NPS Passport Program - A Great way to see the U.S.

U.S. National Parks Passport Program – It Is Always An Adventure


The U.S. National Parks Passport Program is produced by the Eastern National Parks and Monument Association. It provides a means of recording visits to various National Park Service sites with a rubber cancellation stamp. It is voluntary for national parks along with their affiliated areas, but just about all national parks participate in this program.

Where Can You Buy a Passport?

You can buy a passport at any visitor center within a participating national park or you can from online retailers such as Amazon or directly from Eastern National Parks and Monuments Association official website. The passport is much thicker than a regular international passport since it contains a lot of information pertaining to national parks. It is divided into regions of the country.

Why Get a National Park Passport?

If you record your visits to various NPS sites, you can look back through the Passport and recall the various memories. Eventually, visits to various NPS sites will start tying in with each other in a kind of theme. Along the way, you will learn the history and development of American culture and see virtually the entire United States.

Where Can You Go?

You can use your National Park Passport at the National Parks, National Historic Sites, Battlefields, Historic parks. Scenic Rivers, seashores, parkways, lakeshores, and national monuments located all over the country. You will find a map inside the Passport with a list of most locations. Once you have your first stamp you can move on to a second site.

Stamp cancellations can only be obtained at places managed by the National Park Service, not federal or state facilities. It is thus advisable to stick to the guides and map to find sites with a stamp for you. However, it does not mean that you should not visit those other federal or state sites, but if you are looking to obtain all cancellations within the park service, you need to stick to those sites.

If you keep your focus on the National Park Service sites themselves, you are likely to get much more out of your journey. You might also find that many of the sites including National Park Service sites actually offer extra stamps as the outline of a monument or a special building.

Why Collect Passport Stamps from Each Park?

If you visit NPS sites, you will quickly discover that most visitors are natural collectors too. Passport stamps are some of the most popular things that national park enthusiasts bring home with them from a visit. Here are a few reasons why you should collect passport stamps from each park:

– Passport stamps are free

– Passports are small and can easily fit into your luggage

– Passports serve as your chronological park passing record

Final Thoughts

If you are looking for a great family travel keepsake from your travels around the United States, nothing comes close to the National Park Passport. If you buy one for your children or even yourself, it will be the best decision that you ever make!

 

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