Do you think National Park visitation popularity will go down?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. It is WAY too expensive to travel to many US national parks. Traveling in the US overall is extraordinarily expensive. For many parks, lodging and food are limited. Businesses know that and therefore gauge the CRAP out of people traveling to national parks. It's absurd having to pay $300+ per night for what is tantamount to 1 star lodging around many national parks. Then you have to pay $30 per plate of food at any restaurants in the area that serve garbage quality cuisine. I can't stand traveling in the USA anymore. Such a goddamn ripoff.

Or you can camp, buy groceries to make sandwiches, etc. There are certainly cheaper ways to do it.

Camping still requires you to go out and spend $$$$ buying all of the stupid equipment. Many people don't own homes and Iive in apartments and have no where to store all of that junk. You can go out and rent it but it still costs $$$$. It also sucks balls to poop in a bag and shower is absolutely filthy facilities that are barely cleaned.

Face it, traveling in the US blows. I'd rather spend an extra $700 and fly into Japan than say Seattle to visit Olympic National Park, and then enjoy way, way wayyyy better food lodging and just as gorgeous outdoor scenery over in Japan given that the yen is now 160:1. Much better than getting your behind reamed in the US for outrageous park fees, lodging, and food prices in the US. Traveling in the US sucks because it is so insanely expensive.

Car camping requires a tent, a sleeping bag, and maybe a sleeping pad. I can fit all of that in a checked bag size backpack. Didn't cost me much money and doesn't take up much space in my place.

Yeah, enjoy the heat at night in your car in the dead middle of summer with all of the mosquitoes. Every single bathroom I've ever been in an any national park has always been an absolutely filthy disaster. So,.soooo nasty trying to take a #2 on those toilets. And if you're at a park that's remote enough, they want you to dig a hole to poop and and collect off the used toilet paper to bring back with you. So gross. That is not a vacation at all.

Would rather spend the money to go abroad for the same price and get far better accomodations in countries where they don't gouge the crap out of travelers for 1 star amenities and 1 out of 5 star restaurant quality.

[Anonymous]

Wow. Never seen someone so angry and hateful about how other people choose to vacation. 🤔

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. It is WAY too expensive to travel to many US national parks. Traveling in the US overall is extraordinarily expensive. For many parks, lodging and food are limited. Businesses know that and therefore gauge the CRAP out of people traveling to national parks. It's absurd having to pay $300+ per night for what is tantamount to 1 star lodging around many national parks. Then you have to pay $30 per plate of food at any restaurants in the area that serve garbage quality cuisine. I can't stand traveling in the USA anymore. Such a goddamn ripoff.

Or you can camp, buy groceries to make sandwiches, etc. There are certainly cheaper ways to do it.

Camping still requires you to go out and spend $$$$ buying all of the stupid equipment. Many people don't own homes and Iive in apartments and have no where to store all of that junk. You can go out and rent it but it still costs $$$$. It also sucks balls to poop in a bag and shower is absolutely filthy facilities that are barely cleaned.

Face it, traveling in the US blows. I'd rather spend an extra $700 and fly into Japan than say Seattle to visit Olympic National Park, and then enjoy way, way wayyyy better food lodging and just as gorgeous outdoor scenery over in Japan given that the yen is now 160:1. Much better than getting your behind reamed in the US for outrageous park fees, lodging, and food prices in the US. Traveling in the US sucks because it is so insanely expensive.

Car camping requires a tent, a sleeping bag, and maybe a sleeping pad. I can fit all of that in a checked bag size backpack. Didn't cost me much money and doesn't take up much space in my place.

Agree. We lived in a 2 BR apartment with 2 kids & still had camping gear. Also, most national park campgrounds have bathrooms with sinks and real flush toilets.

Really? That’s surprising because most of the parking lots and trailheads seem to have those nasty hole-in-the-ground toilets that aren’t cleaned.

Clearly you havent visited a lot of NP campgrounds. They're typically pit toilets and half the time the TP is out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, you can definitely save money and go camping. But you rather sh*t all over camping, so the alternative is paying the hotel prices.

Dont complain about being bougie and then complain about being too cheap

I love this.

Who said anyone was shtting on camping? Some people like it, some people don't. Hotels in and around np's are horribly overpriced, it's a fact. We wanted to stay at the Springhill Suites (a SPRINGHILL SUITES, not a JW) in Jackson, WY last year and it was $800 a night. Give me a gd break.

All the motels and hotels in Jackson Hole are really nice. It’s Jackson Hole.

+1. Its cracking me up that someone is too cheap to spend $800/night on a hotel but too good for Springhill Suites and Hampton Inn. Its expensive to be a snob!

NP but I don't think this PP is too good for a springlhill suites or a hampton inn. What they're saying is that they don't want to spend a whopping $800 a night in a mediocre hotel. If you're wasting $800 a night on a hampton inn quality hotel, YOU'RE the sucker.

[Anonymous]

I often have this experience in ducm where I think I must live in a parallel world. I’ve been to almost 40 national parks and I’ve always found affordable and perfectly comfortable in park lodging. The only time I really felt like I was spending a lot was when I got the El Tovar suite at the Grand Canyon but even that was a deal considering it had a balcony large enough to host a cocktail party that was directly over the Grand Canyon south rim — and was less than the very basic ocean view room I had in key largo.

