Mount Rainier National Park entry requirements

You must pay the park entrance fee or show an accepted pass.

• Private vehicle: $30, valid for 7 days.
• Motorcycle: $25.
• Per person on foot or bicycle: $15.
• An America the Beautiful pass covers this entrance fee. It does not cover any reservation or permit below.
• Standard entrance passes are good for seven consecutive days. The $55 annual pass is the Mount Rainier park-specific annual pass, not the interagency America the Beautiful pass ($80). Per-person fee applies to visitors entering on foot or bicycle.

Nothing here is required in 2026.

• Timed entry reservations are NOT required at Mount Rainier in 2026 (program discontinued for this season). An entrance pass is still required to enter the park. This applies to 2026 only. The park has published nothing about 2027. Entire park, including the Paradise Corridor and the Sunrise Corridor

Nothing here is required in 2026.

• No per-vehicle reservation is required for any road or area at Mount Rainier in 2026. Parking capacity is actively managed; lots at Paradise and Sunrise fill and entrance lines can be long, but no reservation is sold or required.
• No public vehicle access to Carbon River or Mowich Lake from SR 165. The closure is described as caused by a bridge closure on the access route, not by a seasonal schedule; the park road status page gives no reopening date.
• Park roads other than Nisqually-to-Longmire are seasonal; only the Nisqually Entrance is open to vehicles in winter. As of the July 6, 2026 road status report all of these roads were OPEN. "The road may close at any time depending on weather/road conditions" is noted for Longmire to Paradise. The park is "open all year, 24 hours a day", but "Vehicle access to Mount Rainier in the winter is only available from the Nisqually Entrance".

Mount Rainier National Park has no shuttle system.

Nothing here is required in 2026.

• Mount Rainier campground reservations (Cougar Rock, White River, Mowich Lake; Ohanapecosh closed for 2026). Cougar Rock: "late May-early October". White River: opens July 1, Loops A & B only. Ohanapecosh: "CLOSED for 2026". Mowich Lake: "Early July to early Oct" per the campgrounds page — but see the Carbon River/Mowich road closure rule. "Some campsites may be available first-come, first-served, but reservations are recommended."

Wilderness and climbing permit applies on every date in 2026.

• Wilderness and climbing permit

  Dates

  Jan 1, 2026 – Dec 31, 2026

  Hours

  All day

  Fee

  Not published

  Opens

  Not published

  Applies to Backcountry/wilderness camping anywhere in the park; climbing above 10,000 feet or on glaciers

  • The permits page states climbers must "Pay the Climbing Registration Fee" but does not print the amount, so no figure is shown here.
  • Not required for day hiking or for any drive-up sightseeing.
  • "Some walk-up permits are available, although reservations are strongly encouraged during peak summer season.".
  • A frontcountry campground reservation does not serve as a wilderness permit.