New in 2024! Advance Reservation Lotteries
Glacier National Park will implement two early access lotteries for Wilderness Camping advance reservations in 2024 using the Recreation.gov Wilderness Camping Permits online platform. To participate in either lottery, applicants must create a Recreation.gov account. Please visit the homepage for details.
- Large group lottery (9-12 campers) – Application submission date March 1, 2024.
- Standard group lottery (1-8 campers) – Application submission date March 15, 2024.
Early Access Lottery Period–Online Via Recreation.gov
Large Group Lottery (9-12 campers)
- March 1, 2024, from 12:00 am (MT) to 11:59 pm (MT) – Submit lottery application through Recreation.gov at any time within this 24-hour period for a chance to secure one (1) of five (5) large group (9-12 campers) advance reservations.
- All applications received within this 24-hour period will have an equal chance of being selected.
- $10 non-refundable lottery application fee.
- March 4, 2024 – Successful lottery applicants will receive an email from Wilderness Permit staff, along with instructions for securing their desired advance reservation itinerary.
- Glacier issues five (5) large group (9-12 campers) advance reservations per year. After the large group lottery, wilderness permits will only be available to large groups on a walk-up basis (day before or day of trip start date).
- Successful large group lottery applicants are limited to a single reservation during the Early Access Period.
- Approximately 70% of wilderness campsites parkwide are available for advance reservations.
- Limit of 16 miles per day for advance reservations.
Large Group Lottery Winners
- Due to Glacier National Park large group advance reservation policies, large group itineraries will be manually entered into Recreation.gov by Wilderness Permit Staff.
- Along with instructions, lottery winners will receive a fillable reservation application in an email attachment from glac_backcountry_permits@nps.gov.
- Winners must complete the reservation application and return it to glac_backcountry_permits@nps.gov.
- March 11, 2024 – Last day to return completed reservation application.
- After wilderness permit rangers enter itineraries into Recreation.gov, winners will receive email confirmation and payment instructions from Recreation.gov.
Standard Group Lottery (1-8 campers)
- March 15, 2024, from 12:00 am (MT) and 11:59 pm (MT) – Lottery applications will be accepted for a chance to secure one (1) of 3,000 standard group (1-8 campers) advance reservations.
- $10 non-refundable lottery application fee.
- All applications received within this 24-hour period will have an equal chance of being selected.
- March 17, 2024 – Successful lottery applicants will be notified via email from Recreation.gov with a date and time to book their proposed reservation online.
- March 21, 2024 – First day for lottery winners to make reservations on Recreation.gov.
- April 30, 2024 – Last day for lottery winners to make reservations on Recreation.gov.
- Successful lottery applicants are limited to a single reservation during the Early Access Period but may create additional reservations during the general on-sale period beginning May 1.
- A list of Early Access Lottery frequently asked questions (FAQs) is available at Early Access Lottery FAQs.
- Approximately 70% of wilderness campsites parkwide are available for advance reservations.
- Limit of 16 miles per day for advance reservations.
General On-sale Period (First come First Served)–Online Via Recreation.gov
After early access lotteries are completed, all remaining advance reservation campsites will be available to standard groups (1-8 campers) online at recreation.gov.
- May 1, 2024, at 8:00 MT and continuing until September 30, 2024, all wilderness campgrounds not reserved during the early access lottery period will become available to the general public on .
- A Recreation.gov account is necessary to make reservations. Please visit to create an account or to login to an already existing account.
- Don't have access to a computer? You can also call the Recreation.gov call center at 877-444-6777.
- Limit of 16 miles per day on advance reservation applications.
- Large Groups (9-11 campers) – Glacier National Park only issues five (5) large group advance reservations each year. If you have a large group, you may be able to secure an itinerary on a walk-up basis (day before or day of a trip start date).
Step by Step Wilderness Camping Advance Reservation Procedures
Cancellation and Refund Policies
- Full refund of $7/person/night camping fees if reservation is cancelled on Recreation.gov more than seven (7) days prior to trip start date. The $10 administrative fee is non-refundable.
- Glacier National Park is a dynamic resource where natural events and conditions are unpredictable. There is a possibility that trail and campground closures, campground environmental conditions, natural events (such as fires, aggressive animals, etc.), or other NPS management actions may render a particular itinerary impossible. In the event that this occurs, every effort will be made to provide you with an alternate itinerary when you pick up your permit, however THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT YOUR ROUTE WILL BE PASSABLE OR ITINERARY AVAILABLE WHEN YOU ARRIVE. Refunds are not available for campground closures.
We recommend viewing the following before submitting an application:
Recreation.gov Technical Difficulties
If you are having difficulty accessing the Recreation.gov website or are experiencing any other technical difficulties with Recreation.gov, please call Recreation.gov customer support at:
Reservation line - (Toll-Free) (877) 444-6777
Reservation line (International) (606) 515-6777
Reservation line (Only for use with TDD devices) (877) 833-6777
Open every day from 10 am – 12 am EST
Closed on: Thanksgiving Day (varies), Christmas Day (12/25), New Year's Day (01/01)
Wilderness Camping Walk-up Permits
If you are unable to secure a wilderness camping advance reservation through Recreation.gov, wilderness permits may be available the day before or day of a desired trip start date.
- Approximately 30% of all sites parkwide are set aside for walk-in campers.
- Arrive early the day before your intended trip start date for the best campsite availability.