (Agriculture).

National Recreation Areas of the United States | protected areas of the United States