List of fee areas in the United States National Park System

Last updated

Fee areas of the National Park System comprise a minority of the areas of the United States National Park System administered by the National Park Service. [1] [2] A majority of sites are fee-free areas.

Contents

The list below includes all areas that charge an entrance or standard amenity fee; generally not included are sites that only charge expanded amenity fees such as those for camping, boat launching, and parking. Sites where nearly all visitors purchase these additional amenities, such as areas with caves that require fee-based guided tours for cave access, are also generally not included. Many areas listed have parts where fees do not apply. Each year, there are a handful of free entrance days when entrance fees are waived at these areas. [3]

Fees are given on a per-vehicle or per-person basis. Per-vehicle fees admit all occupants of a private passenger vehicle, generally for 7-days (unless otherwise noted). Most per-vehicle sites also offer passes for individuals arriving on foot, bicycle, or motorcycle; these are not listed. Fees do not apply to children age 15 or younger unless otherwise noted. All sites accept America the Beautiful Passes to waive entrance fees, which have been described as one of the best deals in recreation. [4] [5] [6] [7] Most fee areas also offer an annual area-specific pass for those who visit the same area often.

List

Bold indicates national parks.

NameLocationTypical feeFee typeWebsiteNotes
Little River Canyon National Preserve Alabama $15per-vehicle
Denali National Park and Preserve Alaska $15per-person
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area Arizona $30per-vehicle
Utah
Grand Canyon National Park Arizona $35per-vehicle
Montezuma Castle National Monument Arizona $10per-person passes valid at Tuzigoot National Monument
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument Arizona $25per-vehicle
Petrified Forest National Park Arizona $25per-vehicle
Pipe Spring National Monument Arizona $10per-person
Saguaro National Park Arizona $25per-vehicle
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument Arizona $25per-vehicle passes valid at Wupatki National Monument
Tonto National Monument Arizona $10per-person
Tumacacori National Historical Park Arizona $10per-person
Tuzigoot National Monument Arizona $10per-person passes valid at Montezuma Castle National Monument
Walnut Canyon National Monument Arizona $15per-person
Wupatki National Monument Arizona $25per-vehicle passes valid at Sunset Crater National Monument
Fort Smith National Historic Site Arkansas $10per-person
Cabrillo National Monument California $20per-vehicle
Death Valley National Park California $30per-vehicle
Nevada
Devils Postpile National Monument California $8per-person fee for daily use of shuttle; other types of passes and limited vehicle access exist
Joshua Tree National Park California $30per-vehicle
Kings Canyon National Park California $35per-vehicle passes valid at Sequoia National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park California $30per-vehicle
Lava Beds National Monument California $25per-vehicle
Muir Woods National Monument California $15per-person
Pinnacles National Park California $30per-vehicle
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park California $15per-person
Sequoia National Park California $35per-vehicle passes valid at Kings Canyon National Park
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area California $25per-vehicle
Yosemite National Park California $35per-vehicle
Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site Colorado $10per-person
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park Colorado $25per-vehicle
Colorado National Monument Colorado $25per-vehicle
Dinosaur National Monument Colorado $25per-vehicle
Utah
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument Colorado $10per-person
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Colorado $25per-vehicle
Mesa Verde National Park Colorado $30per-vehicle fees are reduced during the winter season
Rocky Mountain National Park Colorado $25per-vehicle
Canaveral National Seashore Florida $20per-vehicle
Castillo de San Marcos National Monument Florida $15per-person
Dry Tortugas National Park Florida $15per-person
Everglades National Park Florida $30per-vehicle
Gulf Islands National Seashore Florida $25per-vehicle
Mississippi
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area Georgia $5per-vehicle
Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Georgia $10per-person fees only required for visiting Point Park at Lookout Mountain battlefield
Tennessee
Cumberland Island National Seashore Georgia $10per-person
Fort Pulaski National Monument Georgia $10per-person
Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park Georgia $5per-vehicle daily fee
Haleakala National Park Hawaii $30per-vehicle
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Hawaii $30per-vehicle
Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park Hawaii $20per-vehicle
Craters of the Moon National Monument Idaho $20per-vehicle
Poverty Point National Monument Louisiana $4per-person daily fee; monument and fees administered by Louisiana state parks
Acadia National Park Maine $30per-vehicle
