Free Admission at Yosemite this Weekend | ABC30 Fresno

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By ABC30

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Fresno, CA The decision is the Nat'l Park Service's, creating an affordable vacation for American families who may otherwise skip one this year because of tough times.

Haley Bercot, Yosemite Park Ranger said, "We're hoping that by offering 3 free weekend here at Yosemite National Park it will bring families that might not normally visit parks. Also hoping to stimulate the local economy like the small towns and parks."

Yosemite rangers typically see about 7,000 cars roll in on weekends. But because of father's day and free admission, they're expecting 20,000 this weekend. At $20 each, that's nearly $500,000 dollars the park will forgo.

Free is good! But once inside, the extra foot traffic lured in by the free admission is sure to spend money on food, overnight lodging, scenic tours and activities.

Daryl Ramsour, park visitor said, "Well, it's good it shows that they care. People need a little extra to go somewhere and do other things."

Kenny Karst, DNC Parks and Resorts said, "Certainly we'll see increased revenue this weekend with coming in free. But what's really exciting is the amount of memories we're creating for these families."

The next 2 weekends you can get in free to every national park in the US, are July 18 and 19th and August 15 and 16th.