Planning on visiting any of the U.S. National Parks in 2025? Or simply looking for a good, cheap adventure? Then take note of the six days in 2025 on which all National Park Service sites that charge an entrance fee will offer free admission to everyone. These dates are also good to know if you want to avoid the crowds.
As you probably know, many of the 400+ National Parks and National Park Service sites already don’t charge a fee, so pretty much all of them will be free to visit. Here are all six of the days you can visit National Parks for free in 2024, plus more information, straight from the National Park Service:
- January 20: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
- April 19: First day of National Park Week
- June 19: Juneteenth National Independence Day
- August 4: Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
- September 27: National Public Lands Day
- November 11: Veterans Day
Mark the above dates on your calendar and see more information here. It’s also good to note that according to the NPS that … “All the money from entrance fees remains in the National Park Service, and at least 80 percent stays in the park where it was collected.”
FYI: The photo above was taken at Joshua Tree National Park which is near Palm Springs. I didn’t write about the experience but I did write about the nearby California pioneer town you’ve probably never heard of. I hope this year I can take my kids to two of my favorite National Parks: Yellowstone and Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. The trick is to go when there’s not a lot of people so it’s best to go in the off season, very early in the morning and not on free days.
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The National Park Service and Veterans Administration a few years back updated their Annual Pass offerings for Vets and other Military-related passes. One of the significant updates was veterans being included in the annual pass offerings and, a couple of years later, veterans became eligible for the lifetime annual pass.
Summary: All current military members and their dependents are eligible for a free annual pass as long as the military member is serving. For the free lifetime pass, it includes veterans and Gold Star Families now. There are requirements (see link for details) but you can get them free on-site or for a $10 dollar processing/shipping fee at the US Geological Survey webstore. The web page has more details but it’s a great offering for those who have served the country and their families.
https://www.nps.gov/planyourvisit/veterans-and-gold-star-families-free-access.htm
The annual pass for fee charging national parks is 80.00 and seniors over 62 can get a lifetime pass for the same amount