National Park Pass: Is it Worth It?

 

The National Park system compromises 401 sites that cover more than 84 million beautiful acres across the United States and its territories. Close to 3 million visitors stream through the gates of these national treasures every year, and many of them carry an annual pass known as America the Beautiful- The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass. This pass admits the owner to over 2000 federal recreation sites, covering the entrance and standard fee for the driver and all passengers in a personal vehicle ( or four adults at a site where there is a per person charge).

For avid travelers and outdoor lovers, the pass is one way to access all that the National Parks have to offer, but at $80 per year, is it worth it?

It Depends on Where You are Going…

Not all National Parks are created equal when it comes to admission fees. Some of the more popular parks, like the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone are $25 per vehicle, while other parks are only $5-10 per vehicle. When deciding to purchase the annual pass veteran roadtripper and author of The Traveling Praters, Tonya suggests that you do the math.

Our family broke even when we visited four parks, but it depends on where you are headed and how much the parks charge for admission.

Amy Moore, author at Everything-Everywhere Family also suggests getting out a calculator to determine the value of the annual pass.

I did the math and it is only worth it for us if we hit the high dollar parks or have a really long road trip and hit a bunch of parks.

It Also Depends on Where You Live…

If you live in an area where you have regular access to a National Park, the savings only increases. After a move from Florida to Colorado,Jennifer, the author of Two Kids and a Map, has restructured her thoughts on the annual pass.

We bought one for the first time last year. We live close enough to Rocky Mountain National Park and Mount Evans, and make several trips a year. We also knew that we were going to be visiting several other parks during the year. Ours is up for renewal and while we aren't sure we will get our money's worth this year, we have decided to renew because we take visitors to the parks and I am happy to support National Parks.  When we lived in Pensacola, we lived near the National Seashore but nowhere near any other National Parks. We decided then to just buy the annual pass for the seashore rather than the national park pass.

And How Many People Live With You…

The annual pass casts a wide net in terms of allowable entrants for each pass. Sites that charge per vehicle will admit anyone in the vehicle with one pass, while sites that charge per person will admit four adults per pass. In the eyes of the National Park systems, kids over 15 fall into the adult category, so those with large families or teenagers can benefit much more quickly from purchasing the pass.

Dana Ticknor, author of the Ticknor Tribe, travels full time with her family of eleven. Her larger than average family finds value in purchasing two passes.

We purchase 2 every year, so hubby and I each have one. Then, we have one in our van and the other for the RV (we often use campgrounds in the parks when they have them). It saves us quite a bit each year, but savings depends on how much you are going to visit parks that charge entrance fees (many are free). Used in vehicle, they cover everyone in the rig, but for walk-in parks there is a cap on the number of people it let's in free; having 2 has saved us money in those situations, also.

On the flip side, solo travelers or families with children under 15 will need to do the math to see if the parks they plan to visit will add up to a savings for their group.

You Can Also Consider How You Can Maximize the Cost….

Purchasing the annual pass might be just the financial incentive you need to get you out and enjoying National Parks more often as Trekaroo contributor, Michelle McCoy has discovered.

We buy one almost every year because entrance fees to National Park near us is $20 each. The pass is $80, so we figure if we go 5 times a year we save. And that encourages us to go.

And You Can Always Just Give ‘Cause it Feels Good

National Parks are truly one of the greatest treasures we have available  in the good ol’ US of A, but that kind of benefit doesn’t stay open without some funds. Author of R We There Yet, Mom, Rebecca Darling suggests that purchasing the annual pass is one small way to do your part to keep the National Parks open and running.

We bought one last year for out roadtrip and it saved us money since we visited seven National Parks.  Even if it didn't save us money, I looked at it as a donation to the National Park system.

 

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