When someone hears about my national park quest, they often ask me if I’ve visited a particular place that they have enjoyed. As often as not, the location they mention is not part of the National Park System.
That’s not particularly surprising. There are a wide variety of land management agencies at the national, state, and local level, each of which have different purposes, rules, and fees. Unless you’re really paying attention, it’s easy to get confused. If you’re inclined to buy an annual pass—which I hope you’ll consider—it’s important to understand what you’re getting.
So in the interest of clarity, here’s a quick rundown:
Maricopa County Parks
This includes just the 10 or so regional parks in Maricopa County. The big question is whether or not you’ll be boating at Lake Pleasant—there’s one annual pass for the lake, and a separate one for the rest of the parks.
Arizona State Parks
This includes the state parks that are still open. Again, you’ll need to decide if you’ll be doing a lot of boating. The standard pass doesn’t include the river parks on weekends (Friday-Sunday) or holidays, while the premier pass does.
Arizona State Trust Lands
This includes state trust lands (which are not considered public lands) and is actually a permit, so be sure to read the fine print. You won’t find any visitor services here.
Federal lands
This includes National Parks, National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, and Bureau of Land Management lands where you pay a fee to get in or to park. If it has the word “national” in the title, it probably fits under this heading.
A few additional tips
- You can usually buy these pass at any staffed entrance station.
- Many places have annual passes for a specific park location.
- These passes usually admit a carload but don’t cover any additional fees (like camping or tour fees)
