President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that will increase entrance fees for foreign visitors to U.S. national parks. The White House said the move is intended to generate hundreds of millions of dollars for park conservation and maintenance projects, especially as the administration seeks to cut more than one billion dollars from the National Park Service budget in 2026.
The order instructs the Interior Department, which oversees the Park Service, to implement higher entrance fees for international tourists. However, it does not specify how much the increase will be or when the new pricing will begin. Only about 100 of the 433 sites managed by the Park Service currently charge for admission, and fees vary by location.
Additionally, the executive order directs the Park Service to give priority access to U.S. residents over foreign tourists for permits and reservations. The administration argues that Americans already subsidize the parks through taxes and should not be paying more in practice than international visitors. The White House also pointed out that charging higher fees to foreign tourists is a common practice in national parks around the world.
Despite the proposed fee hike, the Trump administration’s budget cuts are expected to significantly reduce the Park Service’s resources. Since Trump took office, the agency’s permanent staff has decreased by 24 percent. This summer, only 4,500 of the 8,000 seasonal workers promised by the administration have been hired, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.
Staff shortages have led to closures and reduced services in parks such as Yosemite in California and Big Bend in Texas. Meanwhile, visitor numbers continue to rise, with a record 331 million park admissions recorded last year, an increase of 6 million from 2023.
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