Yosemite National Park to bring back reservation system for most of 2024

After large crowds caused grueling, hourslong wait times to enter Yosemite National Park last summer, the park is reinstating a reservation system for much of 2024, the National Park Service announced Wednesday. 

Reservations will be required to enter the park on weekends from April 13 to June 30 and Aug. 17 to Oct. 27. Between July 1 and Aug. 16, reservations will be required every day of the week.

All vehicles need a reservation to enter the park between 5 a.m. and 4 p.m., even if they’re just passing through on their way over the Sierra. Those entering the park after 4 p.m. don’t need a reservation.

“This summer’s pilot system is built from extensive public feedback, data from three years of pilot reservation systems here in Yosemite, and lessons learned from other national parks,” park Superintendent Cicely Muldoon said in a recent news release. “This pilot system will inform how we ensure an equitable and outstanding visitor experience while protecting Yosemite’s world class resources.” 

Visitors will be able to purchase reservations for either a full day or for entry into the park anytime after noon. Both reservation types are valid for three days. 

Summer 2023 was Yosemite’s first peak tourist season without a reservation system since the onset of the pandemic. It was also the first viable season to visit the park after record snowpack from the winter’s storms caused many visitors to postpone their springtime trips. This resulted in hours of standstill traffic to enter the park, overflowing parking lots, long shuttle lines and extremely limited lodging availability. 

Though the park’s reservation systems mitigated some of these problems in previous years, they did come with some downsides, including large revenue losses for businesses inside the park incurred by a decrease in visitor traffic. 

Reservations for the upcoming year will be available to purchase online starting Jan. 5.