Tips for national park reservations
Overcrowding continues to be a serious challenge that national parks throughout the United States continue grappling with.
Some of the more popular national parks have implemented reservation and timed-entry programs, often on a pilot basis, in order to help ease crowding.
As 2024 kicks off and travelers plan getaways for the year ahead, it’s important to know which national parks will continue such programs.
Here’s a rundown of national parks that are maintaining timed-entry or reservation systems for visits in 2024, per Outside Online.
ARCHES NATIONAL PARK
At Arches National Park, where visits increased 73% between 2011 and 2021, a pilot reservation program will be continued in 2024.
Reservations for visits taking place between April 1 through Oct. 31, can be now made online through Recreation.gov. The reservation process for that time frame opened Jan. 2.
Reservations are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Moving forward, reservation blocks will be released three months in advance of visits — meaning reservations to visit in April will be opened in January, while the opportunity to make reservations to visit in May will open on Feb. 1, and so on.
Additionally, there will also be last minute and nextday reservations available beginning on March 31 on a daily rolling basis.
GLACIER NATIONAL PARK
If you’re planning to visit specific parts of Glacier National Park, you’ll likely need a vehicle reservation.
For instance, from May 24 through Sept. 8, reservations are required for vehicles visiting the west side of Going-tothe-Sun Road and the North Fork between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m. In addition, vehicle visitations to Many Glacier will require a reservation from July 1 through Sept. 8 from 6 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Motorcycle visitors will need a vehicle reservation or a service reservation and a park entrance fee or valid park pass.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK
Another of America’s most popular public spaces, Rocky Mountain National Park will also continue a pilot reservation system in 2024 beginning May 24.
Similar to the process that the park used in 2023, there will be two types of reservations available. There will be one permit for the Bear Lake Road Corridor, which includes the entire corridor, as well as access to the rest of the park. The reservation period for this area of the park will be from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The second permit will provide access to “rest of the park,” excluding the Bear Lake Road corridor. The “rest of park” reservation period will cover from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Permits issued using the reservation system will allow park visitors to enter the park within two-hour windows of availability, with no set time for departure.
The reservation system will apply to all areas of the park. The only cost associated with booking a reservation is a $2 recreation.gov processing fee.
The Bear Lake Road Corridor timed entry reservation system will continue through Oct. 20. However, the rest of the park reservation system will end on Oct. 15.
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK
Reservations will be required to drive into Yosemite during two specific periods for the summer. However, there will be no reservations required to visit the California park from now through Feb. 9.
After that date, the reservation system will be as follows: Feb. 10 through 25: A reservation is required 24 hours per day on Saturdays, Sundays and on Washington’s Birthday (Feb. 19).
Feb. 26 through April 12: No reservation required to drive into Yosemite.
April 13 through June 30: A reservation is required from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, and on holidays (May 27 and June 19).
July 1 through Aug. 16: A reservation is required from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day.
Aug. 17 through Oct. 27: A reservation is required from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and on holidays (Sept. 2 and Oct. 14).
ZION NATIONAL PARK
One of the most beloved parks in the Southwest and Utah’s first national park, Zion will also continue to follow a permit program in 2024.
For instance, the park plans to continue its pilot lottery permit program for hikes to Angels Landing, an experience that involves five miles of hiking to a steep viewpoint. The lottery will open two months ahead of hike dates.
There will also be a lottery for next-day permits for the Angels Landing hike. This lottery will open at 12:01 a.m. and close at 3 p.m. MT on a daily basis. Those who win the lottery will be notified via email by 4 p.m. MT.
There’s a $6 fee to apply for an Angels Landing permit, as well as a $3 fee per person once the permit is confirmed.
The good news is there are no tickets, permits or reservations needed to ride the park’s shuttle or to enter Zion National Park. And most areas of the park beyond Angels Landing, do not require a reservation.
SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK
While there is no reservation or timed-entry system for Shenandoah National Park, if you want to take one of its most popular hikes — on Old Rag Mountain — you’ll need to purchase a day-use ticket. This rule applies from March 1 through Nov. 30, 2024.
The cost of the tickets is just $1 and they can be purchased online at Recreation. gov. A total of 800 tickets will be available for each day. Exactly 400 will be released 30 days in advance of the reservation date, and the remaining 400 will be released five days in advance of each date. Tickets are released daily at 10:00 a.m.
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK
General entrance to Acadia National Park does not require a reservation or timed-entry pass. However, if you plan to drive Cadillac Summit Road you will likely need a vehicle reservation made in advance.
Last year, the park required reservations for the popular drive for visits taking place between May 24 and Oct. 22. This year’s specific reservation dates have not been announced. Check the park’s website here for more details to be released.