More than 4.2 million people visited<\/a> the park over the course of 2025, according to National Park Service data.<\/p>\n With no vehicle reservations required<\/a> during the busy spring and summer seasons, National Park Service officials expect Yosemite to be more packed than ever.<\/p>\n Critics warn that will lead to overcrowding and longer wait times around the park.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what to know about navigating crowds this spring and summer in Yosemite National Park:<\/p>\n In February, the National Park Service announced plans to \u201cexpand public access<\/a>\u201d at Arches, Glacier, Rocky and Yosemite national parks in the summer while \u201cmaintaining safe and responsible management\u201d during peak visitation times.<\/p>\n The park service said it was taking a \u201ctailored approach\u201d to \u201creflect each park\u2019s unique infrastructure, visitation demand and coordination with state and local partners.\u201d<\/p>\n In the case of Yosemite, that means not requiring advance reservations in 2026, including during peak summer months.<\/p>\n Instead, the National Park Service said, Yosemite will rely on \u201creal-time traffic management measures,\u201d including diverting traffic when parking areas reach capacity and deploying additional seasonal staff to manage high-use areas.<\/p>\n \u201cOur national parks belong to the American people, and our priority is keeping them open and accessible,\u201d Kevin Lilly, the U.S. Department of the Interior<\/a>\u2019s acting assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks, said in a Feb. 18 news release. \u201cWe\u2019re expanding access where conditions allow and using targeted tools only where necessary to protect visitor safety, maintain emergency access and preserve these extraordinary places for future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n The lack of a vehicle reservation system could lead to larger numbers of visitors, more spontaneous visits and \u201chigher peak-day crowding,\u201d according to Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue<\/a>, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the park\u2019s elite search-and-rescue team.<\/a><\/p>\n Before Yosemite National Park introduced a reservation system in 2020, the park was experiencing \u201cmulti-hour entrance lines,\u201d with gridlocked roads and parking lots filling up entirely by mid-morning, Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue said in the newsletter.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reservation system reduced those peak-day spikes,\u201d the group said, noting that \u201cremoving it is expected to reverse that pattern.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cReservations acted as a behavioral filter: visitors had to plan weeks ahead<\/a>,\u201d Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue said in its February newsletter.<\/p>\n Without that barrier, the group predicted, Yosemite could see an increase in day trips with regional day use rising as well.<\/p>\n \u201cPeak weekends and holidays will likely return to \u2018capacity saturation\u2019 conditions especially in Yosemite Valley, Glacier Point corridor and Mariposa Grove,\u201d the group said, with total visitation increasing \u201cnoticeably during peak weather windows and weekends,\u201d the group said.<\/p>\n Yosemite has already seen some impacts, with crowds gathering at El Capitan in February for the famed \u201cfirefall.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Overcrowding made for a \u201cmessy\u201d Valentine\u2019s Day and President\u2019s Day holiday weekend<\/a> in the park, SFGATE reported.<\/p>\n Federal officials said Yosemite and other parks will \u201cclosely monitor visitation, traffic flow and congestion throughout the season.\u201d<\/p>\n Park officials will be prepared to implement additional measures as needed, including \u201cincreased seasonal staffing\u201d and \u201cenhanced parking management,\u201d the Feb. 18 release said.<\/p>\n Yosemite officials will broaden their use of several operational strategies to cope with crowds, The Bee previously reported, including:<\/p>\n Real-time traffic monitoringActive parking management in Yosemite ValleyAdditional staffing at key intersections and decision pointsImproved visitor information through road condition alerts, congestion warnings and trip-planning toolsExpanded guidance encouraging weekday visitation<\/p>\n Park officials also said they\u2019ll promote recreational opportunities outside Yosemite Valley, such as Tuolumne Meadows and Wawona, Hetch Hetchy.<\/p>\n \u201cOur goal is to help every visitor have a safe and enjoyable trip,\u201d Yosemite National Park Superintendent Ray McPadden said in a statement. \u201cTargeted management gives us the flexibility to address the busiest days while preserving open access on days the park is operating well within capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue fears that won\u2019t be enough.<\/p>\n \u201cThe park has plans to redirect visitors to lesser-used areas, but overall Yosemite Valley itself has a fixed vehicle capacity,\u201d the group said. \u201cCrowds will concentrate heavily in iconic zones while peripheral areas will widely remain underused.\u201d<\/p>\n Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue said, larger crowds could also place a \u201cgreater strain\u201d on safety and search-and-rescue personnel.<\/p>\n \u201cMore spontaneous visitation historically correlates with ill-prepared visitors\u201d as well as roadside emergencies and incidents involving heat, dehydration and navigation, the group said.<\/p>\n \u201cManaging crowd safety may become more difficult\u201d amid reductions in staff, the group said.<\/p>\n In 2025, the Trump administration fired roughly 1,000 National Park Service works<\/a> and temporarily freezed several seasonal positions, leaving many parks understaffed<\/a> as the summer travel season got underway, T<\/a>he Sacramento Bee previously reported.<\/p>\n The National Park Service said the parks \u201care working to strengthen seasonal staffing and operational readiness to support strong visitation in 2026,\u201d including in Yosemite.<\/p>\n Overall, Friends of Yosemite Search and Rescue expects the lack of a reservation system to \u201cincrease access but reduce predictability.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe park becomes easier to enter \u2014 but harder to experience comfortably,\u201d the group said.<\/p>\n Loading\u2026<\/p>\n Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/756fbee2-2838-4afa-92c6-b3abf90b557e.jpeg\" "\\"756fbee2-2838-4afa-92c6-b3abf90b557e\\"")
The waterfall is reflected in water in the meadow in the Yosemite Valley as the snowpact melts on April 26, 2023, in Yosemite National Park. Francine Orr Los Angeles Times\/TNS How has access to Yosemite National Park changed?<\/p>\n![\"Visitors](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1a47020d-24af-45ec-9312-00754b802595.jpeg\" "\\"1a47020d-24af-45ec-9312-00754b802595\\"")
Visitors contemplate and take photos of El Capitan, left, and Yosemite Valley in Yosemite, Calif., on Thursday, July 24, 2025. Ray Chavez TNS Will new rules lead to bigger crowds in Yosemite?<\/p>\n![\"Crowds](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/29529c86-d5a6-4a06-8620-486bf93f9bb1.jpeg\" "\\"29529c86-d5a6-4a06-8620-486bf93f9bb1\\"")
Crowds often form at popular places in U.S. national parks, like the entrance to Yosemite Valley in California. Jim West Universal Images Group via Getty Images How will National Park Service manage crowds?<\/p>\n![\"Yosemite](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/a928dcee-c90f-4078-91ad-60a68a36b709.jpeg\" "\\"a928dcee-c90f-4078-91ad-60a68a36b709\\"")
Yosemite Falls, and its reflection in a puddle of water in the meadow below, is seen on April 23, 2024, at Yosemite National Park. Paul Rogers Bay Area News Group\/TNS Are there safety risks?<\/p>\n
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