Antietam National Battlefield Maryland $10per-person 3-day pass; $20 per-vehicle pass available (3-day pass)
Assateague Island National Seashore Maryland $25per-vehicle 7-day pass; daily $10 per-vehicle pass available for Virginia district. Passes valid for entrance to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge
Virginia
C & O Canal National Historical Park Maryland $20per-vehicle passes required only for Great Falls Tavern area; passes valid at Great Falls Park
Washington D.C.
Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine Maryland $15per-person
Adams National Historical Park Massachusetts $15per-person
Cape Cod National Seashore Massachusetts $25per-vehicle
Isle Royale National Park Michigan $7per-person daily fee
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Michigan $25per-vehicle
Vicksburg National Military Park Mississippi $20per-vehicle
Louisiana
Gateway Arch National Park Missouri $3per-person daily pass; tickets for tram to top of arch separate
Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Missouri $20per-vehicle fees currently waived and some venues closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Glacier National Park Montana $35per-vehicle reduced fees during the winter season
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument Montana $25per-vehicle
Lake Mead National Recreation Area Nevada $25per-vehicle
Arizona
Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park New Hampshire $10per-person fees currently waived and some venues closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Thomas Edison National Historical Park New Jersey $15per-person
Bandelier National Monument New Mexico $25per-vehicle
Capulin Volcano National Monument New Mexico $20per-vehicle
Carlsbad Caverns National Park New Mexico $15per-person 3-day pass
Chaco Culture National Historical Park New Mexico $25per-vehicle
Valles Caldera National Preserve New Mexico $25per-vehicle fees currently waived
White Sands National Park New Mexico $25per-vehicle
Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site New York $20per-person 2-day pass; passes required only for the house and presidential library. Top Cottage requires a separate $10 fee per-person.
Sagamore Hill National Historic Site New York $10per-person fee applies only for Theodore Roosevelt Home tour
Statue of Liberty National Monument New York $19.25per-person children 4–12 years, $9; seniors 62+ years $14; fee includes ferry ticket and pedestal access, crown tickets additional fee and require reservation
New Jersey
Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site New York $12per-person youth 6-18, $7; seniors 62+, college students, and veterans, $9
Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site New York $10per-person fee for mansion entry only, gardens and grounds free
Wright Brothers National Memorial North Carolina $10per-person
Theodore Roosevelt National Park North Dakota $30per-vehicle
First Ladies National Historic Site Ohio $7per-person children under 18, $5; seniors, $6; America the Beautiful Pass holders, $4
James A. Garfield National Historic Site Ohio $10per-person
Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial Ohio $10per-person fees for memorial and observation deck only; these are currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Crater Lake National Park Oregon $30per-vehicle reduced fees during the winter season
Lewis and Clark National Historical Park Oregon $10per-person fee applies only to Fort Clatsop, separate fees apply to state park units
Washington
San Juan National Historic Site Puerto Rico $10per-person daily fee
Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park South Carolina $10per-person fees for Fort Moultrie only; Fort Sumter is free to enter but generally requires a paid ferry fare to reach
Badlands National Park South Dakota $30per-vehicle
Big Bend National Park Texas $30per-vehicle
Fort Davis National Historic Site Texas $20per-vehicle
Guadalupe Mountains National Park Texas $10per-person
Padre Island National Seashore Texas $10per-vehicle daily pass; 7-day vehicle pass available for $25
Arches National Park Utah $30per-vehicle
Bryce Canyon National Park Utah $35per-vehicle
Canyonlands National Park Utah $30per-vehicle
Capitol Reef National Park Utah $20per-vehicle
Cedar Breaks National Monument Utah $10per-person
Golden Spike National Historical Park Utah $20per-vehicle
Natural Bridges National Monument Utah $20per-vehicle
Zion National Park Utah $35per-vehicle
Christiansted National Historic Site Virgin Islands $7per-person
Great Falls Park Virginia $20per-vehicle passes valid at Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Prince William Forest Park Virginia $20per-vehicle
Shenandoah National Park Virginia $30per-vehicle
Fort Vancouver National Historic Site Washington $10per-person fee only for entry to reconstructed fort, free access to rest of grounds
Oregon
Mount Rainier National Park Washington $30per-vehicle
Olympic National Park Washington $30per-vehicle
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park West Virginia $20per-vehicle
Devils Tower National Monument Wyoming $25per-vehicle
Grand Teton National Park Wyoming $35per-vehicle no fee stations at the north entrance, which is only accessible through Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park Wyoming $35per-vehicle
Idaho
Montana

