While Theodore Roosevelt created the National Park Service with the goal of encouraging everyone to go off into nature whenever the desire strikes, recent years have brought with them the problem of overcrowding and subsequent environmental degradation.
As a result, several national parks have been looking to improve the situation by requiring visitors to register ahead of time — at the end of 2023, Arches, Yosemite, Glacier, and Rocky Mountain National Parks have all started testing a system in which visitors need to pick an entry slot at which they will drive their vehicle into the park.
Related: I visited two of the country's most underrated National Parks — here's what it was like
The goal is both to provide park authorities with data on the periods when most people visit, inform travelers of how crowded the park will be (some may want to pick a different time themselves after finding out that the park will be full of people) and see whether such a reservation system will help spread out visitors throughout the day and season.
Visiting Mount Rainier? Here is what the new 'timed entry reservation system' means for you
This week, Mount Rainier National Park in Washington state announced that it will also require those entering through its Paradise Corridor from the Southeast and Sunrise Corridor from the northeast between May 24 and Sept. 2, 2024 to register their visit online.
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"Mount Rainier National Park has experienced an approximate 40% increase in visitation over the last 10 years, leading to overcrowding during the summer and damage to fragile ecosystems," the Washington National Park Service said in a statement. "In 2024, Mount Rainier National Park will implement a pilot timed entry reservation system to improve the visitor experience to the park by reducing wait times, congestion, and resource impacts on trails caused by overcrowding."
To register, visitors will need to go to the Parks Service website and pick the specific two-hour time slot at which they plan to enter. Reservations will become available 90 days before the entry date but can be booked even minutes before one comes so long as space remains. The reservation will cost a processing fee of $2 per vehicle while those with an annual park pass are exempt from the fee but will still need to register online.
'Reservations are good for a single day, per vehicle'
Those entering the park before 7 a.m. or after 3 p.m. or after the summer season ends in September will be able to just drive in as before. A reservation is also not required for visitors with booked stays at local resorts such as National Park Inn, Paradise Inn and Cougar Rock Campground or those entering the park by foot or bike.
"Each corridor requires a separate vehicle reservation," the NPS writes. "Timed entry reservations are good for a single day, per vehicle, and are required in addition to an entrance fee or park pass."
These changes do not affect the cost of entry fees to specific sections of the park. This year, Zion National Park in Utah is also raising park entry prices from $20 to $35 per night to camp in its Watchman or South Campgrounds.
