Save up to $30 at National Parks on These 16 Days

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Monday is the first of 16 days during 2016 when all national parks will offer free admission.

The National Park Service will commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. Day by waiving entrance fees at all national parks on Jan. 18 as well as hosting programs or volunteer work projects at many of its parks.

The fee-free days of this year are:

  • Jan. 18: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
  • April 16-24: National Park Week
  • Aug. 25-28: National Park Service Birthday
  • Sept. 24: National Public Lands Day
  • Nov. 11: Veterans Day

Free admission is worth as much as $30 per day at popular national parks such as Yellowstone and Yosemite, where the entrance fee is $30 per car.

There are now 409 national parks. The newest one, Manhattan Project National Historical Park, was created in November. It comprises three sites in three states and “tells the story about the people, events, science, and engineering that led to the creation of the atomic bomb, which helped end World War II,” according to the Park Service.

To find the park nearest to you, visit the Park Service’s “Plan Your Adventure” page, which allows you to search by state or by park name.

For another way to save money at national parks, check out “A Cheaper Way to See the USA: Volunteering in Nation’s Parks.”

For more tips to keep you and your loved ones busy over the holiday weekend without blowing your budget, check out:

What was the last national park you visited? Let us know what you thought of it below or on our Facebook page.

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