The National Park Service published the list of free entrance days for 2016: 16 days in which you can enjoy the 127 National Parks that normally charge entrance fees.
The days are:
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on January 16
- Every day during National Park Week, April 16-24
- Every day during the celebration of the National Park Service’s 100th birthday, August 25-28
- National Public Lands Day, September 24
- Veteran’s Day, November 11
There are an additional 282 National Parks that are always free. Plus, don’t forget that the National Park Service also administers hundreds of other sites such as national monuments, recreation areas, historic battlefields, and many more.
When visiting a park, be sure to check in at the park headquarters or any ranger station and get a Junior Ranger packet. We’ve found that the Junior Ranger programs are a great way to get the kids engaged while visiting the parks, and it certainly doesn’t hurt that they get to learn a lot along the way.
Remember as well President Obama’s Every Kid in a Park initiative, which allows any fourth grader, and their family, to get into any federal public land for free throughout the 2015-2016 school year.
Hello from Philadelphia,
My two children collect junior ranger stuff, too. On weekends, holidays, and vacation, we often travel to various NPS units doing junior ranger activities. It’s certainly a neat way to learn about America.
We often trade with people from around country to expand our collection. As we were perusing the internet, we found your site. We were was wondering, if you trade? We would love to trade for any extra junior ranger badges or patches you might have.
Thanks
Pat