Trump administration changes national parks' free-entry days, removing MLK Day and Juneteenth

The Trump administration has announced adjustments to the schedule of fee-free days at U.S. national parks for the upcoming year. The revisions remove Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth from the list while adding President Donald Trumps birthday, which coincides with Flag Day. The Department of the Interior made the changes last month, designating the updated 2026 dates as resident-only patriotic fee-free days.

Additional updates include the inclusion of the Fourth of July weekend and President Theodore Roosevelts birthday, while the observances for the Great American Outdoors Act anniversary in August and National Public Lands Day in September have been removed.

In a press release detailing new annual pass prices for nonresidents, the Interior Department, led by Secretary Doug Burgum, also shared the revised fee-free schedule. The dates for 2026 are: Presidents Day in February, Memorial Day in May, Flag Day/Trumps birthday in June, Independence Day weekend in July, the 110th Birthday of the National Park Service in August, Constitution Day in September, Theodore Roosevelts birthday in October, and Veterans Day in November.

Some of these dates, such as Veterans Day, have been fee-free in previous years, while others, like the first day of National Park Week in April, have been excluded from the 2026 list. Earlier announcements for 2025 indicated that fee-free access applied to all visitors, but the 2026 notice specifies that free entry will be limited to U.S. citizens and residents.

Earlier this year, the National Park Service faced public criticism for removing information about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad from its website, which was later restored. These changes occurred amid broader actions by the Trump administration addressing what officials described as content related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Similarly, military service pages about Jackie Robinson were temporarily removed from the Defense Departments website.

Author: Benjamin Carter