Olympic National Park visitation by year

Olympic National Park visitation reached 3,584,187 recreation visits in 2025, down 3.6% from 2024. The highest count in the 1979–2025 dataset is 3,846,709 in 1997. These are visits, not unique people.

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Hikers sit and watch the sun set behind snow-capped mountains.
Olympic MountainsNPS Photo
Orange sea stars on a rocky coast.
Olympic CoastNPS Photo/Bill Baccus

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Olympic visitation by year

47 years of annual recreation visits, 1979–2025. The chart shows the long-run shape; the table keeps every total and its change from the previous year.

Annual recreation visits from 1979 to 2025. Highest: 3,846,709 in 1997. Lowest: 2,032,418 in 1980. Latest: 3,584,187 in 2025. Exact numbers follow in the table. 0975k1.95m2.92m3.9m 1980: 2,032,418 recreation visits1997: 3,846,709 recreation visits2025: 3,584,187 recreation visits 197919902000201020202025Annual recreation visits from 1979 to 2025. Highest: 3,846,709 in 1997. Lowest: 2,032,418 in 1980. Latest: 3,584,187 in 2025. Exact numbers follow in the table. 01.95m3.9m 1980: 2,032,418 recreation visits1997: 3,846,709 recreation visits2025: 3,584,187 recreation visits 197920022025
Latest: 2025Highest: 1997Lowest: 1980
Annual recreation visits and change from the previous year, 1979 to 2025
YearRecreation visitsYear-over-year
19792,078,843
19802,032,418-2.2%
19812,306,032+13.5%
19822,478,739+7.5%
19832,410,722-2.7%
19842,759,011+14.4%
19852,532,145-8.2%
19862,940,034+16.1%
19872,822,850-4.0%
19882,959,122+4.8%
19892,737,611-7.5%
19902,794,903+2.1%
19912,759,673-1.3%
19923,030,195+9.8%
19932,679,598-11.6%
19943,381,573+26.2%
19953,658,615+8.2%
19963,348,723-8.5%
1997Highest3,846,709+14.9%
19983,577,007-7.0%
19993,364,266-5.9%
20003,327,722-1.1%
20013,416,069+2.7%
20023,691,310+8.1%
20033,225,327-12.6%
20043,073,722-4.7%
20053,142,774+2.2%
20062,749,197-12.5%
20072,988,686+8.7%
20083,081,451+3.1%
20093,276,459+6.3%
20102,844,563-13.2%
20112,966,502+4.3%
20122,824,908-4.8%
20133,085,340+9.2%
20143,243,872+5.1%
20153,263,761+0.6%
20163,390,221+3.9%
20173,401,996+0.3%
2017 Pre-pandemic plateau
20183,104,455-8.7%
20193,245,806+4.6%
20202,499,177-23.0%
2020 Reduced ops · pandemic · staged reopening
20212,718,925+8.8%
20222,432,972-10.5%
20232,947,503+21.1%
20243,717,267+26.1%
2025Latest3,584,187-3.6%

What the visitation trend shows

Read the latest total alongside the record and earlier years.

2025 in the annual record. It ranks 5 of 47 annual totals, 6.8% below the 1997 maximum of 3,846,709. The latest total is down 3.6% from 2024.

The longer comparison. 2025 is 9.8% above 2015's 3,263,761 visits. This compares two endpoints, not uninterrupted growth or decline. Olympic National Park (OLYM).

Read individual years. The source records 3,846,709 in 1997 and 3,717,267 in 2024. The table retains each intervening year. Annual counts do not establish the cause of a change or predict crowding on a particular date.

Questions about Olympic visitation

How many visits did Olympic record in 2025?

3,584,187 recreation visits, compared with 3,717,267 in 2024. These are visits, not unique people.

What was Olympic's highest recorded visitation year?

The maximum in this 1979–2025 dataset is 3,846,709 in 1997. This is a record within the displayed years, not a claim about earlier history.

Is Olympic visitation increasing?

The reported 2025 total is down 3.6% from 2024. 2025 is 9.8% above 2015's 3,263,761 visits. This compares two endpoints, not uninterrupted growth or decline. Annual totals alone do not explain what caused a change.

What was Olympic's lowest recorded visitation year?

1980 has the lowest count in the 1979–2025 series: 2,032,418 recreation visits. The annual table preserves the original totals; it does not establish why a low occurred.

How we built this page.

An independent guide using official data. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service.

Official annual data
NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025. Each total sums twelve monthly TRV recreation-visit values for reporting unit OLYM. The table covers 1979–2025.
What is counted
Visits, not unique visitors. Repeat visits are not combined into distinct people. The totals do not measure visitor spending, individual trails or parking availability.
Reading changes
Recorded changes do not establish causes. Year-over-year percentages compare a total with the previous year. Historical reporting practices and boundaries may differ. The series maximum makes no claim about years before 1979.
Comparing years
Olympic National Park (OLYM). Annual totals use one reporting unit and the same NPS data package throughout. Historical counting practices and park boundaries may differ; a change in recorded visits does not by itself establish what caused it.