Operating Hours & Seasons

The park is open daily from 6 am 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.

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Changes to Hours of Operations for Thanksgiving 2019:

The Bear Valley Visitor Center will be open from 9 am until 2 pm on Thursday, November 28, 2019.

The Lighthouse Visitor Center and the stairs leading down to the lighthouse (weather permitting) will be open from 10 am until 2 pm on Thursday, November 28, 2019. If wind speeds exceed 64 km/h (40 mph), the stairs leading down to the lighthouse are closed.

The Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center at Drakes Beach will be closed on Thursday, November 28, 2019.

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Visitor Center hours are as follows:

Bear Valley Visitor Center

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

Spring, summer, and early fall hours from March 1 through October 31:
The Bear Valley Visitor Center will be open on:
Weekdays from 10 am to 5 pm
Weekends and holidays from 9 am to 5 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 summers of 2016, 2017, 2018, or 2019. Extended hours for Fridays and Saturdays of summer 2020 have yet to be determined.

Lighthouse Visitor Center and the Point Reyes Lighthouse

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:
Fridays through Mondays from 10 am to 4:30 pm
Please note: If wind speeds exceed 64 km/h (40 mph), the stairs leading down to the lighthouse are closed.

The Lighthouse's first gallery (the middle chamber, which contains the clockwork mechanism and from which visitors can closely view the Fresnel lens) 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.

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.

Extended Summer Hours

The Lighthouse Visitor Center, the stairs leading down to the Lighthouse, and the first gallery reopened on Thursdays from June 25, 2015, through September 24, 2015. These facilities were not reopened on Thursdays for the summer of 2016, 2017, 2018, or 2019. No decision has yet to be made concerning whether these facilities will be reopened on Thursdays for the summer of 2020.

Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center

The Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center at Drakes Beach is closed seven days a week until Saturday, December 28, 2019.

Winter hours from Saturday, December 28, 2019, through late March or early April 2020:
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, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center at Drakes Beach will likely 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. Due to the Lighthouse Visitor Center being closed in late 2018 and most of 2019 due to the Lighthouse Restoration Project, the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center was open on weekends and federal holidays from August 2018 through October 2019. No decision has yet to be made as to whether the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center will be open during the summer of 2020.

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.

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SEASONAL EVENTS

Event	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Gray Whale Migration	X	X	X	X
Elephant Seal Pupping & Breeding	X	X	X									X
Bird Migration			X	X	X			X	X	X	X	X
Harbor Seal Pupping			X	X	X	X
Peak Flower Blooms				X	X
Tule Elk Rut							X	X	X	X
Big Time Festival							X
Sand Sculpture Contest								X

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