Crowds continue to grow at Yellowstone National Park/NPS file photo
Thinking of visiting Yellowstone National Park next summer? Great idea, as it's an incredible park. But you better factor in delays or limited parking in the park as visitation continues to grow.
Park staff the other day released visitation numbers for September, and the jump from September 2017 was about 13 percent, with 724,454 folks counted this September. While Yellowstone's year-to-date visitation is a bit behind last year's count, it's 19 percent higher than the 2013 tally for the same time period, according to the staff.
So far in 2018, the park has tallied 3,860,694 visits, down 0.3 percent from the same period last year. The list below shows the trend over the last several years. With the increase in September, year-to-date visitation in 2018 is roughly 19 percent higher than it was in 2013.
Year-to-date Recreation Visits (through September)
2018 – 3,860,694
2017 – 3,872,776
2016 – 3,970,778
2015 – 3,814,178
2014 – 3,288,806
2013 – 3,111,924
The continued high level of visitation in the park underscores the importance of planning a Yellowstone adventure ahead of time, the staff notes.
"Visitors should anticipate delays or limited parking at popular destinations, and check current conditions on the park’s website before they arrive," they stress.
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