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The national parks are one of America’s greatest ideas. But entrance fees can quickly take a chunk out of your travel budget. Fortunately, there are five national park free entrance days each year where you can enjoy the great outdoors and save some money.
On March 1, 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act into law, creating the first federal public park in North America. On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed an act to create the National Park Service.
The Roosevelt Arch still towers over the entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Etched into stone, the phrase “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people” comes from the 1872 act signed by Grant. The mission of the National Park Service is to preserve nature and history, maintaining land and historic buildings for interpretation and recreation by anyone.
Keep reading to find out when you can get free admission to the national parks, other ways to save money, and travel ideas to help you plan a national park adventure.
The official National Park Service app is an all-in-one tool for planning a national park adventure and finding your way around the park. The app has information about every national park site across the country, essentially putting all the online information at your fingertips.
The free app features interactive maps, self-guided tours, amenities like restrooms, and lists of things to do. The powerful app has an offline mode – with a single tap, you can save the park for offline use to access all the information later. You’ll also have access to important information like alerts, contacts, fees, and operating hours.
“The entrance fee-free days expand opportunities for people to visit their national parks and experience the beauty and history of our country,” National Park Service Director Chuck Sams said in 2023.
More than 100 national park sites charge an admission fee ranging from $10 per person to $35 per vehicle. But during the Free National Park Days, these entrance fees are waived. It’s the perfect excuse to visit a favorite national park site or discover a new one.
Here are the Free National Park Days in 2024:
Click the button below to view these dates on a Google Calendar and add to your personal calendar.
Most of the National Park Service’s units are free to visit, but some require an entrance fee. Fortunately, there are ways to save money on those fees if you frequent the units.
The Standard Pass allows one person to enter one park for seven consecutive days. The Annual Pass provides entrance to one park for a year.
The America the Beautiful Pass is the golden ticket hidden in a chocolate bar. This pass covers the entrance and day-use fees for up to one vehicle or four adults for all National Park Service units.
There are several types of America the Beautiful Passes catering to different segments of society and with different price tags:
The best place to purchase an America the Beautiful Pass is at a national park unit. Visit the National Park Service’s website to learn more about interagency passes.
Although there are only a few national park free entrance days each year, there are other ways you can save money on entrance fees. One of these options might be perfect for you – and they also make excellent gifts for friends and family.
The Military Annual Pass is available for current US military members and their dependents, as well as Reserve and National Guard members. It’s free of charge and features the same perks as the America the Beautiful Pass.
The Military Lifetime Pass is free and available to Gold Star Families and US Veterans. The pass features the same perks as the American the Beautiful Pass.
The 4th Grade Pass is the most intriguing annual pass the agencies overseeing public lands offer. The pass is available free of charge to fourth graders in public, private, or home schools. The pass features the same perks as the America the Beautiful Pass and covers the entire family.
The Senior Pass is available to any US citizen age 62 or older. You can choose to pay $20 for an annual pass or a one-time fee of $80 for a lifetime annual pass. The passes feature the same perks as the America the Beautiful Pass.
The Access Pass is available free of charge for any US citizen with a permanent disability. The pass features the same perks as the American the Beautiful Pass.
An intriguing incentive to volunteer for a public lands agency is to earn the Volunteer Pass. The pass is available free of charge for anyone who completes at least 250 volunteer hours. The pass features the same perks as the American the Beautiful Pass.
One way to save money while visiting many national park units is to ride together in a single vehicle. Many parks, like Shenandoah National Park and Arches National Park, charge a fee per vehicle, not per person. Remember what it was like to sneak into a drive-in movie theater in the trunk of someone’s car?
Three hundred fifteen national park units never charge an entrance fee. So, you don’t need to wait for a national park free entrance day to explore one of those units. With that in mind, where should you explore during those five days each year the entrance fee is waived?
You could head to one of the east coast national parks like Shenandoah National Park, which typically charges $30 per vehicle to drive the 105-mile Skyline Drive for a day.
Read the latest national park articles below, or visit the National Park System page to read all articles and find national park sites by state and scenic highway.
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