New $100 fee hits international visitors at 11 top national parks

Yosemite Valley with river and granite cliffs

International visitors now pay significantly more to enter some of America’s most popular national parks. A new $100-per-person surcharge, for visitors 16 and older, applies on top of the standard entrance fee at 11 of the most-visited parks: Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion.

The standard vehicle entrance fee for U.S. residents stays where it’s been, $20 to $35 for a seven-day pass depending on the park. But the annual “America the Beautiful” pass, which covers every fee-charging federal recreation site, now costs very different amounts depending on residency: $80 for U.S. residents, and $250 for international visitors.

Fee-free days are changing too. Starting this year, they apply only to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. The administration has also swapped which holidays qualify: Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth are no longer fee-free days, replaced by a new free-entry day tied to the president’s birthday.

If you’re an international visitor planning a national park trip this year, budget for the surcharge in advance, prices aren’t adjusted at the gate, and passes purchased before your trip can help you avoid a surprise at the entrance station.

Source: KQED  ·  Additional coverage: Fast Company

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