Congaree National Park covers more than 26,000 acres in Richland County. It was initially preserved in 1976 as Congaree Swamp National Monument. It was redesignated as a national park in 2003. (Photo by Skylar Laird/SC Daily Gazette)
Beginning in 2026, the days when visitors can visit national parks and monuments for free is changing, the U.S. National Park Service announced this month.
The Department of the Interior eliminated almost all the existing free-pass days listed for 2025, only keeping one of the eight designated days: Veterans Day (Nov. 11).
Instead, the Department of the Interior said that the new round of days will be “resident-only patriotic fee-free days.”
The newest line-up of fee-free days include Flag Day, June 14, which is also President Donald Trump’s birthday. It also includes former President Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday on Oct. 27.
Another change will be an increased fee system for out-of-country tourists. The fee-free days will not apply to out-of-country visitors.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum explained the changes:
“President Trump’s leadership always puts American families first,” Burgum said in a news release. “These policies ensure that U.S. taxpayers, who already support the National Park System, continue to enjoy affordable access, while international visitors contribute their fair share to maintaining and improving our parks for future generations.”
South Carolina is home to seven National Park Service sites, including Congaree south of Columbia, which is the only national park. The 330-mile Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail also runs through parts of the Upstate and three other states.
Earlier this month, a public lands group sued the Trump administration for removing a photograph of Montana’s Glacier National Park on an annual pass as it was swapped for a collage portrait of George Washington and Trump.
The Trump administration pushed back saying that the Glacier Park photograph would be used on national park passes for non-U.S. citizens, while the more common resident passes would contain Washington and Trump.
2025 | 2026
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Jan. 20) | Presidents Day (Feb.16)
National Park Week (April 19) | Memorial Day (May 25)
Juneteenth (June 19) | Flag Day/President Trump’s birthday (June 14)
Bureau of Land Management birthday (July 16) | Independence Day weekend (July 3-5)
Great American Outdoors (Aug.4) | National Park Service birthday (Aug. 2)
National Public Lands Day (Sept. 27) | Constitution Day (Sept. 17)
National Wildlife Refuge (Oct.10) | Theodore Roosevelt birthday (Oct. 27)
Veterans Day (Nov. 11) | Veterans Day (Nov. 11)
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