New Rules for Yosemite Visitors: What You Need to Know This Summer
Yosemite National Park will require visitors to make reservations during the busy summer months. The new rules will help manage the large crowds that come to see the park’s beautiful waterfalls, giant sequoia trees, and famous views.
Starting May 22, visitors who want to enter Yosemite between 5 a.m. and 4 p.m. will need a reservation. This rule will be in place until September 1. During this time, the park gets very crowded.
Improve the visitor experience
The plan was approved by the federal government after months of waiting, writes The Mercury News. “This will help protect Yosemite’s natural resources and improve the visitor experience,” said Yosemite Superintendent Cicely Muldoon. “We want everyone to enjoy their time in the park without extreme crowding.”
Reservations will cost $2, but this is in addition to the regular park entrance fee of $35 per car. The good news is that you won’t need a reservation if you already have other bookings inside the park, such as a camping spot, a hotel room, a wilderness permit, a Half Dome hiking permit, or a bus tour ticket.
“We know this is a big change for visitors”, said Muldoon. “But it will ensure that when you come to Yosemite, you can find parking and enjoy the park without bumper-to-bumper traffic.”
Reservations
Visitors can make reservations through the recreation.gov website starting at 8 a.m. on April 12. About 70% of the reservations will be available then. The remaining 30% will be released seven days before each visit date.
Last year during summer weekends and holidays, Yosemite often reached full capacity by 10 a.m., forcing rangers to turn away visitors who had driven hours to get there.
