National Parks Are Free on Thursday, September 17, Including Muir Woods

The National Park Service has set Thursday, September 17 as a fee-free day for Constitution Day. Every National Park Service site that charges an entrance fee waives it. In San Francisco and Marin that change shows up at Muir Woods National Monument, which charges a per-person entrance fee.

What Is Waived

Muir Woods charges a $15 standard entrance pass per person 16 and older. Visitors under 16 do not need one. On September 17 the $15 is waived.

The parking and shuttle reservation is not waived. Muir Woods requires a reservation for every vehicle and every shuttle rider, the reservation fee is separate from the entrance fee, and the National Park Service says reservation fees still apply on fee-free days. Reservations go through GoMuirWoods.com.

What a Fee-Free Day Does Not Cover

Alcatraz Island charges no National Park Service entrance fee, so there is nothing there to waive. Visiting requires a ferry ticket from Alcatraz City Cruises, and the Park Service states that ferry, parking, special tour and special permit fees are not covered by annual passes or fee-free days. Day tour tickets are $47.95 for adults 18 and over, $45.15 for seniors 62 and over, $29.15 for children 5 to 11, and free for children under 5. Ranger tours on the island are free and the cellhouse audio tour is included in the ferry ticket.

Most Golden Gate National Recreation Area sites in the city, including Fort Point, Lands End, Ocean Beach and the Presidio, do not charge an entrance fee at any time.

Two Changes This Year

Free entrance on these days now applies to United States citizens and residents only. Nonresidents pay the regular entrance fee and any applicable nonresident fee.

National Public Lands Day, the fourth Saturday in September, is not on the Park Service’s 2026 fee-free list. The 2026 dates are February 16, May 25, June 14, July 3 to 5, August 25, September 17, October 27 and November 11.

Details

When: Thursday, September 17, 2026 Where: Muir Woods National Monument, 1 Muir Woods Road, Mill Valley

Cost: Entrance free for US citizens and residents; the parking or shuttle reservation is still required and still charged Getting there: Reserve parking or a shuttle seat in advance at GoMuirWoods.com

Source: National Park Service entrance passes and fee-free days, Muir Woods fees and passes, and Alcatraz Island fees and passes.

Photo: Mike McBey, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.