News Release

Digital Entrance Passes Now Available at Padre Island National Seashore

Date: July 8, 2020
Contact: Charles Lassiter

Beginning on Thursday, July 2, 2020, visitors to Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS) can now purchase digital entrance passes for annual, seven-day, and one-day park entry by going online to Recreation.gov. The decision to add this service was made in order to better serve visitors.

“We are committed to helping visitors speed up the process of entering the park,” said Padre Island National Seashore Superintendent Eric Brunnemann. “Sometimes the lines at our entrance booths get long, especially during the summer. We want to help reduce entrance waiting time so you can get to the beach as quickly as possible. As always, we want to remind visitors that the revenue from camping, entrance, and boat ramp fees is used to improve facilities, infrastructure and visitor services.”

Currently available for purchase are the PAIS Annual Pass, the weekly and daily vehicle pass, the weekly and daily motorcycle pass, and the weekly and daily individual (no vehicle) pass.

Because connectivity is limited in and around the park, visitors are encouraged to purchase their passes and print them out or download them onto their mobile device before arriving.

The digital pass provides an alternative to the traditional in-person purchase method. Using a personal electronic device, visitors can purchase their passes from Recreation.gov at no extra cost. Once purchased, passes are emailed to the buyer and can be stored on a personal device or printed. They can be used immediately. Those who would like to exchange their digital annual pass for a physical card may do so by bringing the printed digital pass to the park and requesting an exchange.

Padre Island National Seashore joins many other public lands currently providing electronic passes including Glacier, Acadia, Everglades, Grand Canyon, Theodore Roosevelt, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite National Parks; Castillo de San Marcos and Colorado National Monuments; Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area; and Wayne National Forest.