Trump signs order to raise U.S. national park fees for foreign visitors

Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz., one of the most well-known and visited natural wonders in the U.S. (AP Photo/Carson Walker, File)

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday calling for an increase in the entrance fees paid by visitors to U.S. national parks from other countries.

The additional revenue generated by higher fees from foreign tourists will raise hundreds of millions of dollars for conservation and deferred maintenance projects to improve national parks, the White House said in a statement.

The executive order directs the Interior Department, parent agency of the Park Service, to increase entrance fees paid by park visitors from abroad, but does not say by how much or when the rates would go into effect.

It also directs the Park Service to ensure that U.S. residents receive priority access over foreign visitors in any of its permitting or reservation systems.

Currently, U.S. citizens in effect pay more than foreign tourists to visit the nation’s scenic natural wonders and historic landmarks because their admissions fees and a portion of their U.S. tax dollars support the cost of national parks, the statement said.

The executive order comes as the Trump administration has proposed cutting more than US$1 billion from the Park Service budget in fiscal 2026, which would represent a reduction of more than a third of the agency’s budget from the prior year.

The administration’s cuts to the federal workforce have already aggravated a staff shortage in national parks across the country.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward, Ismail Shakil and Steve Gorman; Editing by Sonali Paul)