If you missed the public comment period last October, you may be shocked today. In an official announcement on April 1, 2024, Utah’s Cedar Breaks National Monument announced changes to its entrance and campground fees. This was not an April Fools’ joke—Cedar Breaks entrance fees are up a whopping 150%.
At first glance, maybe innocuous—But it’s what they don’t say
The official announcement reads, “Cedar Breaks National Monument will increase entrance and campground fees. The last significant change in fees occurred in 2018. The new pricing structure will bring the monument into closer alignment with nearby and comparable campground services. The increased fees will provide additional revenue to fund operations and deferred maintenance projects.”
Reading the entire release from park officials, the changes might seem innocuous enough. But the media release does not include a single word as to what the fees were, up to today. Only by digging around in the park’s website were we able to discern just what fees had been—and we suspect that information will vanish soon enough.
In six years or less
Here’s the breakdown. While the last “significant change in fees” was in 2018, that means in six years or less, this happened. Campground fees for a non-utility site, with available showers, have gone from $24 to $30. That’s a 25% increase. But the fees that will affect ALL paying visitors is the real hot-kiss-at-the-end-of-a-wet-fist: In six years the entrance fee has gone from $10 to $25 – a 150% jump.
It may be understandable that the nation’s parks are jumping fees. In the last round of budget pushing, despite inflation, the National Parks’ budget has lost, not gained, ground financially. The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act allows parks to keep 80 percent of the fees they collect for use on projects that directly benefit visitors.
With less money coming from the federal budget, parks are stuck pushing what to many is a distasteful push-up in user fees to keep functioning. Still, one wonders, if coming out, up-front with the real change in fees might make a bigger impression on park users—and the rest of the public. Cedar Breaks entrance fees are up—and doubtless, so will many others do the same.
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Most rv’rs talk about how much nicer state and national parks are, and I agree. That’s why you can’t get a spot if you are more than a minute late hitting the enter button. The rates talked about are so much less than private campgrounds with 25’ wide sites. Why are we complaining? If they get too high then people won’t be staying there. Let’s be happy that they aren’t raising them to $75-120 that the private campgrounds charge around the popular public parks.
Not a problem. Entrance is free and dry camping 1/2 price with our Senior Interagency Passes. Best bargain purchase we have ever made. Can’t even estimate how much money those two $10 lifetime passes have saved us in the last 16 years!
By the time we could buy the pass it was $80 but well worth it!
I don’t think a $3 increase per year over the past 5+ years is a whopper especially since they probably won’t go up again for another 5+ years. But that is what we expect from headlines…be sure to read the fine print.
Update… Individual rates went up from $10 to $15. Vehicle passes from $20 to $25. No whopping 150% increase that I can find from the NPS website or other articles I have read.
Thank you, Russ and Tina! 🙂 Proportionally those are large changes, but nominally less so. The most eye-opening fee change is the entrance fee. That does seem like a large increase in both ways. I probably wasn’t going to ever visit it anyway, but I do empathize with those who want to visit it, but may be priced out of the visit. Thank you for this news, safe travels, and may you always find “room at the inn.” 🙂
Neal.. Please read my response below.
Thanks, John. $20 seemed large, $25 even worse. Is it a one-time fee on top of camping fees, or a daily fee? Or is it embedded in the camping fees? It is merely a point of curiosity for me. I doubt that we’ll ever RV there. Thanks for pursuing this John. Safe travels! 🙂
If you have the “senior pass” of course there is no fee. For all National Parks I believe the camping fees are in addition to the entry fee. If you have been to Bryce Canyon the formations are similar. Big difference.. the park campground is at 10,000 feet and the climb is a workout. Our RV generator had a hard time producing electricity at that elevation. All campgrounds are non electric.
Thanks, John! 🙂 Yes, I have the senior pass. I doubt that we’ll ever be there with the RV. That sounds more difficult than I’d care to endure with it. Thanks again and safe travels! 🙂