Free entrance day in National Parks on Veterans Day, November 11

Photo of hikers on the Cerro Grande Trail 

at Bandelier National Monument. NPS photo

November 11, Veterans Day, is the last free entrance day in the National Parks for 2014. The fee waiver includes: entrance fees, commercial tour fees and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise. Read more here.

Free entrance to all National Parks on Saturday, September 27

Celebrate National Public Lands Day in a National Park
WASHINGTON – This Saturday, September 27, celebrate National Public Lands Day by heading to a national park to play, learn, serve or work. The 21^st annual event will feature free admission to every National Park Service site, as well as special activities and volunteer work projects across the country.

Sponsored by the National Environmental Education and Training Foundation, National Public Lands Day is the largest single-day, hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance federal, state and local public lands in the country. Last year, about 175,000 volunteers worked at 2,237 sites in every state, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Click here for more information and a list of project sites for this Saturday.

In addition to providing free entrance on Saturday, many parks will host special ranger programs and events, including a star party at Craters of the Moon National Memorial and Preserve, a Fall Fiesta at Bandelier National Monument, the Peanut Festival at Jimmy Carter National Historic Site, a wilderness fair at Joshua Tree National Park, the Mountain Festival at City of Rocks, and Music and Art in the Mountains at Blue Ridge Parkway.

Click here for more information about the free entrance days in the National Parks.

National Parks to offer free admission on nine days in 2014

WASHINGTON – Circle the dates on the calendar and plan your trip – America’s 401 national parks will offer free admission on nine days in 2014, including several holidays!

The 2014 entrance fee-free days are:

·        January 20: Martin Luther King Jr. Day

·        February 15-17: Presidents Day weekend

·        April 19-20: National Park Week’s opening weekend

·        August 25: National Park Service’s 98^th birthday

·        September 27: National Public Lands Day

·        November 11: Veterans Day

“America’s national parks welcome more than 280 million visitors a year. To say thanks for that support and invite every American to visit these treasures that they own, we are declaring nine days of free admission next year,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “Whether it’s that once-in-a-lifetime family trip to Yellowstone or taking a daily walk along the National Mall in Washington, D.C., or the moment at Central High School that your child suddenly understands what civil rights are all about, national parks offer places for unforgettable experiences.

“National parks not only protect and preserve the places we most value; they also add enormous economic value to nearby communities and the entire nation.  Visitor spending represents a $30 billion annual benefit to the national economy and supports more than 250,000 jobs,” said Jarvis. “Fee-free days are a great way to both thank those visitors and introduce parks to first-timers who can find a new place to call an old favorite.”

With more than 84 million acres of spectacular scenery, 17,000 miles of trails, 5,000 miles of shoreline, 27,000 historic and prehistoric structures, and 100 million museum items and an infinite number of authentic American stories to tell, national parks offer something for every taste.

Those in search of superlatives will find them in national parks including the country’s highest point (in Denali National Park) and lowest point (in Death Valley National Park), deepest lake (Crater Lake National Park), longest cave (Mammoth Cave National Park), tallest trees (Redwood National Park), and highest waterfall (Yosemite National Park).

Normally, 133 national parks charge an entrance fee that ranges from $3 to $25. The entrance fee waiver does not cover amenity or user fees for things like camping, boat launches, transportation, or special tours.

Other Federal land management agencies that will offer fee-free days in 2014 are:  U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Forest Service and the Army Corps of Engineers.  Please contact each for details.

The National Park Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Forest Service also participate in the America the Beautiful National Parks Pass and Federal Recreational Lands Pass programs. These passes provide access to more than 2,000 national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, grasslands, and other federal lands. Four passes are available:

·        free annual pass to current military members and their dependents

·        free lifetime pass for people with permanent disabilities

·        $10 lifetime senior pass for those aged 62 and over

·        $80 annual pass for the general public.

 Click here for more information.

National Parks Commemorate Veterans Day with Free Admission and Special Events

WASHINGTON: The National Park Service will honor all military veterans with special events and free entrance to all 401 national parks for everyone during the Veterans Day weekend, November 9 through 11.

