The park is open daily from sunrise to midnight throughout the year. Overnight camping is available by permit only.
All Visitor Centers are normally open throughout the year, but are closed December 25. Visitor Centers may close at 2 pm on Thanksgiving. Call 415-464-5100 for hours of operation on these holidays.
Visitor Center hours are as follows:
Bear Valley Visitor Center
Spring, summer, and early fall hours from March 1 through October 31:
The Bear Valley Visitor Center is open on:
Weekdays from 10 am to 5 pm
Weekends and holidays from 9 am to 5 pm
Winter Hours from November 1 through February 28:
The Bear Valley Visitor Center will be open on:
Weekdays from 10 am to 4:30 pm
Weekends and holidays from 9 am to 4:30 pm
Extended Summer Hours
From July 3, 2015, through September 5, 2015, the Bear Valley Visitor Center was open until 6 pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Extended hours for Fridays and Saturdays were not offered during the summer of 2016, 2017, or 2018. Extended hours for Fridays and Saturdays of summer 2019 have yet to be determined.
Lighthouse Visitor Center and the Point Reyes Lighthouse
Restoration Impacts on Visitors
On Monday, August 6, 2018, Point Reyes National Seashore began a large restoration project on the historic Point Reyes Lighthouse. There will be no public access beyond the visitors' parking lot until the first phases of the work are completed, on or about October 5 in early to mid-November. This website's 2018 Lighthouse Restoration blog and our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram will keep you up-to-date, so bookmark these and check back in the near future. There will be times when the lighthouse area will be closed to all foot traffic and we apologize for that in advance. The necessary improvements will make your future experience even better. More information is coming soon.
After Friday, October 5, 2018 the first phase is completed, we anticipate the the Lighthouse Visitor Center will be open on Fridays through Mondays from 10 am to 4:30 pm. The stairs leading down to the lighthouse will remain closed until the restoration project is complete, currently scheduled to be finished in April 2019. More information to come.
Once the restoration project is complete, we anticipate that hours of operation will be:
The Lighthouse Visitor Center is only open on:
Fridays through Mondays from 10 am to 4:30 pm
The stairs leading down to the Lighthouse, the exhibits in the lower Lighthouse chamber, and the Equipment Building are only open (weather permitting):
Fridays through Mondays from 10 am to 4:30 pm
The Lighthouse's first gallery (the middle chamber, which contains the Fresnel lens and clockwork mechanism) is only open (as weather & staffing permit):
Fridays through Mondays from 2:30 pm to 4 pm.
The Lighthouse Visitor Center and the stairs leading down to the Lighthouse are closed Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
Extended Summer Hours
The Lighthouse Visitor Center, the stairs leading down to the Lighthouse, and the Lens Room reopened on Thursdays from June 25, 2015, through September 24, 2015. These facilities were not reopened on Thursdays for the summer of 2016, 2017, or 2018. No decision has yet to be made concerning whether these facilities will be reopened on Thursdays for the summer of 2019.
Winter Shuttle Bus System
On weekends and holidays from late December through mid-April when visitation by whale watchers to the Point Reyes Lighthouse area is heavy, visitors may be required to ride a shuttle bus from Drakes Beach to the Lighthouse and Chimney Rock areas.
Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center
From Friday, August 10, 2018, through Sunday, September 30, 2018, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center is open on:
Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, from 10 am to 5 pm
Closed Mondays through Thursdays.
From Saturday, October 6, 2018, through early to mid November 2018, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center is open on:
Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 5 pm
Closed Mondays through Fridays.
After early to mid November 2018, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center will be closed until Saturday, December 29, 2018.
Winter hours from Saturday, December 29, 2018, through late March or early April 2019:
The Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center will be open on:
Weekends and federal holidays from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm on days when the park operates the Winter Shuttle Bus System.
Closed Mondays through Fridays, and on weekends and holidays when the park does NOT operate the Winter Shuttle Bus System.
Call 415-464-5100 x2 x3 x1 the evening prior to or the morning of your visit to learn whether the park will or will not be operating the Winter Shuttle Bus System.
After the end of the Winter Shuttle Bus System in late March or early April, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center at Drakes Beach will be closed seven days a week. During the summer of 2015, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center was open on weekends and Mondays from Saturday, June 27, 2015, through Monday, September 7, 2015, and on weekends from Saturday, September 12, 2015, through Sunday, September 27, 2015. The Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center was closed during the summer of 2016, 2017, and 2018. No decision has yet to be made as to whether the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center will be open during the summer of 2019.
PRNSA Bookstore at Drakes Beach
The PRNSA Bookstore at Drakes Beach is open from 11 am to 4:30 pm on Saturdays, Sundays, and most federal holidays (except Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day)
Closed Mondays through Fridays, and on Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
