Is Going-to-the-Sun Road open?
The short version: the full drive over Logan Pass is a summer road. Glacier's official hours page states that "the entire road does not usually open until late June or early July, and the Logan Pass area is not accessible by vehicle until then," and that "Going-to-the-Sun Road usually remains fully open until the third Monday in October." So if you are coming between about early July and mid-October, the whole road is normally open. Outside that window you can still drive the lower section on the west side; the park notes that "the portion of Going-to-the-Sun Road from West Glacier to Lake McDonald Lodge is usually plowed and open year-round, weather permitting."
Going-to-the-Sun Road runs its full traverse over Logan Pass in summer only. The National Park Service says "the entire road does not usually open until late June or early July," and that it "usually remains fully open until the third Monday in October." For 2026 the park states plainly that "vehicle reservations are not required." The lower section from West Glacier to Lake McDonald Lodge stays "plowed and open year-round, weather permitting." Whether Logan Pass is open on a given day in the shoulder weeks depends on plowing, so confirm before you drive.
Live status: we don't track this road in real time. For the open or closed state on the day you go, check the official Glacier road status page.
Typical opening and closing windows.
Plan around late June to early July for the full alpine traverse. That is the park's own stated norm, and it is a range on purpose, because the exact day the crews reach Logan Pass shifts every year. The closing side is steadier: the road "usually remains fully open until the third Monday in October," and then the high section shuts for the winter once the snow returns. If your dates are in June, assume the west-side lower road to Lake McDonald is open but the pass may not be yet. If your dates are late October or later, plan on the lower road only. For 2026 specifically, the park is not requiring a vehicle reservation, though that policy has changed year to year, so it is worth a check on the official page.
What drives the dates.
Two things set the opening date, and neither one runs on a calendar. The first is snowpack: how much snow piled up over winter on the alpine section around Logan Pass. The second is plowing progress, because crews have to clear enormous drifts by hand and machine before the road is safe to open, and a cold, wet spring slows them down. That is why the park gives a window rather than a date. A heavy snow year can push the full opening toward mid-July; a light one can pull it toward mid-June. The same forces govern the fall side, when an early storm can close the pass before the scheduled third Monday in October.
How crowds ramp as the road opens.
This is the part the visit data tells you and the road page does not. Glacier's traffic tracks the road opening almost exactly. July is the single busiest month, and the jump into summer is steep: the five-year average roughly 2.7x's from May to June as the lower elevations green up and the pass nears opening, then climbs again into the July peak. June already runs about 72 percent of the July high even though the full road often is not open until late in the month.
| Month | 2025 visits | 5-yr avg | Rank | Share of peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | 48,576 | 45,417 | 7 of 12 | 6% |
| May | 238,766 | 202,281 | 5 of 12 | 27% |
| June | 576,577 | 551,415 | 4 of 12 | 72% |
| July | 765,061 | 761,346 | 1 of 12 | 100% |
The takeaway for a crowd-averse trip: the road's opening and the crowd peak land in the same few weeks, so the quietest way to drive the full traverse is the shoulder, right after it opens in early summer or in the last weeks before the third Monday in October. For the full year in one view, see the Glacier crowd calendar.
Common questions.
When does Going-to-the-Sun Road open?
The full traverse over Logan Pass usually opens late June to early July, per the National Park Service, and the exact day shifts each year with snow and plowing. The lower west-side section to Lake McDonald Lodge is plowed and open year-round, weather permitting.
Can you drive Going-to-the-Sun Road in June?
Sometimes the full road, more often just part of it. The park says the entire road does not usually open until late June or early July, so in early June expect the lower west-side section to be open while the alpine stretch over Logan Pass is still being plowed. Check the official status page.
Do you need a reservation for Going-to-the-Sun Road?
Not in 2026. The park states that "vehicle reservations are not required in 2026." That policy has changed from year to year, though, so confirm on the official Glacier road page before you plan around it.
When does Going-to-the-Sun Road close for the season?
It usually stays fully open until the third Monday in October, then the alpine section closes for winter once snow returns. An early storm can close Logan Pass sooner, so late-October trips should have a lower-road backup plan.
How we read the crowds
The monthly visit counts come from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics. "5-yr avg" is the mean of 2021 through 2025 recreation visits for that month. "Share of peak" compares a month against the park's own busiest month, so 100 percent marks the single busiest month of the year. The road opening and closing windows are not in that data. Those come from the park's own official road pages, which we verified live on July 13, 2026, and they shift with snow and weather every year, so we hedge them on purpose. This is an independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service. For the live open or closed status on the day you travel, use the official NPS page linked at the top of this guide.
Independent site. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Data comes from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025; editorial analysis is ours. The NPS Arrowhead and other NPS marks are not used.