These Are The 10 Days Our National Parks Will Be Free In 2017

Image: PHOTO: Alaska's Denali National Park and Preserve. (photo via Flickr/Christoph Strassler)
Image: PHOTO: Alaska's Denali National Park and Preserve. (photo via Flickr/Christoph Strassler)
Gabe Zaldivar
by Gabe Zaldivar
Last updated: 12:55 AM ET, Wed January 11, 2017

There is nothing better than roaming amid nature's grandeur as you walk hand in hand with your loved one, taking in all that our country's parks have to offer.

Well, the one thing that would make it better is you could do so for free.

The National Park Service is bringing back its annual complement of free days. As its website explains, those parks that charge a fee will be free over ten glorious days throughout the year.

Before you pack the picnic basket and selfie stick let us give you the dates that you will be able to roam with the carefree attitude that comes with leaving the wallet at home. (Note: it's never wise to actually leave your wallet at home.)

Free Days:

January 16: Martin Luther King Jr. Day

February 20: Presidents' Day

April 15-16 and 22-23: Weekends of National Park Week

August 25: National Park Service Birthday

September 30: National Public Lands Day

November 11-12: Veterans Day Weekend

As OregonLive.com notes, 2016 had the same deal but offered 16 days throughout the transom of the calendar.

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Now comes the moment for an important caveat. The above dates represent when you can enter any park and skip the normal entrance fee that is mandated at some locations. You will still be responsible for other costs-see above advice about that trusty wallet.

NPS explains: "The fee waiver includes entrance fees, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise."

There are hundreds of parks across the nation that continue to call to every traveler. Thanks to a returning campaign, 120 of them will be free for a brief spell during the year, joining the others that remain free.


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