Yosemite drops reservations amid mounting environmental, traffic concerns
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Long lines form along the western Highway 41 entrance of Yosemite National Park. Photo: George Rose/Getty Images
Bay Area campers planning a trip to Yosemite National Park this summer may need to brace for bigger crowds — the park is scrapping its reservation requirement for 2026.
Why it matters: The policy shift marks a departure from when timed-entry reservations were used to manage overcrowding at one of the nation's most popular parks, known for its stunning waterfalls and granite cliffs.
- It opens the gates to heavier peak-season traffic amid a nationwide campaign to expand access to national parks.
The big picture: The move is part of a broader trend where some national parks are rolling back entry fees and reservation systems as the Trump administration pushes to prioritize visitor services.
- Yosemite Superintendent Ray McPadden said in a statement this week that park officials conducted a "comprehensive evaluation" to determine the change and said the park "will continue active traffic management strategies to ensure a great visitor experience."
Yes, but: Without entry caps, environmentalists argue Yosemite could see more traffic jams that strain roads, natural ecosystems and the visitor experience.
- "Discontinuing this program is so disappointing for both the park and also for the visitors who are going to have a very different experience moving forward," said Cassidy Jones, a senior visitation program manager at the National Parks Conservation Association, a nonpartisan advocacy group.
State of play: Overcrowding isn't just about traffic — it also poses environmental and safety risks, Jones said, including:
- Worsening pollution and noise from idling cars. When parking lots fill, drivers spill onto road shoulders, damaging vegetation and creating pedestrian hazards.
- With fewer rangers for education and enforcement, more human-wildlife encounters and vehicle collisions could occur.
- Packed trails can create heavily trodden paths and some hikers could veer off course, harming sensitive habitats. In alpine meadows, foot traffic can crush fragile wildflowers.
- Bathroom facilities can only handle so much volume, while graffiti and overflowing trash or litter could increase.
Between the lines: The rollback comes as the National Park Service faces steep staffing losses, with roughly a quarter of its permanent national workforce laid off.
- While the agency says it plans to increase staffing at congested intersections in Yosemite this summer to mitigate crowds, critics question how feasible that is given those losses.
- Seasonal hires are limited in their abilities without the guidance of experienced supervisors. Many longtime staffers — those familiar with Yosemite's traffic choke points, wildlife patterns and enforcement needs — are no longer there, Jones added.
Flashback: Yosemite introduced reservations during the pandemic before dropping the system in 2023 — when summer wait times stretched to nearly three hours — before reimplementing them the following year as a crowd-control measure.
By the numbers: Yosemite visitation soared by roughly 81.7% over four years — from about 2.2 million visitors in 2020 to 4.1 million in 2024, per the National Parks Service database.
What's next: Park officials are encouraging visitors to plan their visits early, consider weekday trips and go to other areas for outdoor recreation outside of Yosemite Valley.