Glacier National Park Will Use a Ticketing System in 2022
As we learned in 2021, Glacier National Park has become so popular that they tried out a ticketing system to manage high traffic volumes during peak months. Although there was a lot of griping from the public, the system seemed to be effective in reducing traffic with the park still seeing its second-highest visitation numbers of all time, so GNP will move forward with it in 2022.
This past summer, we kept hearing how crowded it was and how long the lines and waiting was to get into Glacier, so we thought we'd put it off until the end of summer and go during off-hours, which we never got around to. However, we are hoping to implement the plan next year but maybe in spring. Here's what you can expect if you are planning a visit to Glacier in 2022.
- One ticket per vehicle will be required to enter the Going-to-the-Sun Road at the West Entrance, St. Mary Entrance, and the new Camas Entrance.
- One ticket per vehicle will also be required at the Polebridge Ranger Station to visit the North Fork area of the park. This is a separate ticket from Going-to-the-Sun Road.
- A portion of tickets could become available by early March. Like last year, visitors will need to set up an account HERE to obtain tickets. Although the park does not charge for the tickets, the website charges a $2 nonrefundable service fee.
- Tickets will not be required at the St. Mary Entrance prior to the full opening of Going-to-the-Sun, which is typically in late June. Once snow removal and road preparations are complete and the road opens to vehicle traffic to Logan Pass, tickets will be required at the St. Mary entrance through September 11, 2022.
- The park will offer three-day tickets for Going-to-the-Sun rather than the seven-day ticket offered last year, and one-day tickets for the North Fork.
- The Apgar and Sprague Creek campgrounds will require advance reservations in addition to Fish Creek and St. Mary campgrounds. Reservations will be available HERE in 2022. Rising Sun and Avalanche campgrounds will remain first come, first served. The park anticipates all campgrounds to be operating in 2022.
In addition to the ticket, each vehicle entering the park is required to have an entrance pass for any entry point into the park.