Bison on the prairie below the Grand Teton Range. The national parks are offering fee-free admission ... [+]
New Year, new national park to check off your must-visit list? Mark your calendars: The park system just announced a half dozen “free days” for 2024 that are spread throughout the year, beginning with Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 15, 2024.
The national parks hold many treasures, from a skull-shaped rock, cactus garden and Seuss-like yuccas in California’s Joshua Tree to Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the eastern seaboard in Maine’s Acadia National Park. In between the coastal states are hoodoos in Utah’s Bryce Canyon, ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings in Colorado’s Mesa Verde and unusual subterranean rock formations that mimic Gothic architecture in Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave.
Sunset at Joshua Tree National Park, where the Mojave and the Colorado deserts come together.
Really, there are countless things to see and endless adventures to embark on in the 63 national parks. But the park system actually covers 425 sites, spanning across 85 million acres. In addition to parks in the continental U.S., there are sites outside of the continental U.S.—like the Virgin Islands National Park. Did you know that two-thirds of St. John in the Virgin Islands is considered national park territory, with coral reefs visitors can snorkel to and Taino's ancient petroglyphs to see?
There are so many sites to visit and endless adventures to embark on in the U.S. National Parks, and, if you’re not a National Parks passholder, these free days can help you tick off some of the must-sees from your own personalized bucket list.
When Are The Free Days At National Parks In 2024?
- January 15: Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- April 20: First day of National Park Week
- June 19: Juneteenth National Independence Day
- August 4: Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
- September 28: National Public Lands Day
- November 11: Veterans Day
Which Parks Participate Fee-Free Days?
The national parks’ fee-free days are a great opportunity to visit one of the sites that normally charges an entrance fee. You can see all of the participating parks and sites here, organized by location. But actually, most national park sites are free to enter year-round. Only about 100 of the more than 400 national parks and sites have an entrance fee.
Panorama of Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, which is one of Utah's five national parks. The ... [+]
Entrance fees to national parks typically range from $5 to $35 and are charged either per person or per vehicle. The free fee days cover entrance to parks, but don’t include costs for other services or activities like renting campsites, special tours (many are free, though) or boat launches.
What Are The Best National Parks To Visit In The Winter?
The first free day of 2024 falls on Martin Luther King Day in the middle of January, which prompts the question: Which national parks are best to visit in the winter?
If you lean into the cold weather, the snow adds an extra element of beauty at places like Arches National Park or the Grand Tetons. Those who are willing to brave the cold can go cross-country skiing past geysers in Yellowstone, sledding at the hill in Hidden Valley at Rocky Mountain National Park or snowshoeing in Sequoia and King’s Canyon National Park.
A woman on snowshoes admires a stand of giant Sequoia trees in the Sentinel's Grove at Sequoia ... [+]
But if you’re looking to escape the cold, Dry Tortugas west of Key West or Virgin Islands National Park are calling.
National Park travelers: Which parks are on your list to see in 2024?