“Every national park tells a part of the American story, and many of the parks have a direct connection to those who have served in the military through the years,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “I invite everyone to come to a national park to commemorate Veterans Day, whether it is to learn more about those who have given so much to defend our freedoms or to simply enjoy the beauty and majesty of the land they fought to protect.”  

Hallowed places such as Saratoga, Fort McHenry, Vicksburg and the USS Arizona Memorial are among the 94 National Park Service battlefields, military parks, national cemeteries and military-related historic sites that commemorate the service and sacrifice of veterans throughout our country’s history. Additional national parks preserve American icons like the Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore and the Liberty Bell which have inspired generations of troops.

“I have been very proud to serve my country as a Marine and now again for the National Park Service,” said Dan Hottle, a combat veteran who is one of thousands of veterans who work for the National Park Service. “Our parks bring out the very best in people from all walks of life, coming together to preserve our most valuable resources for our future generations.” 

Some of the military-related special events taking place during the Veterans Day weekend are:

• The annual illumination of 6,000 gravesites of Union soldiers in the Poplar Grove National Cemetery in Petersburg National Battlefield (Va.)
• Encampments with living history demonstrations at  Colonial National Historical Park (Va.), Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve (Fla.) and Kings Mountain National Military Park (S.C.)
• An open house with Cold War veterans at Minute Man Missile National Historic Site (S.D.)
• The program "A Soldier's View of Wars and Trains" with re-enactors, veterans and active duty armed forces members at Steamtown National Historic Site (Penn.)
• A living military timeline that includes 70 reenactors and contemporary soldiers at Guilford Courthouse National Military Park (N.C.)
• Military commemorations and an enlistment ceremony for 20 recruits at Valley Forge National Historical Park (Penn.)

 Other family-friendly programs taking place include:

• A beach walk at Padre Island National Seashore (Texas)
• A 19^th century magic show featuring “curious and innocent diversions for parlor and refined gatherings” at Hampton National Historic Site (Md.)
• A sunset stroll at White Sands National Monument (N.M.)
• The “Wish Upon a Star” program at the Rock Creek Park (Washington, D.C.) planetarium
• A tour of the Paramount Ranch movie set at Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (Calif.)
• The making of sweet sorghum molasses at Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Tenn.)

A full list of all National Park Service events can be found at http://www.nps.gov/findapark/event-search.htm
 
The National Park Service also provides active duty members of the military and their dependents with an annual national park pass, an $80 value, at no charge. Permanently disabled veterans can receive a free lifetime pass to all parks. The passes provides entrance to all national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, and many other Federal lands – more than 2,000 in all. The passes can be acquired at any national park that charges an entrance fee. Information about all national park passes is available at www.nps.gov/findapark/passes.htm

National Parks honor Veterans's Day with free entrance

The National Park Service will commemorate Veterans Day by waiving entrance fees and holding special events from November 11 to 13.

"America’s national parks have close ties to all those who have served, or are serving, in the military," said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. "There are dozens of national parks that commemorate battles fought on American soil. Veterans Day weekend is the perfect time to visit a place like Yorktown, Gettysburg, or Pearl Harbor and pay tribute to those who have served.

"Our country’s 397 national parks also preserve iconic symbols, including the Liberty Bell, the Statue of Liberty, and Mount Rushmore, and places of great beauty, such as Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon, that have inspired generations of troops with national pride."

Some of the special events taking place this weekend include:

- A U.S. Navy Band concert at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (LA)

- Living history military encampments at Fort Moultrie (SC), Kings Mountain National Military Park (SC), Fort Pulaski National Monument (GA), and Shiloh National Military Park (TN)

- Living history Revolutionary War soldiers at Morristown National Historical Park (NJ)

- The Avenue of Flags at Andersonville National Historic Site (GA).

A complete list of events by park or state is available at www.nps.gov. In 2012, the National Park Service will offer fee free days on January 14 to 16 (Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend), April 21 to 29 (National Park Week), June 9 (Get Outdoors Day), September 29 (National Public Lands Day), and November 10 to 12 (Veterans Day weekend). More information is available at http://www.nps.gov/findapark/feefreeparks.htm.

photo: Morristown National Historic Park, US Military Photo