Yosemite Sees Spike In Visitors

Yosemite, CA – Yosemite National Park had over four million visitors in 2010.

It is the first time since 1996 that Yosemite has cleared the four million mark, according to Park Ranger Kari Cobb. The final figure is close to 4,047,000.

Park officials say a renewed interest in National Parks helped boost attendance figures. More Californians may be staying closer to home given the slow economy, and at the same time overseas visitation remains strong. Yosemite also received increased media attention over the past year, notably with Ken Burns PBS National Park series, and a feature recorded for the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Yosemite had 3.8 million visitors in 2009.