National Park Passes Explained

Parkography

RV Miles Network

History, Nature, Society & Culture:places & Travel, Society & Culture, Science, Places & Travel

4.9 • 870 Ratings

🗓️ 12 November 2025

⏱️ 16 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode, I'll break down the various types of passes available for national parks and other federal recreation areas. I'll explain the America the Beautiful Pass, the Senior Pass, the Access Pass, and the Military Pass, detailing their benefits and eligibility criteria. Learn which pass is right for you, how to obtain it, and how to maximize your visits to federal lands. Order your passes online here: https://store.usgs.gov/recreational-passes Get the Every Kid Outdoors 4th & 5th Grade Pass here: https://everykidoutdoors.gov/index.htmFind the Slinky Stove that's right for your next adventure at: https://www.slinkystove.com/?ref=PARKography Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography Check out our other channels focused on RV travel: @RVMiles @RVMilesPodcast 00:00 Introduction to National Park Passes01:29 Annual Pass: The Basics04:03 Special Passes for Kids and Volunteers05:07 Sponsored Message: Slinky Stove05:46 Senior Pass: Benefits and Discounts08:14 Access Pass for Disabled Individuals09:39 Military Pass: Recent Changes10:38 How to Obtain Your Pass12:39 Frequently Asked Questions15:33 Conclusion

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	There are a lot of different types of passes available for national parks and other federal
0:05.0	recreation areas. It can be confusing trying to figure out which one, if any, you need,
0:10.4	and some changes have been made in recent years. In this episode, we'll break down all the
0:15.0	different types of passes so you can decide which one is right for you. I'm Jason Epperson,
0:20.2	and this is parkography. Welcome back,
0:23.1	everybody. So what we're talking about is not just National Park Passes, but passes to federal
0:28.1	lands of all stripes. They're called interagency passes, and it might be a confusing word, but it
0:33.3	comes from the fact that several agencies manage our federal lands, including the National
0:37.9	Park Service, but also the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife,
0:42.7	the Army Corps of Engineers, and more. Many of these lands that are operated by the federal
0:46.8	government have recreation fees required to access them. And because there are so many different
0:52.1	agencies, there are different fees and there are
0:54.3	different ways to pay them. But all of them came together years ago to develop what we now call
0:59.3	the America the Beautiful Pass. But you might see it referred to as the interagency pass in
1:03.6	certain places. The America the Beautiful Pass is the pass that allows you access to all of these
1:08.2	lands for a fee or for free if you fall under certain
1:11.4	designations. You don't need these passes. You can just pay for entry, but if you get the pass,
1:16.7	you'll get your annual or lifetime entrance. These passes aren't generally going to get you
1:21.7	into state parks or other parks that are ran by other forms of government like city and county.
1:26.3	These are for federal government
1:27.5	parks only for the most part. So let's talk about all the different types of passes there are,
1:32.6	starting with the most basic one, the annual pass. The annual pass is the pass that covers most
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from RV Miles Network, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of RV Miles Network and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.