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Old 01-02-2017, 11:25 AM   #1
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National Parks Senior Pass Price Increase

I don't know if it belongs here or in the News section, but the price of the US National Parks Senior Pass will be going up in 2017 from its current $10.00 to $80.00. If you are 62 or older (or will be soon), now is the time.

AARP Article
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Old 01-02-2017, 11:30 AM   #2
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Got mine in November!
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Old 01-02-2017, 11:48 AM   #3
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Parks Pass

Happy New Year Jon,
I heard they were going up and have told some friends about the increase. Both Rita and I have the pass. On several instances we have visited fed areas with our kids. We each get in
a car outside the entry point and save the admission fee. On a three week trip last spring with just The two of us, we calculated that we saved $151 in fees so even at $80 it doesn't take long to pay for itself. Hope you have a warm and sunny week, enjoying your daily posts.
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Old 01-02-2017, 12:23 PM   #4
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I don't know if it belongs here or in the News section, but the price of the US National Parks Senior Pass will be going up in 2017 from its current $10.00 to $80.00. If you are 62 or older (or will be soon), now is the time.

AARP Article
Where do you apply for the senior pass? I have never looked into it as i have the Veterans access pass. Which allows my family and I into national parks free of charge. I wonder the difference between the two.
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Old 01-02-2017, 12:41 PM   #5
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Where do you apply for the senior pass? I have never looked into it as i have the Veterans access pass. Which allows my family and I into national parks free of charge. I wonder the difference between the two.
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Old 01-02-2017, 02:51 PM   #6
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Whoa. That's quite a price increase. Glad I got mine.
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Old 01-02-2017, 04:27 PM   #7
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It's a large increase in proportion to the previous cost, but if someone were selling new cars for $100 and put the price up to $800, that would be the same big increase.... but still ridiculously cheap!

The cost of this Senior Pass is a one-time charge for your remaining lifetime. Even if you only have a couple years left, US$80 is still nearly free.

The equivalent in Canada is the senior price on a Discovery Pass. Although all admission in 2017 is free, the normal senior (age 65+) price is CA$57.90 per year (CA$53 per year through the CAA for members)... only 42% of the non-senior price but much more expensive than the U.S. Senior Pass.
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Old 01-02-2017, 04:36 PM   #8
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I'm still trying to figure out the free National Parks pass I got. Admit, I haven't made much effort. Only thing it's good for around here is admission to Fort Langley, but it's a mirror hanger. So, do I bring it with me to get through the door, or do I leave it in the car? Do I get free parking? I think it covers everybody in the car, but does it cover my wife when the hanger is in the car and we are not.
I'm unlikely to use it, but they have given out 900,000 of them so somebody will.
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Old 01-02-2017, 05:00 PM   #9
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I'm still trying to figure out the free National Parks pass I got. Admit, I haven't made much effort. Only thing it's good for around here is admission to Fort Langley, but it's a mirror hanger. So, do I bring it with me to get through the door, or do I leave it in the car? Do I get free parking? I think it covers everybody in the car, but does it cover my wife when the hanger is in the car and we are not.
I'm unlikely to use it, but they have given out 900,000 of them so somebody will.
It's free, so it's a souvenir... you can leave it at home for 2017, since Parks Canada admission is free this year and so no pass of any kind is required.

In a normal year, it covers admission. Since most people drive into parks, it's set up to hang from your mirror; when you take the passholders bypass lane at park gates it is visible, and when you are parked at a site within the park it shows that the vehicle is allowed into the park. Hopefully all the occupants paid, too, if the category of pass doesn't cover them (you can get individual and family passes). No, I don't see any need to carry the thing around with you as you picnic or hike trails or camp or whatever.

The U.S. Senior Pass appears to be a wallet card, to be carried by the owner and presented at park gates to gain admission (along with accompanying people). I think if they made that a mirror hanger it would be used by anyone driving the vehicle that it was in, like the way jerks abuse handicapped parking passes in their parent's or spouse's cars.
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Old 01-02-2017, 05:29 PM   #10
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It's free, so it's a souvenir... you can leave it at home for 2017, since Parks Canada admission is free this year and so no pass of any kind is required.

In a normal year, it covers admission. Since most people drive into parks, it's set up to hang from your mirror; when you take the passholders bypass lane at park gates it is visible, and when you are parked at a site within the park it shows that the vehicle is allowed into the park. Hopefully all the occupants paid, too, if the category of pass doesn't cover them (you can get individual and family passes). No, I don't see any need to carry the thing around with you as you picnic or hike trails or camp or whatever.

