Cost Hike For Foreign Visitors In Yosemite

Yosemite National Park photo

Yosemite, CA – Yosemite National Park admission fees for international visitors will rise next year, but rates for US citizens will remain the same.

The decision was taken in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order, which urged the Department of the Interior (DOI) to “improve the affordability of visiting national parks for U.S. residents and increase fees on nonresidents to help fund our parks.” Beginning January 1, 2026, to enter 11 of the most visited national parks, including Yosemite, nonresident visitors 16 years old and older will be charged a new $100 per person surcharge, added to the $35 usual park admission. Park officials provided these fee changes for foreign visitors:

• Single-entry cost: A nonresident arriving in a private vehicle will now pay $135 ($35 old price plus $100 extra).
• Annual pass: The nonresident “America the Beautiful” annual pass will cost $250, up from $80 for U.S. citizens.
• Nonresidents arriving by bicycle or on foot will be charged $120 ($20 old cost plus $100 additional).
• Fee changes for US residents
• No changes: The entry costs will stay the same.
• The DOI will add new “resident-only patriotic fee-free days” on Memorial Day, Independence Day weekend, and June 14 (Flag Day/President Trump’s birthday).

As part of the revisions, the National Park Service stated that nonresident visitors in groups of three or more can now purchase a $250 “America the Beautiful” yearly pass, which allows the driver and all passengers in the car. Park officials provided this list of accepted IDs:

• U.S. Passport
• U.S. government (state or territory)-issued driver’s license or state ID
• Permanent Residency card

For nonresidents entering in a single vehicle, the $100 fee will be applied to the driver and each passenger, according to federal officials.

According to current estimates, over 25% of Yosemite National Park tourists come from abroad. With over 4 million visits per year, the park receives over 1 million international tourists. The DOI anticipates that the move will generate a profit. Critics of the plan, who include Tuolumne County District 4 Supervisor Stephen Griefer, have little confidence that it will bring more money to the parks. Below is Griefer’s statement regarding the fee increases:

“I am strongly against the new entrance fees. The timing of this announcement could not be worse. After COVID, the American tourism industry has been working extremely hard to rebuild tourism in our county and country. The international tourist, who is already looking at how far their dollar will go, will now have to decide whether or not they wish to come to the United States to tour our national parks or will they cancel their plans due to the two-tiered fees. Millions of tourists visit Tuolumne County, especially Yosemite National Park, and I fear that those tourists will not come to our county due to the fact that they will not be willing to pay the additional fees.

In a county like ours, where tourism is a very large part of our economy, this two-tiered system can only hurt our county…I just do not believe that one is in the best interest of the people economy, and the national parks.”