Rocky Mountain National Park staff is proposing a $10 increase in camping fees at front-country campgrounds/NPS file
Rocky Mountain National Park staff is proposing a $10 increase in camping fees at four campgrounds beginning in 2025.
The park in northern Colorado wants to apply the increase to the Moraine Park, Glacier Basin, Aspenglen and Timber Creek campgrounds. This proposed increase in summer fees would be from $35 to $45 per night. There is also a proposed additional increase of $10 for the electrical sites that are being constructed at the Moraine Park Campground. The proposed fee for these 49 electrical sites is $55 per night.
There are no fee changes to group sites, the Longs Peak Campground which is a first come, first-served summer campground with no water available, or winter rates.
These proposed campground fee increases are based on comparable fees for similar services in nearby campgrounds.
The proposed fee increases are necessary for Rocky Mountain National Park to improve and maintain high-quality visitor services, a park release said. While basic park operations are funded by direct appropriations from Congress, the recreation use fees collected by the park are used to support new projects and the ongoing maintenance of park facilities that directly enhance the visitor experience.
The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA) is the legislation that allows the park to collect entrance and amenity fees. This law allows parks like Rocky Mountain National Park to retain 80 percent of the fees collected in park for use on projects that directly enhance the experience of park visitors. The remaining 20 percent of all collected fees is distributed for use throughout the National Park System.
Some of the projects funded through the collection of entrance station and campground fees at Rocky Mountain National Park include:
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Hazard Tree Mitigation: The park is among many areas along the Rocky Mountains where trees have been dying from a beetle epidemic. Recreation fee monies have funded extensive mitigation of hazard trees in or near developed areas and other popular park facilities, such as campgrounds, parking lots, road corridors, housing areas and visitor centers.
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Campground Improvements: The park continues to use recreation fee monies to replace tent pad log linings, fire rings, maintain walking paths and repair and replace picnic tables.
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Hiking Trail Repairs and Improvements: Many hiking trail repair projects have been funded by recreation fee monies, such as repairing washed out sections of trail, the installation of bridges, and the installation of vault toilets at heavily used trailheads.
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Bear Management: Park entrance and campground fees help keep bears wild at Rocky Mountain National Park. Thanks in part to fee dollars collected over the past 20 years, 100 percent of the park’s garbage cans, recycling bins, and dumpsters are now bear-resistant. The park has also gone from zero food storage lockers to 352. Your recreation fees also help support visitor education programs focused on black bears.
Rocky Mountain National Park is accepting public comments on the proposed fee increases at this site through May 23.
