Three Major Parks Drop Entry Reservations
Arches, Glacier, and Yosemite National Parks announced the discontinuation of their timed entry reservation systems for summer 2026. The change reverses pandemic-era policies designed to control overcrowding, restoring spontaneous access for visitors. Park officials noted the policies remain subject to review and could be reintroduced if overcrowding threatens ecological integrity or visitor safety.
- Prior to implementing timed entry, Arches National Park saw a 73% increase in visitation between 2011 and 2021, leading to frequent park entrance closures—118 times during the summer of 2021 alone—due to overflowing parking lots and traffic backups. - The reservation systems were largely considered successful at reducing midday traffic congestion and improving the overall visitor experience by spreading visitation throughout the day. A Utah State University study found that 84% of visitors to Arches in 2022 supported having a reservation system for future visits. - In Glacier National Park, the timed-entry system for the popular Going-to-the-Sun Road, implemented in 2021, led to an unintended safety issue: an increase in visitors driving on park roads in the dark during early morning hours to avoid the reservation times, which increased the risk to wildlife. - Yosemite National Park, which has dealt with congestion for decades, first introduced a reservation system in 2020 as a public health measure during the pandemic. The park will now rely on alternative strategies like real-time traffic monitoring, active parking management, and increased staffing at key intersections. - While the park-wide entry reservations are ending, visitors will still need to book ahead for many specific activities, such as camping, wilderness permits, and popular managed trails like Angels Landing in Zion. - The decision to end the systems was met with criticism from some conservation groups, like the National Parks Conservation Association, who argue that removing reservations could lead to overcrowding and damage to park resources, especially with record-setting national park visitation in 2024 and reduced park staffing levels. - Not all major parks are ending their reservation systems; Rocky Mountain National Park, for example, will continue to use its timed entry system during peak months to manage its high visitor numbers. - The move away from reservations is part of a shift towards more adaptive management, where parks will use temporary, targeted measures like vehicle diversions in specific corridors only when safety or congestion thresholds are met, rather than implementing a season-wide restriction.
