Over Memorial Day weekend, drivers waited an hour and a half or more to get into Yosemite National Park. By mid-morning there was no parking. Videos showed cars left on meadows and road shoulders.
Visitors and park advocates called it “chaos.” Yosemite has logged nearly 100,000 more visitors than at the same point last year, and the timed-entry reservation that governed summer trips for most of the past five years is gone for 2026. The park says on its entrance reservations page that no reservation is needed this year.
Only one kind of booking was dropped. Every vehicle still pays an entrance fee, and the park takes cards or mobile payment, not cash. Wilderness permits and Half Dome permits are separate and still required.
Why the park dropped it
Superintendent Ray McPadden gave the reason in a February statement. The park remains “committed to visitor access, safety, and resource protection,” he said, but “our data demonstrates that a season-wide reservation requirement is not the most effective approach for the coming season.”
In its place the park is using what it tried in 2025: live traffic monitoring, active parking management in Yosemite Valley, extra staff at key intersections during peak periods, and messages nudging people toward weekday visits.
Environmental advocates are not persuaded. “Without any limits on the amount of vehicles, the amount of people, it becomes overwhelmed,” said John Buckley of the Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center, as quoted by ABC. Conservationist Beth Pratt was blunter. “These are the best protected places on the planet, and we cannot be managing them like an amusement park.”
Fees and advice
Since January 1, 2026, visitors from outside the U.S. pay an extra $100 each, age 16 and up, on top of the standard fee. A family of four from abroad pays the $35 vehicle fee plus $100 for each member 16 or older. A $250 non-resident annual pass is also on offer.
The park and the Yosemite Conservancy suggest arriving early, since Valley parking is effectively full by 7:30 a.m. on busy days. Monday through Thursday is easier than weekends. Visitors can text ynptraffic to 333111 for traffic updates.
The park has committed to going without reservations only for the 2026 season. Officials say they will keep “active traffic management strategies” in place and adjust as needed.
