National Park Week is happening April 20th to April 28th this year, and to kick it off, it will be free to get in all the national parks in the country on April 20th. That doesn’t just cover the major ones, like Grand Teton, Olympic or Grand Canyon, but all 429 sites in the National Park System, including battlefields and seashores. And also the 19 National Parks in New Mexico, like White Sands, Valles Caldera, Petroglyph (in ABQ), Gila Cliff Dwellings, Chaco, Carlsbad Caverns and more. Check out all the New Mexico National Parks.
The first National Park Week was in 1991 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the National Park Service. The next one didn’t happen until 1994, but it’s now an annual event that encourages everyone to get out and enjoy the parks. There are special activities planned for the week and each of the nine days of National Park Week highlight a different parks-related theme:
- April 20th – Discovery
- April 21st – Volunteers
- April 22nd – Earth Day
- April 23rd – Innovation
- April 24th – Workforce Wednesday
- April 25th – Youth Engagement
- April 26th – Community Connections
- April 27th – Junior Ranger Day
- April 28th – Arts in Parks
While entry fees are only waived the first day, there are four other free entry days at national parks this year:
- June 19th - Juneteenth
- August 4th – Great American Outdoors Day
- September 28th – National Public Lands Day
- November 11th – Veterans Day
- Veterans and Gold Star Families are eligible for free, lifetime access to national parks. Fourth-graders and their families also get in for free with the Every Kid Outdoors program.
Source: USA Today