Visitors will not need to make vehicle reservations for Yosemite National Park in 2026, as part of an effort to “expand public access,” the National Park Service said.
Superintendent Ray McPadden said that while the reservation system is a “valuable management tool,” park data shows that “a season-wide reservation requirement is not the most effective approach for the coming season,” according to a Wednesday, Feb. 18 news release from the NPS.
“We are committed to visitor access, safety, and resource protection, and will continue active traffic management strategies to ensure a great visitor experience,” McPadden said in the release.
What led to decision to drop reservations for Yosemite?
The decision to eliminate the time reservation system in 2026 comes after “a comprehensive evaluation of traffic patterns, parking availability, and visitor use during the 2025 season,” the NPS said.
“Park analysis found that most weekdays maintained available parking, stable traffic flow and visitation levels within the park’s operational capacity,” the NPS said.
Based on these findings, the NPS said staff determined that a season-wide reservation requirement would not be an effective approach for 2026.
‘A terrible decision,’ opponent says
In an interview with SF Gate, Beth Pratt, a conservation leader and author who has lived in the Sierra Nevada foothills outside Yosemite National Park for more than 25 years, called the move a “terrible decision.”
“They are willfully ignoring the consequences to the wildlife and the landscape,” Pratt told the news outlet. “We know what happens when there are no limitations on visitation, as we have sadly seen it in action. The reservation system was working. Why are we willing to put these cherished places at risk?”
U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla was also critical of the park’s decision to drop the reservation system.
“After already scaling back Yosemite’s reservation system, the Trump Administration’s shortsighted move to eliminate it altogether will diminish the visitor experience for Californians and tourists alike,” Padilla said in a Feb. 19 news release. “With our national park system already strained by Donald Trump’s funding and staffing cuts, this decision will limit outdoor recreation opportunities, degrade the Park’s natural resources, and strain local businesses that rely on a steady stream of Park visitors.”
Padilla went on to say the reservation system was “effective at preventing overcrowding, especially during peak season, while increasing visitations to this natural treasure.”
“I urge the Administration to reinstate Yosemite’s plan,” Padilla said.
Reservations first implemented in 2020
Yosemite first started using a reservation system in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic to limit the number of visitors at the park, which typically sees more than 4 million visitors annually, according to NPS.
The park implemented the reservation system again in 2021 and 2022, but skipped it in 2023, the NPS said.
In 2024, the park reintroduced the reservation system, which continued into 2025, according to the NPS and Visit California.
Two more national parks eliminate reservations
Two other national parks — Arches National Park in Utah and Glacier National Park in Montana — will also drop reservations for 2026, the NPS said in a Tuesday, Feb. 18 news release.
“Our national parks belong to the American people, and our priority is keeping them open and accessible,” Kevin Lilly, acting assistant secretary for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks at the Department of the Interior, said in the release. “We’re expanding access where conditions allow and using targeted tools only where necessary to protect visitor safety, maintain emergency access, and preserve these extraordinary places for future generations.”
Strategy for park without reservations
Without requiring reservations, the NPS said the park will look to operation strategies that were effective last season.
Among those strategies include:
“Our goal is to help every visitor have a safe and enjoyable trip,” McPadden said. “Targeted management gives us the flexibility to address the busiest days while preserving open access on days the park is operating well within capacity.”
Tips for visiting Yosemite in 2026
Those planning to visit Yosemite in 2026 should heed the following:
How many visitors does Yosemite get each year — and how does it compare to other national parks?
Yosemite National Park is consistently one of the most visited national parks in the country, drawing just over 4.1 million recreation visits in 2024, according to National Park Service statistics. That places Yosemite sixth nationwide for visitation among the 63 U.S. national parks.
While Yosemite’s granite cliffs, waterfalls and giant sequoias make it an international destination, it still sees far fewer visitors than the country’s busiest park. Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which spans North Carolina and Tennessee, led the nation in 2024 with about 12.2 million visits, nearly triple Yosemite’s total.
Several other Western parks draw crowds comparable to Yosemite:
All ranked ahead of Yosemite in total visitation for the year.
Yosemite’s visitation has rebounded strongly since the pandemic-era lows of 2020, when visits dropped to about 2.3 million. Annual totals have since returned to the 4 million–plus range, close to pre-pandemic levels but still below the park’s all-time record of more than 5 million visits in 2016, according to long-term NPS data. [
Park officials have repeatedly pointed out that Yosemite’s challenge is not just total visitation, but when and where those visitors arrive. Roughly three-quarters of Yosemite visits occur between May and October, with heavy congestion concentrated in Yosemite Valley during peak summer weekends, even as other areas of the park remain well below capacity.
That uneven use — rather than Yosemite’s overall ranking among national parks — has been a central factor in the debate over vehicle reservation systems and traffic controls.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Reservations not needed for Yosemite National Park in 2026
Reporting by Daniella Segura, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
