The White House Christmas Tree, 2021: Glynn Wlson
Staff Report –
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Park Service announced Saturday that there will be six holidays in 2024 when entry fees will be waved.
On these dates, the public is invited to experience the wonder of national parks for free.
“National parks are places that awaken senses, inspire curiosity, encourage reflection, and foster joy,” National Park Service Director Chuck Sams said in making the announcement. “The entrance fee-free days expand opportunities for people to visit their national parks and experience the beauty and history of our country.”
The entrance fee-free days for 2024 are:
January 15 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
April 20 – First Day of National Park Week
June 19 – Juneteenth
August 4 – Great American Outdoors Day
September 28 – National Public Lands Day
November 11 – Veterans Day
“National parks are wallet-friendly options year-round,” the park service says.
More than 300 of the country’s more than 400 national parks are free to enter every day. With at least one national park in every state and most major metropolitan areas, they provide close-to-home choices for recreation and inspiration.
The cost to enter parks with entrance fees ranges from $10 to $35. The funds remain in the National Park Service and 80-100 percent of the revenue stays in the park where the fees are collected.
The revenue supports visitor services, including enhancing accessibility, restoring wildlife habitat, and providing ranger programs, and adding or upgrading restrooms, campgrounds, trails and other facilities.
The fee waiver for the fee-free days applies only to National Park Service entrance fees and does not cover amenity or user fees for camping, boat launches, transportation, special tours or other activities.
The annual $80 America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass covers entry at more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all national parks. There are also free or discounted passes available for current members of the U.S. military and their dependents, military veterans, Gold Star Families, fourth grade students, individuals with permanent disabilities and senior citizens.
Other federal land management agencies offering their own fee-free days in 2024 are the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s more than 400 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities.
Learn more at the National Park Service website, or follow the NPS and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube.
More Photos of National Parks
Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson
A view of the Potomac River where it intersects the Shenandoah and the railroad bridge and tunnel on the AT from Harpers Ferry National Historical Park: Glynn Wilson
Looking west from Hogback Overlook, Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, Summer 2021: Glynn Wilson
About to enter the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a winter Sunday on the way to Cades Cove: Glynn Wilson
Taking a break by a babbling brook on a winter Sunday afternoon in Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Glynn Wilson
A cabin surrounded by peak fall color in Shenandoah National Park in the group area of Mathews Arm Campground, Autumn 2020: Glynn Wilson
Visitors to Shenandoah National Park enjoy a summer sunset view along the Appalachian Trail by Loft Mountain Campground, Sunday, July 12, 2020: Glynn Wilson
Crossing the Continental Divide in Yellowstone National Park: Glynn Wilson
The sign let’s you know you have arrived at the world’s first national park: Glynn Wilson
A picture in Grand Canyon National Park that looks like a painting: Glynn Wilson
Boiling paint pots in Yellowstone National Park: Glynn Wilson
A view of the mountains from the Appalachian Trail by the Big Meadows Campground in Shenandoah National Park: Glynn Wilson
A view of the deep woods in the Shenandoah National Park, where the bear, deer, rabbit and skunk play: Glynn Wilson
A black bear crossing Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park: Glynn Wilson
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