Grand Canyon National Park entrance fee and passes.

Buying and using the pass.

Cards only at the gate. Grand Canyon's entrance stations do not accept cash. The South Entrance, Desert View, and North Rim entrance stations take credit or debit cards, and so does the automated fee machine at the Mather Campground office. If you need to pay cash, NPS lists five places in Tusayan, the South Rim gateway town, that accept it: the IMAX Visitor Center, Canyon Plaza Resort, Red Feather Lodge, Pink Jeep Tours inside the IMAX, and Westwind Air at the Grand Canyon Airport terminal. NPS gives no refunds for bad weather.

Buy before the gate. Card-only fee machines at the Williams Visitor Center (54 miles south), the Valle Chevron station (28 miles south), and three stops in Tusayan (the IMAX Theater, its shuttle bus stop, and the Grand Hotel shuttle bus stop) sell the $35 vehicle, $30 motorcycle, and $20 individual passes. They also sell an $80 America the Beautiful voucher that you redeem at any of the park's three entrance stations. A digital America the Beautiful pass from Recreation.gov saves to your phone and works right away. A physical pass ordered online from the USGS store can take up to three weeks, and NPS won't accept the order receipt in place of the pass.

Keep the pass and your ID. The Grand Canyon Annual Pass is non-transferable, and it and the America the Beautiful passes are sold at the South Entrance and Desert View entrance stations. America the Beautiful passes are non-refundable, non-transferable, and can't be replaced if lost or stolen, and passholders must show valid photo ID with the pass.

Groups and tours. Organized non-commercial groups, such as church groups, school clubs, large scout troops, and service organizations, pay the $35 vehicle permit in a vehicle designed to carry 16 or fewer, or $8 a person in one designed for 16 or more; age and pass exemptions apply. Commercial tour companies need a Commercial Use Authorization, shown at every entry, and pay by card: $8 a person in a vehicle seating 1 to 25 (NPS exempts those 15 and under), or a flat $300 for 26 seats or more. No America the Beautiful, Grand Canyon, or older Golden passes are accepted for commercial tour fees. Tour clients who drive their own vehicles pay the regular $35 per vehicle or $30 per motorcycle, and each America the Beautiful pass in the group covers one vehicle. Non-U.S. residents on commercial, CUA, or concessioner tours still owe the $100 fee.

School groups from academic institutions visiting for non-commercial educational purposes can apply for an educational fee waiver. It isn't automatic: groups must apply and meet the criteria.

The $100 nonresident fee.

Each non-U.S. resident 16 and older pays a $100 nonresident fee at Grand Canyon on top of the standard entrance fee, unless they come in on an annual or America the Beautiful pass. For two non-U.S. adults in a rental car, that's $35 plus $200, or $235. For four, it's $435. The $250 non-resident America the Beautiful pass covers the entire vehicle, or two motorcycles, or the holder plus three more adults where fees are charged per person. Three adults in one car already pay $335 at the gate, so the pass wins at Grand Canyon alone.

If anyone in the car is a U.S. citizen or resident, their pass can do the same job for everyone. Per the NPS nonresident fee page, every valid America the Beautiful pass and park-specific annual pass covers entrance and nonresident fees for the holder and passengers in a private vehicle or on two motorcycles. Where fees are charged per person, it covers the holder and three more adults. That includes the $70 Grand Canyon Annual Pass, a $20 senior pass, and the free Access, military, and 4th grade passes. The pass holder has to be with the group.

Photo ID decides the price. Resident pricing is checked when you use a pass, not only when you buy it. NPS says purchasers show photo ID at the time of use, and someone who isn't eligible for the resident pass is asked to upgrade to the $250 non-resident pass. Acceptable proof of U.S. citizenship or residency includes a U.S. passport, a state or territory driver's license or state ID, or a green card.

Grand Canyon is one of eleven parks that charge this fee, per the NPS entrance fee prices page. Zion and Bryce Canyon are on the list too, so a loop through all three is $300 a head in nonresident fees before any vehicle fees. Arches is not on the list. Fee-free days don't help: from 2026 they're for U.S. citizens and residents only, and nonresidents pay the regular entrance fee and the nonresident fee.

Free entrance days in 2026.

NPS lists eight fee-free dates for 2026, ten days in all: February 16, May 25, June 14, July 3 to 5, August 25, September 17, October 27, and November 11. The first seven days have passed, so the last three are September 17, October 27, and November 11. Entrance is free for U.S. citizens and residents only. NPS notes that other fees, including reservation fees, may still apply.

The last three free days fall in quieter months than summer. September and October average about 14,300 and 14,200 recreation visits a day over the past five years, against 17,100 in July, the busiest month. November averages about 10,900 a day. October 27 and November 11 come after the North Rim season, which usually ends October 15, so plan those two days around the South Rim.

Reservations and permits.

No entry reservation. NPS says you do not need a reservation to enter Grand Canyon, and there is no timed entry. Campsites are a separate booking; see Grand Canyon camping.

