Are you planning to visit national parks in the United States this summer?
Some U.S. national parks are requiring advanced reservations in order to visit. Here’s everything you need to know to be prepared for your national park visit this summer!
Which National Parks Require Reservations?
Most of the 63 national parks in the United States do not require a reservation in order to visit.
However, there are a handful of national parks that do require an advanced reservation in order to visit the park or a specific section of it.
More national park reservations were introduced in 2020 and 2021 as a way to limit overcrowding in some extremely popular national parks and prevent damage caused by too many visitors.
The reservation fee is nominal, but you must pay it in addition to the park entrance fee, which varies by national park and costs, on average, $30 per vehicle.
Here are some of the most popular national parks that will require a reservation in the summer of 2023:
Arches National Park
If you want to visit Arches National Park in Utah from April 1 until October 31 between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., you will need a reservation.
You can make your Arches National Park reservation on this website.
The cost of a reservation is $2 per vehicle.
Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park in Montana is another U.S. national park that requires reservations.
While you do not need a reservation to enter the park itself, you do need one if you want to access the popular Going-to-the-Sun Road or the areas of North Fork, Two Medicine, or Many Glaciers.
The need for a reservation is in place from May 26 until September 10 from 6:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.
You can make your reservation online on this website. The cost is $2 per vehicle.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Another national park that will require reservations this summer is Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.
From May 26 until October 22, from 5:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., you will need a reservation to enter the park.
You can make a reservation on this website, and the cost is $2 per vehicle.
Acadia National Park
At Acadia National Park in Maine, a reservation is not needed to enter the park itself, but it is required if you want to drive the popular and scenic Cadillac Summit Road.
From May 25 until October 22, you will need to make a reservation to drive along this route.
The reservation fee is $2 per vehicle and can be made on this website. You will also need to pay an additional $4 admission to access this road.
Haleakalā National Park
Unlike the other national parks on this list, Haleakalā National Park in Hawaii sees its largest crowds in the early hours of the morning.
That’s because this national park is an extremely popular place to watch the sunrise.
So for visitors arriving between 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m., you will need a reservation in order to watch the sunrise from this national park.
You can make a reservation on this website, and the cost is $1 per vehicle.
Zion National Park
While you can visit Zion National Park in Utah without a reservation, you do need one if you want to do the popular Angels Landing hike.
Unfortunately, scoring a reservation for Angels Landing is more like a lottery compared to all the other reservations on this list because of how few are available.
You can apply for a reservation on this website, and the cost is $6 per person.
