Yosemite National Park will have a timed entry reservation system this summer after all.
The news comes after several weeks of uncertainty around whether the popular California park, which routinely hosts more than half a million people per month during the summer, would require visitors to obtain highly coveted reservations for peak seasons. It also comes days after the national park began accepting reservations for summer camping, which had also been in limbo due to staffing concerns following the mass layoffs of more than 1,000 National Park Service employees nationwide on February 14.
“We updated the reservation system this summer to ensure that all visitors—whether they plan in advance or decide at the last minute—have the opportunity to experience the park,” Stephanie Burkhart, acting superintendent of Yosemite National Park, said in a press release. “We are looking to reduce long wait times at our entrance stations, difficulties finding parking, and crowded trails so visitors can spend more time exploring and enjoying everything the park has to offer.”
The new system will be similar to the previous timed entry system; however, the timed entry window will be a couple hours shorter each day, and the time frame during which reservations will be required has been shortened compared to last summer. This is not the permanent reservation system that was anticipated to begin in 2025.
Here’s what you need to know about Yosemite’s entry and campground reservation system for 2025 and what to expect while traveling within the park.
Yosemite National Park’s revised entry reservation system
In summer 2025, reservations will be required at all park entrances except Hetch Hetchy, which will be managed on a first come, first served basis (as was the case in 2024) daily from June 16 to August 15, 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. They will also be mandatory on weekends from May 24 to June 15 and from August 16 through August 31.
Previously, reservations were necessary from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends from April 13 to October 27 and every day between June 16 and August 15.
Reservations are valid for three consecutive days and will go on sale on Recreation.gov on April 17. Those without reservations can enter the park before 6 a.m., after 3 p.m., or at any time on the Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System, a shuttle bus service.
Just as in previous years, visitors with in-park lodging or camping bookings or those participating in a commercial tour or other paid programs do not require an additional reservation (though they still need to pay the park entrance fee).
Implemented initially in response to skyrocketing visitor numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic, the reservation system has helped to reduce overcrowding while protecting the park’s delicate ecosystems by limiting daily vehicle entry during the summer months and busy holiday weekends. However, while the system helped curb overcrowding in some areas, it also sparked frustration among potential visitors who were either locked out due to high demand or unable to make last-minute plans to visit. Still, Yosemite officials had previously said the park’s more limited timed-entry reservation system would become permanent in 2025.
According to the press release, the park will evaluate the success of the new system by looking at the number of cars at gates, wait times, and available parking, to “refine strategies to improve visitor experience in the future.”
If you’re looking for camping options in Yosemite, you can try Curry Village, which has a separate reservation system.
Photo by Christian Mack/Unsplash
Camping at Yosemite National Park in 2025
The park has also begun accepting reservations for summer camping in some of its most popular campgrounds, including Upper Pines, Wawona, and Hodgdon Meadow. The sites went on sale on Recreation.gov at 7 a.m. PT on Monday, March 31. Other Yosemite campgrounds, including Lower Pines and North Pines, remain closed until further notice.
In February, reservations for all the campsites were delayed indefinitely. At the time, Yosemite shared on its Facebook page that it is postponing reservations for the campgrounds at least from June 15 through July 14.
“Our goal is to release these campground nights as soon as possible, and we will provide at least a seven-day advance notice before reservations go on sale,” the post stated. At the time of publication, the post had generated more than 5,000 comments, and had been shared more than 3,000 times, as travelers navigate the updated circumstances for 2025 reservations.
Why were Yosemite reservations delayed this year?
Yosemite is not the only national park facing challenges due to recent staffing reductions and scaled-back services.
On February 14, the Trump administration fired approximately 1,000 year-round Park Service employees (of 13,000 total) weeks after rescinding job offers to an estimated 8,000 seasonal hires. The administration has since backpedaled following widespread public outcry, saying it would allow up to 7,700 seasonal employees’ jobs to be restored, and recent court orders allowed the previously terminated probationary employees at national parks to be reinstated (a ruling the Trump administration has since asked the Supreme Court to halt). Still, former Yosemite superintendent Don Neubacher previously told Afar that some of those developments “may be too late,” for the upcoming busy season, considering the three-month time frame required to hire and onboard seasonal workers.
Similarly, Theresa Pierno, president and CEO of the National Parks Conservation Association, noted in a press release that previous applicants might have found different jobs or decided against working in the federal government during a period of uncertainty.
“When these park staff lost their jobs, many also lost their homes and communities,” Pierno stated. “Now, with uncertainty looming over if or when the next cut might come, it’s unclear how many will choose to return. The Park Service stands to lose an irreplaceable wealth of expertise, experience, and institutional knowledge they may never get back.”
Amid all the staffing issues, Yosemite suspended its reservation system and had posted on its reservations page that it “anticipates sharing details about this year’s reservation system early in 2025.” Now, those details have finally been announced.
In other parks, however, additional cutbacks have included suspended tours, reduced operating hours, and limited services implemented in several parks. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in Colorado and John Muir National Historic Site in California have announced they will close two days a week due to lack of staffing. Denali National Park has canceled all its Denali Discovery Camp and Denali Backcountry Adventures this summer. Campgrounds at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Great Smoky Mountains National Park are closed until further notice.
Park rangers, conservationists, and some U.S. senators have also warned that understaffed parks could lead to neglected maintenance and cleanliness, delayed emergency-response times, and reduced protection for wildlife and cultural sites, increasing the chances of damage, illegal activity, and habitat degradation.
This story was originally published in March 2025 and was updated on March 31, 2025, to include current information.
