Last Updated on September 26, 2025
If you served your country, the Lifetime Veteran National Park Pass is your ticket to exploring the natural beauty of America. Now that your service is over, you deserve to relax and experience one of our country’s greatest resources: the National Parks System.
The National Parks are tourist attractions in their own right, but they also offer a way for you to experience nature outside of the military. While plenty of time in the military is spent outdoors and in austere environments, it’s overshadowed by the stress of military life. It’s hard to enjoy hiking in the woods when it’s the middle of the night and you’re walking 10 miles back from the drop zone with a 45lb ruck. However, after service, many veterans find relaxation and healing in nature now that it is on their own terms. Lucky for you, America’s National Parks have some of the best nature you can experience.
The Lifetime National Park Pass allows you free entry to any National Park in the United States. Free entry is also extended to three accompanying guests or your whole car, depending on how the park charges for entry. It also gets you free entry to sites managed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Reclamation. The best part, it is a lifetime pass, so it never expires.
This post will tell you how to get your own Lifetime Veteran National Park Pass and start enjoying our National Parks System.
How to Get Your Lifetime Veteran National Park Pass
There are two ways to get your pass and both are pretty easy and straightforward. You can either go in person and get one or apply for one online. You can also walk check out our video walkthrough on YouTube!
Getting Your Pass In-Person
In-person processes are usually a hassle in today’s world but getting my Veteran National Park Pass was pretty easy.
Step 1
Go to the National Park Service website’s information page for the Veteran National Park Pass. You will see a set of instructions and a link to find an in-person site to get your pass. Click that link.
Step 2
Once you’ve clicked the link you will be taken to a site search page. Select your state from the dropdown and click search.
Step 3
You will now see all the sites in your state where you can get your Veteran National Park Pass. Select the site closest to you, and it will take you to its webpage where you can see the hours of the park and the address of the issuing office.
Step 4
Now, go get your Veteran National Park Pass! I went and got mine at the San Antonio Missions. It was super easy. All I had to do was show the ranger my driver’s license that had the veteran designator on it, and they gave me my pass!
Getting Your Pass Online
Getting your Veteran National Park Pass online is easy as well. Just a note, there is a $10 shipping and processing charge for this option.
Step 1
Click the link to order a Veteran National Park Pass from the USGS store.
Step 2
Select your eligibility category from the menu.
Step 3
Checkout, validate your eligibility, and pay the $10 fee.
Using Your Veteran National Parks Pass
To use your pass, all you need to do is present the pass along with a form of photo ID at the entrance of the site you wish to enter. It’s that easy. I used mine to go to Crater Lake National Park with my friends and our whole car got in for free.
Life in the military may have been tough, but getting your Veteran National Park Pass isn’t. You deserve to have an enjoyable, fulfilling life after your time in the military. It’s a benefit you earned, so don’t be shy about using it. Now go out there and explore America’s National Parks.
