National parks are still a bargain, despite fee hike

Summer travelers may find that visiting a national park is a hair pricier this year, as the National Park Service enacts rate hikes on June 1.

But nature-loving vacationers shouldn’t worry too much. The planned increases aren’t widespread, nor are they likely to be a budget-buster.

Starting June 1, park visitors will pay either $3, $5 or $10 more. The most common rate hike is $5 more for a seven-day vehicle pass, Jeremy Barnum, chief of Public Affairs for the NPS, told CNBC in an email.

For example, a seven-day pass to Mount Rainier National Park in Washington will be $30, up from a current $25.

“$30 to get a carload of friends or family into a spectacular national park for seven days remains an excellent value for vacationing families,” he said.

The increase only applies at national parks that already charge an entrance fee — that is, 117 of the 417 national U.S. national parks. Some of the parks that charge an entrance fee include Acadia National Park, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite.

“The other 300 parks are free to enter all of the time,” Barnum said.