U.S. National Park Fee Free Days
The National Park System encompasses 417 national parks in the United States, 59 of those sites are National Parks. What's even better is that the US National Parks offer fee free days each year!
In addition, we were notified that Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks will be waiving park entrance fees on certain days, that's a savings of $30 if traveling via vehicle! You can get additional park entrance fee information here. The entrance fee waiver does not cover other user fees for things like camping, lodging, equipment rental, or special programs that charge a fee.
The US National Park entrance fee-free days are as follows:
January 18: Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
August 25: National Park Service Birthday
September 30: National Public Lands Day
November 11: Veterans Day
In addition, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks will be waving entrance fees on the following days:
June 3: National Trails Day
August 12: A Day Honoring Buffalo Soldiers
December 10: Celebration of the General Grant Tree: Nation’s Christmas Tree
Each year the dates can change, so stay up to date with the US Nation Park entrance Fee-Free days here.
We also learned that Canada National Parks is offering their very own Free Parks Canada Discovery Pass thanks to 52 Hike Challenge participant @tanawheatcroft, with a Discovery Pass, you will have unlimited opportunities to enjoy national parks, national marine conservation areas and national historic sites across the country!
Details on Free Parks Canada Discovery Pass:
As we mentioned earlier, you can get a free Parks Canada Discovery Pass which ensures free entry to places managed by Parks Canada. It does not apply to provincial, municipal or private parks, nor to the many historic sites not managed by Parks Canada. Please refer to the complete list of Parks Canada places when planning your visit to take full advantage of the Discovery Pass.
Lastly, make sure to order your Canada Discovery Pass ahead of time!
So there you have it, many more reasons and amazing places to hike and explore for your 52 Hike Challenge!