National Park Fee-Free Days in 2026: The Full Calendar

National parks waive their entrance fee on eight dates in 2026 — Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day weekend, the National Park Service's 110th birthday, Constitution Day, Theodore Roosevelt's birthday, and Veterans Day. The one real change for 2026: per the National Park Service, fee-free access now applies to U.S. residents only — international visitors still pay the standard entrance fee on these dates unless they've bought a nonresident annual pass in advance. A fee-free day also waives the entrance fee alone, not camping, guided tours, or reservation fees like the timed entry Rocky Mountain still requires or the permit Zion uses for Angels Landing.

Key takeaways

• Eight fee-free dates in 2026: February 16, May 25, June 14, July 3–5, August 25, September 17, October 27, and November 11.
• New for 2026: free entry on these dates applies to U.S. residents only — non-U.S. residents still pay the standard entrance fee unless they hold a nonresident annual pass.
• Fee-free days waive the entrance fee only. Camping, guided-tour, parking, and timed-entry or reservation fees still apply wherever a park charges them.
• The savings are real only where a park normally charges to begin with — marquee parks commonly run $30–$35 per vehicle, while parks like Great Smoky Mountains are already free year-round.

The 2026 fee-free calendar

The National Park Service waives entrance fees at every fee-charging site nationwide on each of these eight dates, per its official 2026 fee-free schedule:

• February 16 — Presidents Day
• May 25 — Memorial Day
• June 14 — Flag Day
• July 3–5 — Independence Day weekend (three consecutive fee-free days)
• August 25 — the National Park Service's 110th birthday
• September 17 — Constitution Day
• October 27 — Theodore Roosevelt's birthday
• November 11 — Veterans Day

Fee-free doesn't mean free everything

A fee-free day waives only the standard entrance fee — the flat per-vehicle or per-person charge described on the National Park Service's entrance fee price list. It does not waive camping fees, guided-tour or concession fees, backcountry permit fees, or the timed-entry and reservation fees a handful of parks still charge on top of admission. Rocky Mountain's timed-entry reservation and Zion's Angels Landing permit stay in effect on fee-free days exactly as on any other day — the fee waiver has no bearing on either.

Where fee-free days actually matter

A fee-free day is worth planning around only at parks that charge to get in during the rest of the year. At these marquee parks, the standard vehicle entrance fee commonly runs $30–$35 for a seven-day pass:

• Zion — Utah's second-most-visited national park normally charges a real entrance fee.
• Yellowstone — America's first national park charges a standard fee at every entrance station.
• Grand Canyon — charges a standard entrance fee at the South Rim, North Rim, and Desert View entrance.
• Yosemite — charges a standard entrance fee year-round.
• Grand Teton — charges a standard entrance fee, often bundled into a Yellowstone trip.
• Rocky Mountain — charges a standard entrance fee, and still requires its own timed-entry reservation in season regardless of the date.
• Glacier — charges a standard entrance fee, plus a 2026 shuttle ticket for the alpine section of Going-to-the-Sun Road.
• Acadia — charges a standard entrance fee for its Maine coastline.
• Denali — charges a standard entrance fee for access into the park.

By contrast, Great Smoky Mountains charges no entrance fee at all, any day of the year — the most-visited national park in the country doesn't need a fee-free day, because every day already is one.

How to use this calendar

This calendar covers only the eight dates when the entrance fee itself disappears. For passes, annual fee structures, and the everyday cost of visiting — including which pass pays for itself fastest — see our companion guide to national park passes and entrance fees. And once you've picked a fee-free date, check that park's own month-by-month crowd chart before you commit — a free entrance fee on a park's single busiest weekend of the year is not always the trade you want to make.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly is waived on a fee-free day?

Only the standard entrance fee — the flat per-vehicle or per-person charge collected at the gate. Camping fees, backcountry and wilderness permit fees, guided-tour and concession fees, marina and boat-launch fees, and timed-entry or shuttle reservation fees are unaffected and still apply exactly as they would on any other day.

Who qualifies for free entry on a 2026 fee-free day?

As of 2026, fee-free entry applies to U.S. residents. International visitors still pay the park's standard entrance fee on these dates unless they've bought a nonresident annual pass in advance — a change from prior years, when fee-free days applied to every visitor regardless of residency.

Do I still need a timed-entry reservation on a fee-free day?

Yes. A park's reservation system runs independently of its fee schedule. Rocky Mountain still requires a timed-entry reservation for its full late-May-to-mid-October season, and Zion still requires a permit for Angels Landing, on a fee-free day exactly as on any other.

Which national parks actually benefit from a fee-free day?

Only parks that charge an entrance fee to begin with. Marquee parks like Zion, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, Acadia, and Denali commonly charge $30 to $35 per vehicle, so a fee-free day is a real savings there. Parks that are already free year-round, including Great Smoky Mountains, see no change on these dates.