How much would you be OK with paying to visit national parks?/Canyonlands National Park vista, Rebecca Latson
How much is a national park visit worth to you? It's a question that floats to the surface from time to time when talk turns to the National Park Service's funding woes and nearly $12 billion maintenance backlog.
So, how much is too much? Instead of paying $25 or $30 per carload for a week in a park, would you be willing to pay, say, $25 or $35 per person in your car? Would you be OK with being charged a flat $100 per carload for seven days?
One-hundred-dollars per carload might seem expensive, but it also might still be a bargain, if you consider that in 1916 it cost $10 to enter Yellowstone National Park. If that $10 fee continued to rise annually with the rate of inflation, today the fee would be $244.
So, travelers, what maximum price would you place on visiting a national park? At what price point would you say, "Whoa, that's more than I can comfortably afford with my budget"?
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Comments
I'd easily pay $100 per car. It'd Be the best deal in America!
you can't put a price on how beautiful our national parks are and the amount of activities are boundless
a modest payment for a day, days or weeks at the majority of parks are priceless
Protecting these lands, ecosystems and wildlife are paramount
Buy the annual pass even if you plan to experience only one or more parks It's a great value hands down and if you only make it to one think about the remainder as a charitable contribution
I think most people, myself included would be willing to pay more to upgrade and protect our national heritage.
POV 100. Buses 25 per person. Local annual pass per park 300 Per year.
Each year, I pay $80 for an annual national parks pass. That is a huge bargain! I would be willing to pay $400 for the same annual pass. Our national parks are one of our country's greatest treasures. The fact that we have a $12 billion infrastructure problem is unconscionable. Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir are spinning in their graves knowing what our current administration has done to our national parks.
Totally agree!
I wonder if maybe doing an adjustable fee based on peak times of day and/or seasons could work? Charge more at the peak times and less during slower times. There are some turnpikes that operate that way I believe.
tazz, who would be driven out of summer visits by that approach?
i would pay as much as 100$ or more, as the pleasur I get from going to these sites is much more than going to man made theme parks, which charge 100-200$ per person per day. with that money more land should be bought to espans rhese paradises.