The U.S. Senior Pass appears to be a wallet card, to be carried by the owner and presented at park gates to gain admission (along with accompanying people). I think if they made that a mirror hanger it would be used by anyone driving the vehicle that it was in, like the way jerks abuse handicapped parking passes in their parent's or spouse's cars.
Most of the US parks that charge an admission fee require proof of ownership of the pass - usually a driver's license. This is why it is useful for a couple to each get one. You cannot use your husband's (or wife's) pass to get back in if you happen to drive out of the park to shop, etc. Of course at $10.00 each getting a pass was an obvious choice, but at $80.00 it is a bit more expensive...

I've only been in two parks that require keeping the pass in a mirror hanger; usually the only time you need to show it is at the entrance.
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Old 01-02-2017, 05:48 PM   #11
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Yes, they went to requiring driver's licenses because people who were not seniors were using their relatives' cards.
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Old 01-02-2017, 05:50 PM   #12
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I've only been in two parks that require keeping the pass in a mirror hanger; usually the only time you need to show it is at the entrance.
You do if you are stopping in our National Parks, as well as when entering if they are at the booth checking. Not every entry into the park is manned 24/7, and even the manned ones can have a bypass lane or two (like Banff Park coming from Calgary), for those with passes, or those just travelling through to use. The only roadway I know of in a CNP that requires a paid pass to drive on is the Icefields Parkway from Jasper to Lake Louise, all the rest you can travel through on without cost. If you stop for fuel or a bathroom break, by rights you need a pass.
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Old 01-02-2017, 06:18 PM   #13
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I think when I drove through in August the rest stops were okay without a pass. No other parking, though.
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Old 01-02-2017, 06:23 PM   #14
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Yes, they went to requiring driver's licenses because people who were not seniors were using their relatives' cards.
I was told that "ineligible" people were smashing car windows to steal them because they are good for life. And I was told by the selling agency to never hang it from the mirror for that very reason.
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Old 01-02-2017, 06:26 PM   #15
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I'm still trying to figure out the free National Parks pass I got. Admit, I haven't made much effort. Only thing it's good for around here is admission to Fort Langley, but it's a mirror hanger. So, do I bring it with me to get through the door, or do I leave it in the car? Do I get free parking? I think it covers everybody in the car, but does it cover my wife when the hanger is in the car and we are not.
I'm unlikely to use it, but they have given out 900,000 of them so somebody will.
Glenn, Debbie got her Senior Pass earlier in 2016. I just got mine in December. The issuing National Parks Ranger told me to only use the hanger when entering a Park Entrance that is NOT STAFFED, such as a BLM. if the Entrance is staffed, just show the card, put it away, and proceed. She said hanging and displaying the card unnecessarily invites break-ins to steal your card.
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Old 01-02-2017, 06:30 PM   #16
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At least it's a one-time charge of $80. We young'uns have to buy an $80 pass every year. A few years ago that pass went from $50 to $80 in one year, another big jump. But it's still worth it.

Regarding showing your drivers license: at a few parks I've been asked for the annual national park pass and my license, and then my license was swiped through a magnetic card reader. Hmm. I don't know what data they are collecting.
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Old 01-02-2017, 07:31 PM   #17
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Using the credit card, these admission cards, license plate readers, drivers licenses to make sure I'm old enough to buy beer at 69 years old, all ways of tracking people in their travels and mining data that is recorded, sold, traded, who knows what else. A friend of mine never buys ammo with a credit card and on and on. Paranoia strikes deep, into your life it will creep. Can't worry about it, gotta keep my eye on the refrigerator temp, tire pressure monitor, rear view camera and GPS display. Barely time to drive. Oh look there's a squirrel.
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Old 01-02-2017, 07:53 PM   #18
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This one?
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Old 01-02-2017, 09:28 PM   #19
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At least it's a one-time charge of $80. We young'uns have to buy an $80 pass every year. A few years ago that pass went from $50 to $80 in one year, another big jump. But it's still worth it.

Regarding showing your drivers license: at a few parks I've been asked for the annual national park pass and my license, and then my license was swiped through a magnetic card reader. Hmm. I don't know what data they are collecting.
Two words - Homeland Security. That's the latest buzzword used to strip away our ability to have any honest annonymity. The local corporate owned ATT store did that to my sister wanting help with a question about her phone which made her very unhappy.
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Old 01-06-2017, 04:18 PM   #20
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This morning I was ordering two Senior Passes, one for each of us. When I ordered mine the price was $20, because it costs more to order online, and the version date was 2016. After a late morning of work and then lunch, I went to order the pass for Linda. The web page was now showing a price of $80 with a version date of 2017.

I know a little of how websites work (it's what I do for a living) so I just kept clicking the back button until I got back to the page that showed $20.

This may not work for anyone else, because of browser cookies, but here's the link that I used. The link probably won't work after today, if at all.

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