Entrance and campground fees are increasing at Devils Tower National Monument on January 3/NPS
With the turning of the calendar comes the implementation of fee increases at parks large and small across the National Park System.
In addition, the lifetime pass for senior citizens 62 and older will soon increase to $80 from its current $10, although the date has not been finalized.
Here is a list of new fees at Park Service sites, with the previous cost in parentheses. Unless otherwise noted, entrance fees cover seven days.
America the Beautiful - Senior Pass
Effective date: To be determined
- Lifetime pass: $80 ($10)
- Annual pass: $20
Effective date: January 1
- Annual pass: $40 ($25)
- Vehicle: $15 ($10)
- Motorcycle: $10 ($5)
Devils Tower National Monument
Effective Date: January 3
- Annual pass: $30 ($20)
- Vehicle: $15 ($10)
- Motorcycle: $10 ($5)
- Regular campsite: $20 per night ($12)
- Group campsite: $30 per night ($2 per person per night)
Effective date: January 1
- Group picnic area: $65 per half day ($45)
Effective date: January 1
- Annual pass: $30 ($20)
- Vehicle: $10 ($5)
- Motorcycle: $7 ($3)
- Group picnic area: $75-$150 per day, depending on group size and location ($25-$75)
Effective date: January 1
- Campground: $20 per night ($16)
- Group picnic area: $100-$225 per day, depending on group size ($55-$155)
Effective date: January 1
- Season pass: $60
- Individual: $7 per day
Effective date: January 3
- Annual pass: $40 ($30)
- Vehicle: $25 ($20)
- Motorcycle: $12 ($10)
- Individual: $12 ($10)
Effective date: January 1
- Group picnic area: $65 per half day ($45)
Effective date: January 3
- Vehicle: $15 ($10)
Effective date: January 1
- Annual pass: $50 ($40)
- Vehicle: $25 ($20)
- Motorcycle: $20 ($15)
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Effective date: January 1
- Annual pass: $50 ($40)
- Vehicle: $25 ($20)
- Motorcycle: $20 ($15)
- Individual: $12 ($10)
Entrance fee increases went into effect at Death Valley and Everglades national parks in October.
The National Park Service's fee-free days scheduled for 2017 are:
- January 16: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- February 20: Presidents Day
- April 15-16 & April 22-23: National Park Week weekends
- August 25: National Park Service birthday
- September 30: National Public Lands Day
- November 11-12: Veterans Day weekend
Comments
I can only imagine the outrage that would be expressed here had these and the countless other obscene increases happened under the Bush or Trump administration. And I cant recall Obama doing much to fix the maintenance backlog for that matter. Yet the traveler seems perfectly fine to cry wolf before Trump has even taken office. As I've stated many times I am not a fan of Trump and was never an Obama supporter but will continue to point out the hypocrisy of those who think one political party can do no wrong or that another can do no good.. I suspect if one were to take an objective look at both parties impact on the NPS it would be a wash.
Ah, the Great American Entitlement Mentality is on full display.
Give me all the infrastructure and services I demand --- and don't you DARE ask me to pay for it!
By the way, anyone with a basic understanding of high school civics should know that it's Congress and not the President that sets government budgets. But it's much easier to blame the president. It also takes a little extra effort to research the voting records of individual members of Congress to see which members of which party voted for or against our parks.
Yes Lee, Congress sets the budget, but the level of park fees isn't set by Congress . Thery are set by the NPS, part of the executive branch - that is the one the President is in charge of. As to entitilement mentality, please indicate where Wild Places said or even implied that he was demanding services with out wanting to pay for them. In fact, he didn't. He merely was pointing out the "hypocrisy of those who think one political party can do no wrong or that another can do no good."
Lee-
The NPS management entitlement mentality is also on display when fees on the public are raised with almost no financial transparency. Try asking your local park for last year's budget details, or even an organization chart, if you don't believe me. The National Park Service is an outfit that thinks its mission is so holy that how it spends money is none of our business:
http://www.schundler.net/FOIAfailing.pdf
http://www.schundler.net/Monocracy.pdf
oh god, give it a rest.
Wild Places - Yours is a typical Left Wing Liberal comment there! If you would raise your head out of the sand and stop drinking the kool-aid long enough you would see that these increases have occurred under YOUR Obama reign of terror, just like everything else he tried to destroy in America, hte National Parks never dodged his wrath and evilness toward America and Americans! You say you are not a fan of Trump then you need to look real hard at yourself and ask what is wrong in your life when his goal is to make America Great Again, not tear it down and destroy it like Obama, Hillary, Reid, Pelosi, Warren, Kerry and a host of others in YOUR party. In my many thousands of miles of RV'ing, I have found that the majority were all America Loving Conservatives and very, very few were demented Libtards..................
GA - I think you need to go back and read Wild's post again.
Don't mind the increases, still cheaper than movie tickets for 4, much better value. This should encourage purchase of annual passes. Wouldn't mind seeing an additional fee charged (by weight perhaps) to the RV users which are obscenely large and shouldn't be part of a $10 lifetime pass. Yeah Fairness!
Happy New Year