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National park tourism is booming. But an idyllic adventure into the good outdoors could be derailed by overlooking a crucial aspect of trip planning: advance permits and reservations.
A number of the most steadily visited parks require people to book ahead for access to popular attractions equivalent to heavily trafficked hikes, roads and campgrounds. Some require advance tickets for full park entry.
This implies travelers cannot necessarily bank on showing up spontaneously to a national park and getting the experience they desire. Fail to secure this paperwork, which is often free but can carry a processing fee of as little as $2, and you may not even get in. Since reservations could be in high demand, it’s crucial to plan ahead.
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Advance permits are “one in all the most important things people miss,” said Mary Cropper, a travel advisor and senior U.S. specialist at Audley Travel.
The principles vary from park to park. Sometimes, there could also be ways to skirt them for travelers unable to get one upfront.
Record park visitation spurred reservations
Tourists crowd into the Midway Geyser Basin at Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, July 14, 2021.
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Reservations are among the many ways parks are addressing congestion.
Americans flocked to national parks in 2021 and 2022 as a technique to get outside and vacation domestically through the Covid-19 pandemic era, at a time when traveling overseas was difficult resulting from health concerns and international travel restrictions.
Eighteen parks broke annual visitation records in 2021, in keeping with National Park Service data. Certainly one of them, Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, saw record visitors last 12 months.
Overall visits to national parks jumped 5% in 2022 versus the 12 months prior, to 312 million recreation visits. While not a record, visitation last 12 months was only about 5% lower than its peak in 2016, the 12 months of the National Park Service, or NPS, centennial, said NPS spokesperson Kathy Kupper.
The NPS doesn’t forecast future visitation, Kupper said.
These national parks require vehicle reservations
Traffic heading into Yosemite Village in Yosemite National Park, California, Oct. 6, 2019.
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Most parks currently don’t require reservations for entry, though the number is predicted to extend in future years.
Many parks that do require reservations began implementing them through the pandemic era, though some began before 2020.
Glacier National Park, positioned in Montana, did so in 2021, for instance. Yosemite National Park, in California, did so in 2020, though the park eliminated the requirement for 2023.
These reservations are assessed per vehicle. Parks require them for motorists to access certain roads, equivalent to the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park.
The next parks have a vehicle reservation in effect for 2023:
• Acadia National Park, Maine
• Arches National Park, Utah
• Glacier National Park, Montana
• Haleakalā National Park, Hawaii
• Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
Zion, Rocky Mountain, Acadia, Yosemite and Glacier were among the many top 10 most-popular national parks in 2023, in keeping with NPS data.
Permits could also be needed for popular hikes, campgrounds
Horsetail Fall at Yosemite National Park.
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Individually, Zion National Park in Utah requires an advance permit — available by lottery — for visitors to access its Angels Landing hike, among the many most-popular destinations within the park. Yosemite requires a permit to hike to the highest of Half Dome, as does Arches for its Fiery Furnace hike.
Muir Woods National Monument in California also imposes an advance reservation for parking.
While Yosemite did away with its reservations to access the total park this summer, the park kept them for 3 weekends in February to assist manage crowding through the Horsetail Fall event, during which the waterfall flowing off the El Capitan rock formation glows orange in ideal sunset conditions.
Language on Yosemite’s website suggests broader park reservations may return in future years.
“Yosemite has been grappling with congestion — even gridlock — for many years,” in keeping with its website. “We would like to construct from the teachings learned from the last three summers of managed access.”
Moreover, many parks require separate reservations to access certain campgrounds, or wilderness permits for overnight backpackers.
“Should you plan to spend the night in or across the park, you need to have reservations for lodging, camping, or backpacking,” in keeping with the Olympic National Park website. “In the summertime months, especially on the weekends, campgrounds and motels can fill quickly.”
Find out how to make a national park reservation
Visitors could make reservations online at Recreation.gov or via the Recreation.gov call center at 877-444-6777. Reservations carry a nonrefundable processing fee, ranging between $2 and $6.
Along with the processing fee, visitors must pay a park’s standard entrance-pass fee or present a National Park Service annual multipark pass.
Reservations and permits generally grow to be available online months upfront. For those unable to attain a reservation, parks generally release additional tickets closer to the visit date, sometimes only a day ahead. In each cases, they have a tendency to sell out quickly.
There are lots of details that fluctuate between parks. For instance, some vehicle reservations are valid for multiple days of park access and others for just someday. Some parks require visitors to book for a certain entry time, requiring motorists to reach inside a specified timeframe.
Alternatives to some reservations and permits
Nonetheless, there are some ways around reservations for those unable to secure one.
For instance, vehicle reservations are generally only in effect for peak times of day and for certain times of the 12 months. Meaning motorists can access the park with no reservation outside those peak hours and months.
For instance, Glacier’s Two Medicine vehicle reservation is in effect from July 1, 2023, to Sept. 10, 2023, 6 a.m. to three p.m. local time. Tourists visiting outside those dates and times generally don’t need a reservation, in keeping with the Glacier website.
Similarly, visitors can often bypass permit requirements in the event that they’ve booked amenities including lodging, camping, transportation or business activities equivalent to tours positioned in restricted park areas.
“A variety of times, individual permits are way harder to get than a mountaineering guide who has those [permits] for the entire summer season,” said Mike Augustine, a travel advisor and U.S. national parks specialist at Mountain Travel Sobek.
Should you’re planning to go to a national park, check the park’s website for up-to-date information on reservations, road closures and other necessary information, Cropper said.
“Planning ahead for national parks is what is going to set you up for a very smooth trip,” Cropper added.
