Yosemite will once again require daily entrance fees
Daily reservations also to be required
Yosemite National Park will open from the Eastern Sierra side of Tioga Pass once the road has been fully plowed out (date of opening still unknown) but there have been some changes since last year; a daily reservation will once again be required for most days and for most times, starting this Saturday, April 13 and lasting for the next six months.
The daily reservation system was dropped last year but has been reinstated, according to park news releases, because the park has seen an ever-increasing number of visitors over the past decade, with the traffic jams blocking traffic up to three hours at a time during the summer visitation season.
During the Covid epidemic, in 2020 and
2021, the park implemented a daily reservation system and continued it in 2022 because many of the park’s main roads and facilities were closed due to construction upgrades, the park said.
However, last summer, the park dropped the daily reservation system due to pressure from local groups. According to the park, the result was this: traffic jams on summer weekends snarled roads for miles; people parked illegally in meadows and on paths; bathrooms were inundated and visitors circled Yosemite Valley every hour of the day looking for a place to park.
Parks officials then drew up a pilot program for this year, hoping to give more people a chance to actually enjoy the park, not just endure it.
IF YOU WANT TO GO
• There are two types of reservations: full day and half day, with arrival at noon or later. Each is valid for up to three consecutive days. To make a reservation, go to Recreation.gov. If you don’t have computer access, call (877) 4446777 to make a reservation. For more information, go to www.nps. gov/yose/planyourvisit/ reservations.htm
DATES TO KNOW
• From April 13 through June 30: A reservation is required to drive into the park from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays (May 27 and June 19). A reservation is not required on other days.
• July 1 through Aug. 16: A reservation is required to drive into the park every day from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Aug. 17 through
Oct. 27: A reservation is required from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays (Sept. 2 and Oct. 14). A reservation is not required on other days.
MORE INFO
• The current park entrance fee is $35 per vehicle, regardless of how many people are in the vehicle. Annual passes are available for $80 and give access to all the parks in the country for a year. There is a $2 service fee added for the daily reservation.
• Reservations will not be available at the entrance stations. Book ahead.
• If you have a campground or hotel reservation, a wilderness permit, or a Hal Dome permit, you do not need to get a daily reservation but you will still have to pay the $35-per-car entrance fee upon arrival (credit card only).
Anyone who stays in hotels or vacation rentals outside the park will still need to make a vehicle reservation to enter.
• You can visit Yosemite any time without a reservation if you show up very early or come late in the day. The park is open 24 hours a day. Vehicles arriving before 5 a.m. are not required to have reservations. Nor are vehicles arriving after 4 p.m.
• If you enter Yosemite via YARTS (Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System) buses, on a bicycle, on foot or on horseback, or if you visit the Hetch Hetchy reservoir portion of the park, you don’t need a reservation to enter the park. Park entrance fees still apply.
• The park is working on a “visitor access management plan” that will involve public hearings this summer. A draft plan is expected out next year, with more public hearings then.