I also really don’t remember out toilets in any of the national parks. We never do backwoods camping because I’m not that tough. I find the NPs all very civilized. My only real criticism is the food, but even with the food I can think of a few places that are affimatively good, and the in-park grocery stores are typically well stocked with tasty things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I often have this experience in ducm where I think I must live in a parallel world. I’ve been to almost 40 national parks and I’ve always found affordable and perfectly comfortable in park lodging. The only time I really felt like I was spending a lot was when I got the El Tovar suite at the Grand Canyon but even that was a deal considering it had a balcony large enough to host a cocktail party that was directly over the Grand Canyon south rim — and was less than the very basic ocean view room I had in key largo.

I also really don’t remember out toilets in any of the national parks. We never do backwoods camping because I’m not that tough. I find the NPs all very civilized. My only real criticism is the food, but even with the food I can think of a few places that are affimatively good, and the in-park grocery stores are typically well stocked with tasty things.

Except for at the visitor center, all the toilets at Arches were the non flushing type. The ones at the Landscape Arch parking area smelt so bad that I held on.

[Anonymous]

Funny how people want nature served on a plate. But want comfortable and inexpensive hotels built up in nature, destroying the nature, so they can see whatever’s left.

As my patience for camping wanes, I realize there are just fewer gorgeous places I will get to experience. One of my kids insisted on camping last summer for a night I would have taken a hotel. We saw such beautiful old growth trees, beachside forest, glitteringly colored mushrooms and tiny salamanders in rocky moss beds. I was uncomfortable much of the night but it was worth it. Barring disabilities, it’s a choice.

The crowds are a disappointment, it’s true, but we are the crowds.

[Anonymous]

It will decrease when so many people ruin it with trash and damage rail guards, steps, stones....and they have to restrict the number of visitors.

[Anonymous]

We do it cheap. The most expensive part is really the car. Then we do BLM (bare bones, hole in ground) or state campgrounds (can be very nice with great showers, or not). We don't camp at the national parks themselves usually and just go in for hikes. Zion was the only one I thought was overwhelmingly crowded to the point it was not enjoyable.

[Anonymous]

And comically, the person criticizing U.S. travel should note that many of the crowds at National Parks are foreign...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I often have this experience in ducm where I think I must live in a parallel world. I’ve been to almost 40 national parks and I’ve always found affordable and perfectly comfortable in park lodging. The only time I really felt like I was spending a lot was when I got the El Tovar suite at the Grand Canyon but even that was a deal considering it had a balcony large enough to host a cocktail party that was directly over the Grand Canyon south rim — and was less than the very basic ocean view room I had in key largo.

I also really don’t remember out toilets in any of the national parks. We never do backwoods camping because I’m not that tough. I find the NPs all very civilized. My only real criticism is the food, but even with the food I can think of a few places that are affimatively good, and the in-park grocery stores are typically well stocked with tasty things.

I feel like I live in a parallel world reading people go on about how unacceptable it is to have to consider camping to visit national parks. They're parks! If you build a ton of cheap

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And comically, the person criticizing U.S. travel should note that many of the crowds at National Parks are foreign...

There are a lot of foreigners that travel to Disney World too, but that doesn’t make it any less of a s hole. Really weak logic.

Traveling in the US blows because they gouge the crap out of you for horrendous quality lodging, food prices are outrageous, and they expect tipping everywhere for everything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Funny how people want nature served on a plate. But want comfortable and inexpensive hotels built up in nature, destroying the nature, so they can see whatever’s left.

As my patience for camping wanes, I realize there are just fewer gorgeous places I will get to experience. One of my kids insisted on camping last summer for a night I would have taken a hotel. We saw such beautiful old growth trees, beachside forest, glitteringly colored mushrooms and tiny salamanders in rocky moss beds. I was uncomfortable much of the night but it was worth it. Barring disabilities, it’s a choice.

The crowds are a disappointment, it’s true, but we are the crowds.

No one is asking for nature on a plate. It’s just pointing out the fact that camping with tons of mosquitoes, potentially in 90+ degree weather, eating off dirty dishes and pans, barely being able to shower, being forced to use horrendously dirty bathrooms to poop or being forced to dig a hole and poop in the ground, or potentially being forced to stay outside in torrential rainfalls if you get t boned by Mother Nature is really a garbage idea for a ‘vacation’. Yeah, have fun doing WORK on vacation and pooping in a vile facility where 200 other people use the same toilet everyday.


Awful. And the only other option is to get ripped off for $500 per night at 1 star facilities around the parks. Traveling in the US is a joke.

[Anonymous]

I have stayed in lodging that ranged from nice to adequate at national parks with no issues. At Olympic, we stayed in a cabin with a kitchenette and an outdoor picnic table along a beautiful lake. At Glacier, the Grand Canyon and Crater Lake we stayed in motel-style lodges that was fine and not crazy expensive. We typically don't camp on vacations because some of us don't sleep well and that can ruin the trip.

[Anonymous]

We’ve done them all- camp, hotels, park lodges and park cabins. My favorite park overnight was the Grand Canyon North Rim cabin we stayed in. Small cabin, but was comfortable enough and clean. As an added bonus- no tv or WiFi/cell signal…perfect. It was really quiet and staying on the rim is amazing.

Sometimes, on longer trips we camp and do hotels. If you camp first, then get a hotel, that Hampton Inn feels like the Four Seasons. My kids love to camp and I think it’s good to rough it once in awhile…get a little dirty, make your own meals, set up camp, have an adventure.