Yes, US National Parks are open during the shutdown—but should you visit them?

Just when the National Park System could use a break, it gets another gut punch. On October 1, a congressional budget standoff triggered a federal shutdown, forcing more than 9,000 rangers, guides, and maintenance workers—about two-thirds of the already depleted Park Service workforce—to stay home. The gates are still open, but for now, the country’s most treasured landscapes are essentially running on autopilot.

Things could worsen: Park conditions hinge on how long the shutdown lasts, whether outside funding fills the gap, and how well visitors behave.

“National parks are meant to have the highest level of conservation protection, and that doesn’t change because the government shuts down,” Theresa Pierno, President and CEO for National Parks Conservation Association, said in a statement. “If Congress fails to do its job and fund the government, parks may have no choice but to close their gates to safeguard our most cherished places and keep visitors safe.”

And keep in mind that all of this is subject to change as the shutdown stretches on. During the last shutdown, which ran for 35 days over 2018 and 2019, Joshua Tree National Park in California was made to close the park mid-shutdown due to people driving off-road and destroying fragile ecosystems and cutting down the park’s namesake trees. 

Now, the big question: Should you still visit national parks during the shutdown? To be totally honest: No, you probably shouldn’t.

The parks aren’t getting their usual funding from the government, which is why they’re partially closed to begin with. But there are a few sources of revenue available to provide patchwork coverage of essential functions. The first source of funding that’s still accessible to parks is the money from entry fees that they already have in the bank. These funds would usually be spent on maintenance and park staff, and parks are authorized to keep using that pool for that purpose during the shutdown. This is a finite funding source, though, since parks have stopped collecting fees from visitors during the shutdown. Once it’s all spent, parks could be forced to reduce services further. 

Third parties, whether it’s state, county, municipal, and tribal governments or charitable organizations, are allowed to donate money to keep the parks operating, too. They won’t be reimbursed for this, but localities can decide if it’s worth it to keep tourism revenue flowing. Utah, for example, has already announced that they’ll chip in to keep all five parks in the state fully open throughout the shutdown. In California, all nine national parks’ visitor centers are currently up and running. 

Even if all goes as smoothly as possible, visiting the parks right now isn’t advisable. Conservation groups and former park superintendents are almost unanimously encouraging people to not visit during the shutdown and add further strain to things like garbage collection and bathroom upkeep. Reduced emergency services also means that there are fewer people on hand to help if you have an accident.

Beyond that, you’re likely to run into inconveniences.

There’s not a centralized list of exactly what is open at each park. The Department of the Interior (which includes the National Park Service) has published guidelines for the agency, but not how they’ll be applied at each of the 433 locations. Most parks’ communications staff have been furloughed, and their websites feature the same statement: “National Parks remain as accessible as possible during the federal government shutdown. However, some services may be limited or unavailable.”

As a general rule, any buildings or areas that are locked outside of normal business hours (like visitor centers) will be closed for the duration of the shutdown. If you’re looking for more specific information about a particular site, two good places to start are this Washington Post thread aggregating news from specific parks, and local news sources. 

Restrooms and campgrounds at most parks are supposed to remain open, and some maintenance staff are still on the job to keep the facilities running. There won’t be a ranger at the campsite to make sure everyone is putting out their campfires (or keeping someone else from taking your site). Recreation.gov, the centralized site for reservations on all federal public lands, is up and running but not processing new bookings at many places. This shouldn’t impact many people on its own—for many parks, peak visiting season is already over. 

In many parks, hospitality services aren’t actually run by federal employees. Instead, private companies are contracted to operate some, but not all, of the restaurants, cafes, hotels, and campgrounds. Whether or not they’ll continue operating during the shutdown will vary by park and company, so be sure to check beforehand if you have a reservation at a private lodge—or if you just want to know if you’ll be able to get a fresh cup of coffee anywhere in the park. Xanterra, the company that operates concessions in Yellowstone, has announced that they’ll be keeping all accessible locations open during the shutdown, for example.

Now, the big question: Should you still visit national parks during the shutdown? To be totally honest: No, you probably shouldn’t. Conservation groups and former park superintendents are pretty much unanimously encouraging people not to visit during the shutdown and add further strain to things like garbage collection and bathroom upkeep. Reduced emergency services also means that there are fewer people on hand to help if you have an accident.

If you do choose to go to a national park during the shutdown, keep in mind that the risks of potential accidents are heightened with fewer emergency response staff on the job. And come prepared to leave no trace, in the front country as well as the backcountry—you should always clean up after yourself, but packing out your trash and waste (that’s right, bring WAG bags) will reduce the burden that your visit has on the park and staff.

Before the shutdown officially began, more than 40 park superintendents sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum urging him to close the parks until Congress reopens the government. “National parks don’t run themselves. It is hardworking National Park Service employees that keep them safe, clean and accessible. If sufficient staff aren’t there, visitors shouldn’t be either.”