Fall in Shenandoah for a long weekend.

Summer in Great Smoky Mountains (add Dollywood?) or New River Gorge...or go out to the west Coast for Yosemite+ redwood or Olympic

Cuyahoga valley is a short enough drive to do in a long weekend, or add it to other stuff in Cleveland.

Winter could be Joshua tree (it will be sunny but not warm) or Everglades (could combine with time in Miami).

Anonymous wrote:Trips are great, but also keep in mind these local and regional places to use the park pass:

Great Falls (both sides)
Shenandoah NP
Fort McHenry
Prince William Forest Park
Harper’s Ferry
Jamestown/Yorktown
Assateague National Seashore

This could be my list! We did several trips to Shenandoah, went to Assateague twice, all the other places on this list, and a trip to the Great Smokies. We definitely made the most of the pass without spending a ton of money on travel.

So many great ideas! I’m excited! I didn’t know about all the local places so that’s super helpful too. But my kids have so many sports it’s hard to do anything fun on the weekends.

You could do all or at least part of the Grand Circle road trip over Spring Break (or over the summer, but heat, ick). That includes the Grand Canyon, Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, and Zion.

You can also easily combine Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia in one trip.

Anonymous wrote:Trips are great, but also keep in mind these local and regional places to use the park pass:

Great Falls (both sides)
Shenandoah NP
Fort McHenry
Prince William Forest Park
Harper’s Ferry
Jamestown/Yorktown
Assateague National Seashore

I’m this PP… the year one kid had the pass, we did Shenandoah for Labor Day weekend, camped at Assateague for Memorial Day weekend, and visited Sequoia/Kings Canyon and Yosemite in the summer, in addition to visiting Great Falls, etc throughout the year.

For July 4, the National parks are free anyway this July 4 weekend, so likely very crowded, and you wouldn’t be using the pass.

https://www.nationalparktrips.com/news/free-national-park-days/

Anonymous wrote:This has been a couple years back, but we went on a roadtrip to Yellowstone, badlands and grand Teton. There were also a few around, mt Rushmore and devil’s tower in same trip. We had an amazing time.

+1

This has been a couple years back, but we went on a roadtrip to Yellowstone, badlands and grand Teton. There were also a few around, mt Rushmore and devil’s tower in same trip. We had an amazing time.

I'd spend a few weeks in the summer doing Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier. All relatively close by to eachother. Of course, travel and lodging costs are going to totally negate the free park entry but agree with a PP that if the free park entry is a motivator to do some cool trips, it's a great idea!

Trips are great, but also keep in mind these local and regional places to use the park pass:

Great Falls (both sides)
Shenandoah NP
Fort McHenry
Prince William Forest Park
Harper’s Ferry
Jamestown/Yorktown
Assateague National Seashore

Dry Tortugas isn't a cost-saving park, in terms of visiting with a fourth grader. It's very expensive - it's either a bumpy, long ferry ride over (and that's not cheap) or a very pricey sea plane.

It's one of those places that while I'd like to visit, the cost and value aren't there for me. I'd rather spend that money towards an international destination that's more of a bucket list trip for me.

We honestly used ours a bunch to pop into Great Falls, and to do some lazy drives on Skyline Drive, especially going to/from other things.

Travel costs will far outweigh the savings on the park fees, but if the free pass is just a motivator to do something you want to spend money on anyway, it sounds like a fun year!

I'd start by dividing up the good winter destinations vs summer.

For example - one spring/summer trip should be New River Gorge, go rock climbing and white water rafting.

Winter - Dry Tortugas.
Also Yellowstone is really interesting in the winter, but $$$. In the summer you can save money by driving yourself and hiking/camping or staying outside the park.

Fall visit to Shenandoah when the leaves are in peak fall color.

Honestly there's a lot of variations. What kind of activities do you like to do? Are you a hiking family? Sightseeing? Climbing? Camping?

That's a lot of time devoted to just national parks. I think kids would get bored of it (mine would've, as much as they loved Yellowstone and hiking, amusement parks are big at that age). Heck, I'd get bored of it.

You don't have to commit to just doing national parks just because it's free for a 4th grader. The year pass is only $80. Spread it out over a few years (plus, not all parks are equal in terms of 'worth your travel/vacation time.' They can't all be Yellowstone.

Anyone else planning to do Every Kid Outdoors trips during the 2026-2027 season? I have a rising 4th grader and already starting to plan -- thinking I might make it a theme for the year and make it our year of national parks. Where should we go? Because labor day falls so late this year I think we have the following trips we could take:

Week before labor day 2026 (the pass starts Sep 1, 2026)
Columbus weekend 2026
Week between Christmas and New Years
MLK weekend
Spring Break
Memorial weekend
July 4 weekend
A week in August 2027

Thanks for any ideas/tips!!