2023. 2. 4. 09:25ㆍ■ 여행/旅行 準備
These Are the National Parks Requiring Reservations in 2023 (msn.com)
These Are the National Parks Requiring Reservations in 2023
Plus, how to snag one.
www.msn.com
These Are the National Parks Requiring Reservations in 2023
Since the National Park Service (NPS) started recording visitation numbers in 1904, it's welcomed a total of 15.4 billion recreational visitors to its sites, who come to explore the beauty of America's natural, historical, and cultural wonders. In recent years, those numbers have topped 330 million annual visitors (2022 annual numbers have yet to be released), and the pandemic also saw record-breaking numbers in certain parks, with sites like Yellowstone National Park and Arches National Park surpassing their own monthly records for several months in a row during the popular summer season in 2021.
While the return of more travelers last year—including international travelers as borders reopened—was welcome, it also played tug-o-war with the goal of maintaining the beauty and integrity of the 424 sites preserved by their NPS status. “As a result, parks are exploring many different tools and techniques that are most effective for their situation to help them improve how visitors get to and experience popular park resources and features,” says NPS spokesperson Kathy Kupper.
The main strategy for crowd control: reservation systems. In 2021, they were in place at some of the most popular parks including Yosemite, Zion, Acadia, Rocky Mountain National Park, and Dinosaur National Monument, with more parks implementing them last year.
While required reservations have been a point of contention—and a frustrating reality for some visitors, parks and monuments are once again requiring visitors book a time slot in advance in 2023—some for access to popular hiking or driving routes and others for entering parks themselves. (For now, heavy hitters including Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Great Smoky Mountains parks don't have any reservation requirements in place for entry; other amenities, like campgrounds or backcountry permits, do require advance booking.) Below, the national parks requiring reservations this year—book ahead to avoid disappointment on arrival.
This article has been updated with new information since its original publish date.
National parks and monuments requiring reservations in 2023:
Acadia National Park in Maine
While Acadia is currently reservation-free, its three-mile Cadillac Summit Road will require timed entry for cars from May 24 through October 22 for $6 through recreation.gov. Thirty percent of the passes will open up 90 days in advance of the arrival date and the rest will open at 10 a.m. ET two days ahead of time. Passes will not be available on site.
Arches National Park in Utah
To mitigate crowds during its busy period, Arches has a timed-entry system for visits from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily from April 1 through October 31, with tickets available the first day of the month at 8 a.m. MT for visits three months later (so May reservations will be available on February 1). A small number of tickets will also be available one day prior to entry at 6 p.m. through recreation.gov.
Glacier National Park in Montana
After requiring vehicle reservations last year for Going-to-the-Sun Road and North Fork, Glacier is adding more reservation zones, each with its own separate requirements. From May 26 through September 10 from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., cars entering Going-to-the-Sun Road from the West entrance need a vehicle reservation that's valid for three days, while those going to the North Fork area in northeastern corner (basically all points east of the Polebridge Entrance Station) will need a one-day reservation. Then from July 1 through September 10, during those same hours, those accessing Going-to-the-Sun Road through the St. Mary entrance will also need to book ahead of time, as will those going to Many Glacier and Two Medicine.
Haleakalā National Park in Hawaii
One of the most popular sites to watch the sun rise in Hawaii is on Maui’s highest summit, rising 10,023-feet high—so it's no surprise that crowds flock here in the wee hours of the morning. Haleakalā will continue its booking system that started in 2021, requiring reservations for cars entering from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m.
Muir Woods National Monument in California
Muir Woods was the first NPS unit to implement a permanent reservation system in 2018, creating “a more enjoyable experience… by better fitting the capacity of visitors into the monument's limited space,” the park’s spokesperson Julian Espinoza says. “It reduces stress on the redwood forest ecosystem and improves visitors' arrival and parking experience.” Reservations are required year-round with two approaches: Visitors can either drive ($9 per standard vehicle or $30 for medium vehicles and $45 for large ones) or take the shuttle from Mill Valley ($3.50 per person 16 and older). Those fees are on top of the $15 park entrance fee for those 16 years and older. Booking starts 90 days before at 9 a.m. PT, with a few more being released three days in advance of visit days. The park uses its own system at gomuirwoods.com.
Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado
Rocky Mountain is bringing back its program from May 26 to October 22, with two reservation options: one with access to the Bear Lake Road Corridor, as well as the rest of the park, from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m., and another with access to the rest of the park (minus that section) from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Passes become available on May 1 at 8 a.m. MT and then on subsequent first of the months for entry during the following month (e.g., on June 1 reservations will be unlocked for July visits). This year, more tickets—about 40 percent—will be saved for release at 5 p.m. the day before visits. Also new: Those with the Bear Lake Road pass who want to exit the area and return later in the day can do so after 2 p.m.
Yosemite National Park in California
While Yosemite had a reservation system for entry during the summers of 2020 and 2021, it's since removed the system, but implemented one in February for the Horsetail Fall “Firefall” phenomenon. On the weekends of February 10 to 12, 17 to 19, and 24 to 26, anyone entering the park will need a day-use reservation 24 hours a day. The only exceptions are those with in-park camping, lodging, or vacation rentals, as well as those who enter via regional transit or in groups.
Zion National Park in Utah
Zion now asks hikers to obtain permits to visit its 1,488-foot Angels Landing. They’ll be given out via online lotteries—which cost $6 per person to apply—with a few offered the day before visits. The next lottery will open on April 1 for summer dates, with subsequent ones opening July 1 for fall and October 1 for winter. Note the trail will be closed from April 3 through 6 for maintenance.
Read our full guide to Zion National Park.
Tips for making national park reservations
While the idea of having to plan ahead can feel daunting, recreation.gov—which runs the bulk of the permits—makes it as seamless as possible. For extremely popular destinations, the site suggests creating an account ahead of time and having your dates planned out (including some backup options), so that those slots can be snagged as soon as they are released. It's also recommended to have the latest web browser, and to avoid having multiple browsers or tabs open while booking. Travelers should read all the details of each particular reservation ahead of time to understand what to expect upon arrival. The recreation.gov mobile app is also useful while traveling to access trip information on the go.
Janelle Smith of recreation.gov also urges visitors to use the site to explore other locations, particularly using its Trip Builder tool, since the site provides access to federal recreation destinations and activities at more than 4,200 facilities and 113,000 sites around the nation, offering everything from camping permits and whitewater rafting access to ranger-led programs and site tours. “We encourage visitors to explore and discover locations that may be lesser known or off the beaten path—and that may have plenty of availability,” Smith says.
Related video: Family takes journey to visit all 63 U.S. National Parks (WEWS Cleveland, OH)
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