History

On October 24, 2017, Secretary of the Interior Zinke proposed large fee hikes at seventeen of the most visited national parks in order to address a backlog of maintenance at all national parks. [8] The NPS considered that these changes, which would increase entrance fees from $25 to $75, were appropriate because they only targeted the most popular parks, which already have entrance fees. [8] However, there was a nearly unanimous public backlash against this proposal; many families felt this would prohibit them from being able to visit the parks. [9]

Further, there was concern that this hike would disproportionately affect low-income families, who are already underrepresented in visitation to national parks. [10] Additionally, many organizations working to increase access to nature for families of color, such as Latino Outdoors and African American Nature and Parks Experience, spoke out against these proposed fee hikes. [10]

Altogether, more than 110,000 comments were posted on the NPS website, with 98% of them protesting this change. [11] Representative Raul Grijalva commented, “This is a prime example that activism works.” [11] In response to this strong public reaction, on April 12, 2018, Secretary Zinke released a statement replacing this plan with a more moderate proposal to raise prices incrementally across all parks with entrance fees. [12]

Cashless

In an effort to save on cash processing and hand handling fees, 22 national parks have gone cashless as of 2023. In September 2023, U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) proposed the "Protecting Access to Recreation with Cash Act" (PARC) which would require national parks to accept cash as a form of payment for entrance fee. [13] In April 2024, several NPS visitors sued seeking to restore cash as a payment form noting how cash is legal tender suitable "for all public charges" and that the "additional processing fees that will be borne by NPS and by visitors who ultimately fund the federal government through taxes, in addition to personal surcharges and bank fees visitors may incur under NPS cashless policy." [14] [15] [16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Your Fee Dollars at Work". nps.gov. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  2. ↑ David, Mark. "New fee-free day designated for national parks, federal lands". powelltribune.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  3. ↑ "Free Entrance Days in the National Parks". nps.gov. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  4. ↑ Elliot, Christopher. "National Parks Pass: The best $80 you'll ever spend". usatoday.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  5. ↑ Scott, Douglas (12 November 2017). "Seven Reasons Why You Should Buy an America the Beautiful Pass". outdoor-society.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "America the Beautiful Passes". parksandpoints.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. ↑ Webb, Ted. "5 Benefits of an America The Beautiful Pass". nationalparkwanderlust.com. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  8. 1 2 "National Park Service Proposes Targeted Fee Increases at Parks to Address Maintenance Backlog 2 - Office of Communications (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Americans tell Interior to take a hike over proposed National Park fee increase". The Know. April 2, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  10. 1 2 "More Expensive National Parks May Threaten Access to Nature". October 25, 2017. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  11. 1 2 Fears, Darryl (April 12, 2018). "Public outrage forces Interior to scrap massive increase in park entry fees". The Washington Post . ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  12. ↑ "National Park Service Announces Plan to Address Infrastructure Needs & Improve Visitor Experience - Office of Communications (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Lummis Introduces Bill to Require National Parks to Accept Cash » Senator Cynthia Lummis". Senator Cynthia Lummis. September 21, 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  14. ↑ Hauser, Christine (March 21, 2024). "U.S. Park Service Says to Leave Your Cash at Home, but Some Object". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  15. ↑ Lin, Summer (20 March 2024). "The National Park Service will only take plastic at its parks. Three visitors are suing to use cash". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  16. ↑ Golder, Dave (18 March 2024). "Irate visitors sue National Park Service over cashless entrance fees". Yahoo Life. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
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