Overview
- From January 1, non-residents aged 16 and older must pay a $100 per-person surcharge at 11 high-traffic parks in addition to standard entrance fees.
- The America the Beautiful annual pass for non-residents rises to $250 in 2026, though passes bought before January 1 will be honored at the current $80 terms.
- National Park Service guidance requires U.S. government photo ID to avoid the surcharge and applies the $100 fee to international visitors in mixed-nationality vehicles.
- Traditional fee-free days in 2026 convert to resident-only patriotic dates, with Martin Luther King Jr Day and Juneteenth removed from the list.
- Five Democratic senators have urged Interior to pause the changes over legal, equity, staffing and congestion concerns, and the department declined to answer their questions.