Trump’s latest plan to wring out money from national park visits heads to court

An Arizona tour company has filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s hefty fees for international tourists visiting America’s most popular national parks. Across Arizona Tours, a small business in Phoenix, alleges that the additional charges for international visitors at Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone and eight other national parks have cratered business, and that the departments of the Interior and Agriculture had no authority to impose such fees in the first place.

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“People are being dissuaded from visiting national parks, and companies like Across Arizona Tours are experiencing a loss of business as a result of this,” Jacob Haas, an attorney with the Pacific Legal Foundation, which is representing the business, told SFGATE. “The case appears pretty clear. Only Congress can authorize federal fees, and Congress has never authorized higher fees for nonresidents.”

The administration first proposed the idea of raising fees for international visitors back in June 2025, deep inside a 130-page brief about the Interior Department’s 2026 budget. The document noted that such fees could raise more than $90 million in additional revenue. The following month, in July, the policy was made explicit in an executive order titled “Making America Beautiful Again by Improving Our National Parks.”

Under the new policy, international visitors are now charged $250 for an annual “America the Beautiful” pass, compared with $80 for U.S. residents. Those without an annual pass must pay an additional $100 entry surcharge at Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Everglades, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite and Zion national parks.

The changes mean that a family of two U.S. adults and two children entering Grand Canyon National Park today can expect to pay about $35. An identical nonresident family is now charged $235.

The policy proved deeply unpopular from the start. Several Democratic senators wrote to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum asking him to pause the fees, while residents of national park gateway towns similarly spoke out about the impacts on local tourism. In August of this year, however, the Interior announced that the effort has raised $22.5 million since Jan. 1, even as international visitors are increasingly choosing to visit other countries that are more receptive to their presence. 

Across Arizona Tours, established in 2002 by co-founders Leonardo Gem and Carole Stapleton, offers one- and two-day tours of locations around the state, including Grand Canyon National Park, Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend. 

According to Haas, the pair noticed an immediate decline in business after Jan. 1, when the fees went into effect. Would-be visitors specifically noted the fees in their cancellations, saying that it has simply become too expensive to visit, he said. In addition, the Grand Canyon’s visitation was negatively impacted by the Dragon Bravo Fire, which destroyed several beloved structures on the North Rim last summer. And over the past year, widely publicized deaths relating to heat and flooding may also have acted as deterrents.

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“It’s a hard year for visitation in general, and these international fees have absolutely not helped make things easier for the businesses that rely on these parks to bring people and money,” Haas said.

According to the lawsuit, the fees should never have been levied in the first place, because they are “both unprecedented and unlawful.” Congress does give the DOI the authority to set fees for entry and for park passes, but such authority is limited under the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act. Interior Secretary Burgum can set a single entrance fee, for instance, but not a tiered system that creates different fees for different classes of visitors, Haas told SFGATE: “It’s very clear the administration has overstepped its bounds.”

The targets of the lawsuit — which include the departments of Agriculture and the Interior, as well as Burgum, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, and the acting director of the National Park Service, Jessica Bowron — now have 60 days to respond. The USDA did not reply to SFGATE’s requests for comment by time of publication, but the DOI sent a statement.

“Thanks to President Donald J. Trump, U.S. residents, who already fund the National Park System through federal taxes, are continuing to enjoy affordable pricing, while foreign tourists are paying higher entrance fees to help maintain our parks and improve visitor experiences,” the statement said. “This administration will continue to put American families first – making parks more accessible, more affordable and more efficient for future generations.” 

Haas told SFGATE he thinks the federal government will likely take the case to court, and that it’s possible the lawsuit could spur other businesses to come forward as well.

“We’ve done a deep review of the statute and we feel strongly about the odds of our success,” he said. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see other companies speak out about this, and I definitely think they would have a strong case if they were to decide to bring additional lawsuits.”

This breaking news story has been updated.