Backcountry permits. Overnight backcountry trips need a permit: $10 per permit or lottery application, non-refundable, plus $15 per person a night below the rim or $4 per person a night above it. The nightly charge is refundable until 30 days before the start date, and permit holders still pay the entrance fee on arrival. Four people spending two nights below the rim pay $10 plus $120, or $130. Since August 29, 2026, Phantom Ranch with Bright Angel Campground, Cottonwood Campground, and the whole North Kaibab Trail have been closed after flash flooding, with no estimated reopening, per the NPS North Rim status page. Hikers on the South Bass or Pasture Wash trails may also be charged a fee by the Havasupai Tribe for crossing its reservation. Details are on the NPS backcountry permit page.

Tuweep. The remote Tuweep area needs an advance day permit or backcountry permit, plus a park pass; NPS says these aren't available on site and must be bought before the trip. See the NPS Tuweep page.

Noncommercial river trips. The river lottery costs $25 to enter, paid once per launch year. Winners pay a $200 small-trip or $400 standard-trip deposit, applied toward final costs, then a $20 entrance fee for each participant 16 and older and a $90 river permit cost per participant. Anyone added after the permit is issued adds a $100 late charge. Details are on the NPS river permits FAQ.

Is the annual pass worth it?

One $35 vehicle pass covers both rims for seven days. Two separate trips in a year cost $70, the same as the Grand Canyon Annual Pass, so the annual pass breaks even on a second trip and saves from the third. If your trip adds other national parks that charge entrance fees, price the $80 America the Beautiful pass: it covers entrance fees at national parks and other federal lands for a year, so it pays off once your gate fees pass $80. Grand Canyon's fees don't change by season, so pick your dates on the best time to visit Grand Canyon page and budget the pass separately.

For non-U.S. residents, the math tips toward the $250 pass fast. Three adults in one car cross it at Grand Canyon alone. A solo traveler visiting a second park on the nonresident list pays $200 in nonresident fees plus $35 here, $235 before the second park's own entrance fee. The calculator above runs your own numbers.

Common questions.

How much does it cost to drive into the Grand Canyon?

$35 per private vehicle for seven days, covering everyone in the car, or $30 for up to two motorcycles. Visitors 16 and older on foot or bike pay $20 each. Entrance stations take cards only. Non-U.S. residents 16 and older add $100 each unless a valid annual or America the Beautiful pass admits them.

Can I see Grand Canyon without paying?

Not inside the national park. The entrance fee is collected at the South Entrance, Desert View, and North Rim entrance stations. The exceptions are the NPS fee-free days, which are for U.S. citizens and residents only (the last three of 2026 are September 17, October 27, and November 11), and educational fee waivers that academic groups apply for.

What day is the Grand Canyon free?

The last three fee-free days of 2026 are September 17, October 27, and November 11. The first seven (February 16, May 25, June 14, July 3 to 5, and August 25) have passed. Entrance is free those days for U.S. citizens and residents only.

Is the Grand Canyon West Rim part of the national park?

No. NPS says the Grand Canyon Skywalk is on tribal land outside the national park. Grand Canyon West is run by the Hualapai Tribe, about 250 miles by road, a five-hour drive, from the South Rim. The national park's fees and passes on this page are for Grand Canyon National Park.

Is the North Rim open in 2026?

Yes. The park's North Rim status page says the North Rim has been open since May 15, 2026, but overnight lodging is not available there this season. The North Rim Campground reopened June 1. The North Kaibab Trail and Phantom Ranch have been closed since August 29 after flash flooding. North Rim roads close to all vehicles from December 1 to May 14. The park's fees page still mentions a 2025 closure, so go by the status page, and check it before you drive: we don't track day-to-day changes.

Where these facts come from

Entrance, annual, America the Beautiful, group, and commercial prices, seven-day admission, the no-cash rule, purchase locations, Tusayan cash locations, fee machines, the weather refund rule, photo ID and mail-order pass rules, the educational waiver, the no-reservation rule, and the 2026 fee-free dates come from the NPS Grand Canyon fees page. That page still describes a 2025 North Rim closure; the North Rim's 2026 opening, lodging, campground, and trail closures come from the NPS North Rim status page instead, and the December 1 to May 14 road closure from the NPS North Rim directions page. Backcountry permit fees and the Havasupai crossing fee come from the NPS backcountry permit page; river trip fees from the NPS river permits FAQ; the Tuweep permit rule from the NPS Tuweep page; the Skywalk from the NPS directions page and Grand Canyon West from the NPS Grand Canyon FAQ. Nonresident fee rules, pass coverage for passengers, residency documents, and photo ID at time of use come from the NPS nonresident fee page; the eleven-park list from the NPS entrance fee prices page; the U.S.-residents-only rule for fee-free days from the NPS fee-free days page. Daily visit figures are five-year monthly means (2021 to 2025) of recreation visits from NPS Visitor Use Statistics, divided by the days in the month. Calculator results are our arithmetic on the fee table. Independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service.