This isn’t exactly ‘news’ on the RS forums but it has been reported that some entry-gate rangers are having a real time with unhappy visitors for whom it IS news. So, being a big fan of the parks and underpaid, overworked, under-appreciated NPS rangers, here’s the skinny for our forum friends from abroad who may be making the trek this year.
First of all, the non-resident fees currently only apply to these 11 parks:
Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion.
Non-U.S. residents will pay the standard entrance fee at each of these parks PLUS a $100 fee per person for ages 16 or older. So, say, a family of 4 traveling with 2 teens over the age of 15 would need to fork over $35.00 for that carload of 4 PLUS $100 for each passenger = $435.00.
Ouch.
One way to lessen the blow? Purchase the non-resident America The Beautiful pass for $250. If traveling by non-commercial vehicle, only one person in your group has to purchase it, and it covers all of you in the car/van at parks that charge per vehicle…which is most of them but check the details of your selected parks; for parks that charge per person, it covers the pass holder plus up to 3 adults. It’s also good to use for one year from date of purchase at 2,000 federal recreation sites, including national parks.
This pass is particularly valuable if the trip includes multiples of the parks charging the non-resident fee. For instance, 2 of Utah’s "Mighty 5” National Parks are on the list: Zion and Bryce. Paying individually to visit both would cost the family of 4 $800 + $70 in combined $35 entry fees.
Double ouch.
So, that $250 American The Beautiful non-resident pass starts to look like a bargain, and especially so, say, if the trip includes the other 3 of Utah’s National Parks. The same situation applies for trips that include both of Wyoming's Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. Traveling with a van-load of up to 15 adult friends? Oof, do the math at $100 per person! With the ATB pass, you’re all covered but must enter the parks together in the vehicle with the pass holder. This can be tricky at Zion where it’s not all that hard to enter the park on foot from Springdale (we have). I haven’t figured that one out definitively yet but as far as I’ve been able to find, the ATB pass only covers a group of 4 entering on foot, including the pass holder.
Useful links:
https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/nonresident-fees.htm
https://www.recreation.gov/interagency-pass/types/nonresident
Hope this helps. For our Webmaster's benefit, I won't get into how I feel about the size of the per-person fees and risk ejection from this forum but... 🤐
https://www.npca.org/articles/11332-parks-group-demands-halt-to-national-park-fee-changes-targeting-non
https://www.thetravel.com/us-national-park-gates-difficulties-under-international-visitor-fees-100-dollar-surcharge/