Can I visit a national park during a government shutdown? Here's what to know
The U.S. could see a federal government shutdown as soon as this weekend. Congress has days to reach a deal and avert ripple effects for millions of Americans beginning Oct. 1.
Those could include impacts to travel. The cost to the country's travel economy is estimated to be as high as $140 million per day, according to an analysis for the U.S. Travel Association.
Those with plans to visit a national park, in particular, may run into problems. “If history holds up, they’re going to find themselves at a gate that’s closed,” said Wayne Freimund, a professor of recreation resource management at Utah State University-Moab.
Here’s what to know.
Can I visit a national park during a government shutdown?
Most national parks would be entirely closed to the public in the event of a shutdown, the Department of the Interior said Friday.
Freimund said the National Park Service typically goes through a process to determine its most essential employees, which tend to be personnel who protect park resources and provide safety assistance. “The kinds of folks that tourists will generally interact with will be furloughed,” he said.
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Closures and staffing, however, may vary. “There may be parks where it's pretty hard for them to actually manage the access like Capitol Reef where you have the big highway going through it, and they can’t shut that down,” he said. “So, there will be parks where people may be able to wander off a little bit.”
Even in those cases, however, guests may find amenities like parking lots closed. Areas that remain physically accessible would see "significantly reduced visitor services," DOI said in a news release.
Given the limited operations, DOI encouraged the public not to visit during a shutdown "out of consideration for protection of natural and cultural resources, as well as visitor safety."
During a previous shutdown spanning December 2018 to January 2019, some national parks closed completely, while others remained technically open without staff to maintain them. Photos at the time showed some popular destinations in disarray, with trash piling up and toilets overflowing.
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Travelers can check individual park pages on the NPS website for updates on closures, Freimund said. Those who already have their travel booked or arrive to find a park is inaccessible can also consult local tourism boards for alternative activities.
"As a part of their orderly shutdown activities, park staff will post signs as appropriate to notify visitors that services, maintenance or other non-emergency management activities will not be conducted," DOI added.
Freimund warned that remaining staff would be stretched thin during a shutdown, recommending travelers who do visit parks follow Leave No Trace principles and exercise caution. “It’s not a great time to go really test your limits if that might mean that you need some help, because it’ll be harder for them to make it to you.”
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Do national parks close during a government shutdown?
