National Park Fees Increase

Greg

Greg

Adventurist
Senior Staff
By now you've probably heard of the NPS proposed fee increase. What you may not know is that the NPS also invites you to comment on the proposal. Comments will be accepted between 10/24/2017 - 11/23/2017

In short the NPS needs money to fix things.

"During the peak season at each park, the entrance fee would be $70 per private, non-commercial vehicle, $50 per motorcycle, and $30 per person on bike or foot. A park-specific annual pass for any of the 17 parks would be available for $75.

The cost of the annual America the Beautiful- The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass, which provides entrance to all federal lands, including parks for a one-year period, would remain $80. Entrance fees are not charged to visitors under 16 years of age or holders of Senior, Military, Access, Volunteer, or Every Kid in a Park (EKIP) passes. The majority of national parks will remain free to enter; only 118 of 417 park sites charge an entrance fee, and the current proposal only raises fees at 17 fee-charging parks.​


Personally I think that much of an increase would just keep people away.
 
jbezorg said:
The majority of national parks will remain free to enter; only 118 of 417 park sites charge an entrance fee, and the current proposal only raises fees at 17 fee-charging parks.

Personally I think that much of an increase would just keep people away.
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'Ol watashi has no problem with this... those 17 parks see an insanely huge volume of visitors every year and the volume overburdens the existing faculties. Inevitably this causes more construction to manage the throngs of park guests.

This spring I was in Moab. Arches NP was a non-stop line of cars to the visitor center an further up on the road to the mesa. That in itself was a site to behold.
 
TangoBlue said:
'Ol watashi has no problem with this... those 17 parks see an insanely huge volume of visitors every year and the volume overburdens the existing faculties. Inevitably this causes more construction to manage the throngs of park guests.

This spring I was in Moab. Arches NP was a non-stop line of cars to the visitor center an further up on the road to the mesa. That in itself was a site to behold.
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The parking lot near Old Faithful was insane. I don't see those fees hurting parks like Arches and Yellowstone. I think it would for Shenandoah National Park.

The cost of a yearly pass isn't going up so it's not going to bother me.
 
jbezorg said:
The parking lot near Old Faithful was insane. I don't see those fees hurting parks like Arches and Yellowstone. I think it would for Shenandoah National Park.

The cost of a yearly pass isn't going up so it's not going to bother me.
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Yes, it's easy for me to say as well, since I have the Bravo Delta Veteran Pass. :tango

But witnessing the heavy use of some of Hallmark NP's they could stand for some heavy taxation to limit their overuse and at least provide funding beyond simple sustainment.

Did they mention that Shenandoah NP is among the 17 parks slated for fee increases?
 
TangoBlue said:
Yes, it's easy for me to say as well, since I have the Bravo Delta Veteran Pass. :tango

But witnessing the heavy use of some of Hallmark NP's they could stand for some heavy taxation to limit their overuse and at least provide funding beyond simple sustainment.

Did they mention that Shenandoah NP is among the 17 parks slated for fee increases?
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Yep. Here's the full list.
  1. Arches
  2. Bryce Canyon
  3. Canyonlands
  4. Denali
  5. Glacier
  6. Grand Canyon
  7. Grand Teton
  8. Olympic
  9. Sequoia & Kings Canyon
  10. Yellowstone
  11. Yosemite
  12. Zion
  13. Acadia
  14. Mount Rainier
  15. Rocky Mountain
  16. Shenandoah
  17. Joshua Tree
 
Shenandoah gets more visitors than I thought.
  1. Denali - 587,412
  2. Canyonlands - 776,218
  3. Mount Rainier - 1,356,913
  4. Shenandoah - 1,437,341
  5. Arches - 1,585,718
  6. Sequoia & Kings Canyon - 1,862,167 (1,254,688 + 607,479)
  7. Bryce Canyon - 2,365,110
  8. Joshua Tree - 2,505,286
  9. Glacier - 2,946,681
  10. Grand Teton - 3,270,076
  11. Acadia - 3,303,393
  12. Olympic - 3,390,221
  13. Yellowstone - 4,257,177
  14. Zion - 4,295,127
  15. Rocky Mountain - 4,517,585
  16. Yosemite - 5,028,868
  17. Grand Canyon - 5,969,811

Source
 
If they crank the rates up high enough the average citizen won't be able to afford the fees, turning the parks into a play ground for the rich and famous!
 
bob91yj said:
If they crank the rates up high enough the average citizen won't be able to afford the fees, turning the parks into a play ground for the rich and famous!
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Teddy Roosevelt is rolling over in his grave...

B975CC7B-DDF6-45A7-9002-BFA30AFA440D.jpeg
 
jscusmcvet said:
Talk to me Johnny.... I mean @TangoBlue ... what is this Bravo Delta Veteran Pass.
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Active duty and retired military (with a vaild ID) can get a free annual pass. I got mine while we were on our post ARV trip along the Blue Ridge Parkwy in the Great Smoky Mountains. I dont know if a DD214 does the trick? Im sure a quick google search and a visit to their website would net some results....
 
I was on the fence with the increase but parks need repairs and upgraded. In reality 75 bucks for a car load of people is still cheap entertainment. Compared to what Disney Land or any other ammusment park cost you get great value from the National Parks.
 
jscusmcvet said:
Talk to me Johnny.... I mean @TangoBlue ... what is this Bravo Delta Veteran Pass.
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It's known as the "Access Pass" - see link for more info: https://www.nps.gov/planyourvisit/passes.htm

Link to application: https://store.usgs.gov/sites/default/files/access_pass_application.pdf

Short story - Disabled Vets with >30% SC Disability are authorized this lifetime free pass. Proof of disability is your annual authorization letter from the VA. Send in the application or go to your local NPS office, e.g. UNF, where they issue the pass on site - that's what I did - took about 5 minutes with chatting - easy day.
 
Call me a communist, but I think our national parks should be fully funded at the federal level through, yes, taxes. Look at the highest budgets the parks ever had and it was minuscule in the overall economy. The lowest-income citizens of our country should have the same right to enjoy the parks as the richest.
 
Jonathan Hanson said:
Call me a communist, but I think our national parks should be fully funded at the federal level through, yes, taxes. Look at the highest budgets the parks ever had and it was minuscule in the overall economy. The lowest-income citizens of our country should have the same right to enjoy the parks as the richest.
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I could not agree more.
 
Bring back the CCC... The parks would recieve the attention they deserve and jobs would be created.. collecting a welfare check? Have WE got a JOB for YOU?

Most of your lowest income folks arent missing out on experiencing our national parks because of the admission fees... just saying...
Its usually other things like not owning a car, needing to put food on the table.... living paycheck to paycheck.... vacations are usually non-existent.
 
Jonathan Hanson said:
Call me a communist, but I think our national parks should be fully funded at the federal level through, yes, taxes. Look at the highest budgets the parks ever had and it was minuscule in the overall economy. The lowest-income citizens of our country should have the same right to enjoy the parks as the richest.
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Exactly. When I was a college student, I went to parks fairly often. I’m sure inflation would provide an interesting discussion but at that rate I probably would have not gone nearly as much. It’s great that we have so many foreigners who use our parks. I’d be fine having them pay and make it free for citizens.
 
RoamingRobertsons said:
Exactly. When I was a college student, I went to parks fairly often. I’m sure inflation would provide an interesting discussion but at that rate I probably would have not gone nearly as much. It’s great that we have so many foreigners who use our parks. I’d be fine having them pay and make it free for citizens.
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At the very least, they should pay more.
 
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