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National Park Service Drops MLK Day and Juneteenth From 2026 Free-Entry List, Adds Trump’s Birthday

Interior officials say the resident-only policy protects U.S. taxpayers, with new surcharges for international visitors beginning Jan. 1, 2026.

Visitors board buses in Yosemite National Park on May 20, 2025.  Bay Area visitors hoping to take advantage of free-entry days at national parks will see major changes next year, as the Trump administration removes free entry on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth.
Visitors hike the Mist Trail toward Vernal Falls on August 31, 2025 in the Yosemite National Park, California. Due the high volume of visitors during Labor Day weekend, Yosemite required reservations for in-park lodging or camping, and wilderness or Half Dome permits.
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FILE: Hot Springs National Park was established in 1921, shown here in Hot Springs, Ark., on April 22, 2005. 

Overview

  • The 2026 “patriotic fee-free days” now include Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, June 14 (Flag Day/Trump’s birthday), July 3–5, the NPS 110th birthday, Constitution Day, Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday and Veterans Day.
  • Free-entry days will apply only to U.S. citizens and residents, and nonresidents face the regular fee plus a $100 per-person surcharge at 11 top parks and a $250 annual pass versus $80 for U.S. residents.
  • Interior Secretary Doug Burgum defended the shift as ensuring affordable access for taxpayers, while civil-rights and public-lands advocates and at least one senator criticized dropping MLK Day and Juneteenth as exclusionary.
  • The Interior Department and National Park Service have not offered a specific reason for removing the two civil-rights holidays, which were fee-free in recent years.
  • The revised calendar and nonresident pricing take effect in 2026 at roughly 100–116 fee-charging NPS sites, with the first free day now set for Presidents’ Day on February 16.