Long Lines, Chaos At Entry Points For 11 Popular National Parks So Rangers Can Charge Foreign Visitors An Extra $100

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In November, the Trump administration announced it would hike visitor fees for people who are not U.S. residents, with 11 popular parks charging a $100 surcharge in addition to the entrance fee. America the Beautiful passes, which include admission to the entire National Park system, cost an additional $170 for nonresidents.

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The parks subject to the additional fees are Acadia National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Everglades National Park, Glacier National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park and Zion National Park. That policy went into effect on Jan. 1 and is already having an impact, according to four people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

That includes slowing down entry to parks as staff question visitors about whether they are U.S. residents, which can generate confusion because of the wide array of possible immigration statuses and visas. At multiple parks, this has led to long lines and wait times at entrance gates, with staff saying they expect the problem to worsen when visitation peaks in the summer months ahead.

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Verifying visitor’s residency status adds to the workload of already overburdened park staff, said Emily Douce, deputy vice president for government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association, an advocacy group. NPCA estimates that the Trump administration cut 4,000 Park Service employees last year, about a quarter of the overall staff. “There is going to be a lot of confusion because it’s not easy to implement such a complicated system of new rules in such a short amount of time,” she said.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2026/01/09/national-parks-immigration-checks/