News Release

Death Valley Hosts Record 1,678,660 Visitors in 2018

This graph shows annual visitation from 1980 through 2018.

NPS

News Release Date: March 6, 2019

Contact: Abby Wines, 760-786-3221

DEATH VALLEY, CA –Death Valley National Park’s visitation has doubled in the past 9 years and increased by 30% over the past year. In 2018, a record 1,678,660 people recreated in the park.

“It’s really exciting to see so many people from around the world experiencing and appreciating the beauty of Death Valley National Park,” said Superintendent Mike Reynolds.

While it might be logical to assume the desert park’s visitation is highest in winter, visitation is actually relatively constant year-round. Last year’s busiest month was August, with 182,929 visits. However, summer visits tend to be quick stops between Las Vegas and Yosemite National Park. By contrast, only 80,396 people visited the park in January, but many of these people stayed to enjoy the park for multiple days.

“Some people visit in the summer in spite of the heat, because that is the only time they can travel. Others come to Death Valley in the summer precisely because it is the hottest place on Earth,” said Reynolds.

Death Valley’s visitation has been increasing for more than a decade. In addition to this trend, 2018’s numbers represent more accurate counting, because data from the traffic counter on Daylight Pass Road are now included.

More detailed information about visitation at all National Park Service units can be found at the NPS social sciences webpage.


 

-www.nps.gov/deva-

Death Valley National Park is the homeland of the Timbisha Shoshone and preserves natural and cultural resources, exceptional wilderness, scenery, and learning experiences within the nation’s largest conserved desert landscape and some of the most extreme climate and topographic conditions on the planet. About two-thirds of the park was originally designated as Death Valley National Monument in 1933. Today the park is enjoyed by about 1,300,000 people per year. The park is 3,400,000 acres – nearly as large as the state of Connecticut. Learn more at www.nps.gov/deva.