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3h ago

National Parks Drop MLK Day and Juneteenth From Free Entry, Add Trump’s Birthday

The 2026 resident-only calendar shifts free admission to patriotic dates, raising costs for international visitors.

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 Interior Department released the 2026 list of “resident-only patriotic fee-free days,” removing Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth and adding June 14, which is Flag Day and President Donald Trump’s birthday.
  • Other free-entry dates now include Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day weekend, the National Park Service’s 110th birthday, Constitution Day, Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday and Veterans Day.
  • Fee waivers in 2026 apply only to U.S. citizens and residents, while nonresidents will pay standard entry plus a $100 per-person surcharge at 11 top parks and a $250 annual pass, compared with $80 for residents.
  • Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the policy prioritizes American families and asks foreign visitors to contribute their share, as civil-rights groups, conservation advocates and some lawmakers criticized dropping holidays tied to Black history.
  • The shift follows a July executive order directing preferential access for residents and coincides with a new annual pass design featuring patriotic imagery, including portraits of George Washington and Trump.