What Is National Park Week? And How Can You Get In for Free?

National Park Week takes place in late April across all U.S. National Parks and other NPS sites. Entry is free on the first day. But this week is about much more than free admission.

Overview

In 2021, National Park Week is celebrated from April 17 (Saturday) until April 25 (Sunday). The National Park Services and the National Park Foundation join forces to spotlight the natural and historic treasures and invite you to explore breathtaking locations. You’re invited to learn about culture, history, nature – and the ways they’re being preserved and how you can help.

There are tons of events, special programs, and digital experiences to participate in – and specially themed days to highlight important aspects and inspire you to get involved.

While we didn’t come up with the slogan that the U.S. National Parks are America’s best idea – we are firm believers. It’s astonishing that these vast and diverse landscapes are both protected and portions made (relatively) easily accessible to most of us.

Naturally, having a dedicated National Park Week with a free entrance day and lots of programs to entice and explore also sounds pretty good.

National Park Week Events

There are lots of events planned at parks and other lands across the USA – including many virtual events you can attend from home, or better from your backyard. Many are linked directly to the themed days listed below.

To find events, you can use the official event search tool by dates, locations, or keywords.

To figure out which of the 400 National Parks are near you, give the Find Your Park tool a try.

National Park Week – Day Themes

• April 17 (Sat) – ParkRx Day
  This year Park Prescription Day is a fee-free day in US National Parks so everyone can get out and enjoy the health benefits of the great outdoors. To participate in giving yourself a dose of “outdoors as medicine” on this day, you don’t have to go to a National Park – but can just head to your neighborhood outdoor space. You’re invited to share your experience with the hashtags #PowerOfParksForHealth – #BeforeAndAfterParkRx – #ParkRx – #HealthyParksHealthyPeople
  (Of course, we’d always add #HappierPlace, too. But then we also would have called this day Happier Place Day. 🙂 )

• April 18 (Sun) – Volunteer Sunday
  Learn more about how you can volunteer in parks and give thanks to those who help our parks run year-round.
  #NPSVolunteer

• April 19 (Mon) – Military Monday
  Discover the stories of veterans and military members that are preserved in parks across the country.
  #MilitaryMonday

• April 20 (Tue) – Transformation Tuesday
  NPS has been protecting and preserving lands and historic structures for over 100 years! Explore the ways our parks have changed over the years.
  #TransformationTuesday – #NPSOnTheMove

• April 21 (Wed) – Wayback Wednesday
  Find a park connected to some of the most inspiring stories in our nation’s multifaceted history. Discover your own family’s connections and stories.
  #WaybackWednesday

• April 22 (Thu) – Earth Day
  Celebrate Earth Day by reflecting upon the natural wonders of our parks and supporting the work being done to ensure the health and vibrancy of our parks.
  #EarthDay

• April 23 (Fri) – Friendship Friday
  Join parks and programs as they thank their partners that help preserve and nurture our national parks and lands.
  #FriendshipFriday – #NPSFriends

• April 24 (Sat) – National Junior Ranger Day
  NPS’s Junior Ranger programs help young park visitors connect with our shared history, heritage, and national parks.
  #JuniorRangerDay

• April 25 (Sun) – BARK Ranger Day
  Learn the B.A.R.K. Ranger principles for when you bring your dog on a trip to a pet-friendly park and discover the many roles dogs play in parks.
  #BarkRanger

General National Park (Week) hashtags for sharing and discovering photos on social media: #NationalParkWeek #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque

How To Get Into National Parks For Free

Some U.S. National Park Service sites are always free to get in, like Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway and its trails.

But for all the parks and other NPS sites that do charge an entry fee, there are 6 days each year that everyone can get in for free.

The 2021 National Park Free Days are:

January 18 – Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.

April 17 – First day of National Park Week

August 4 – One year anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act

August 25 – National Park Service Birthday

September 25 – National Public Lands Day

November 11 – Veterans Day

And then there’s the outstanding Every Kid Outdoors program, which allows free entry to all National Parks, Forests, Grasslands and much more for 4th graders AND their families for an entire year from September to August. A beautiful way to help children become happier adults by inviting them and their families into the Great Outdoors.

And this year, due to so many 4th graders missing out on this great opportunity last year due to the covid pandemic, all the federal land organizations are offering free access to all the National Parks and much more for 5th graders and their families as well! Families just need to get the voucher. Sweet.

We usually purchase an “America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass” (currently $80) every year, which allows entry to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all National Park Services sites. With this annual pass, entry always appears to be free. And if we don’t get to enjoy many parks and other sites personally (as in a pandemic year), we still know we’re supporting the outstanding National Parks Services system.

National Park Week History

While this special week in April around Earth Day (4/22) and John Muir’s birthday (4/21) has been celebrated by the National Parks for much longer, in 2016 in honor of the National Park’s upcoming centennial, President Barrack Obama proclaimed National Park Week officially.

National Parks For Everyone

It was shocking to learn that in the past access to national parks was denied to black people – at a time when racial segregation was still rampant across the US with many official restrictions that to us today seem unbelievable. These restrictions and laws have long been abolished. And there are a lot of National Park Services sites the emphasize the history of Black Americans. However, we understand that too many people still don’t feel welcome in the Great Outdoors.

While we don’t (yet?) see evidence that the National Parks are directly addressing these issues for this year’s themes, we do see diversity in the photos they choose – and in inclusionary language. There are many opportunities to focus on topics of inclusion and conversations about racism, ableism, and diversifying.

If you happen to know of any specific events during National Park Week focused on diversifying the outdoors or wrestling with the more challenging aspects of history, please let us know so we can highlight them.

Then there are also the conversations that need to be had about parks once having been tribal land.

Related Blog Posts

Help Your Kids Become Happier Adults: Take Them Outdoors!

Get Happier in 3 Simple Steps: Take a Break. Go Outside. Have Fun.

Inviting Happiness and Adventure: Yes, let’s!

Happier Place National Park Guides

This Rocks, Naturally: Arches National Park (Utah)

Four Parks In One: Canyonlands National Park (Utah)

(Literally) Awesome: Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (Colorado)

Much More Than Just a National Park: Mesa Verde (Colorado)

See It To Believe It: Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado)

Shark Valley: Close Encounters with Wildlife in Everglades National Park (Florida)

Most Popular: Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina + Tennessee)

America’s Favorite Drive + Longest Linear Park: Blue Ridge Parkway

Wild West Icon: Saguaro National Park (Arizona)

Let’s Inspire Each Other

Have you participated in National Parks Week before? Tell us about your experience. Where will you go and what will you do this year? If you live outside of the USA, do you have a national parks system?

Please leave a comment below – inspired by these questions or whatever you’d like to share…

All photos in this post were taken by Luci Westphal during different National Park Weeks – at Arches National Park (Utah), Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado), Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina side).