Need to Know
Program Overview
The NPS Social Science Program oversees the coordination of visitor use statistics reporting for all units managed by the National Park Service. ‘Visitor Use Statistics’ encompasses a formalized set of data collected by the NPS, addressing how many people visit parks, how long they stay, and which activities visitors engage in during their visits. Program staff collaborate with individual parks to establish effective data collection procedures and ensure quality control of visitor use data. This coordinated approach guarantees that visitor use information remains consistent and reliable across the entire National Park System.
Interest in NPS visitation data goes back over a century when the first data were collected in 1904. In that first year, six national parks reported a total of 140,954 visitors. Early methods of data collection were informal and documented such things as number of visitors, modes of transportation, and trip origins. Since then, visitor use counting and reporting requirements have been formalized into policy and estimation procedures are designed to take advantage of new technologies.
What categories of visitor use are collected?
A visit is the entry of a visitor onto lands or waters administered by the NPS. There are two categories of visits:
- Recreation visits
- Non-recreation visits
A visitor hour is the presence of one or more persons, excluding NPS personnel, in a park for continuous, intermittent, or simultaneous periods of time aggregating one hour.
An overnight stay is one night within a park by a visitor. There are seven categories of overnight stays:
- Concessioner Lodging Overnight Stays
- Concessioner Campground Overnight Stays
- NPS Campground Tent Overnight Stays
- NPS Campground RV Overnight Stays
- Backcountry Overnight Stays
- Miscellaneous Overnight Stays
- Non-Recreation Overnight Stays
Recreation activity participation estimates the number of individuals who engage in each of several distinct recreation activities. Participation rates are derived from multiple sources: direct counts at parks, permit and reservation systems, visitor surveys, and imputed values from visitor surveys at similar parks. The National Park Service monitors participation for 16 recreation activities:
- Biking
- Boating (motorized)
- Boating (non-motorized)
- Camping
- Climbing
- Fishing
- Hiking / Walking / Running
- Horse or Mule Riding
- Hunting
- Interpretation, Education, and Nature Study
- Off Highway Vehicle Travel
- Picnicking
- Sightseeing
- Snow Activities (motorized)
- Snow Activities (non-motorized)
- Water Play
Information on national outdoor recreation participation trends that extend beyond the National Park Service can be found in the National Survey on Recreation and the Environment (NSRE).
How we measure visitor use
Each park unit that reports official visitor use statistics follows a set of Count Procedures and Recreation Activity Reporting Procedures, both tailored to the specific needs of the park. These procedures are established through an agreement between the park superintendent and the NPS Social Science Program, defining the data to be collected and the calculations required for accurate reporting. Procedures take effect on January 1 of the year they are issued—unless exceptions apply, such as newly added parks or unusual circumstances—and remain valid until revised by mutual agreement. Updates to these procedures commonly occur when new property is added, multipliers are adjusted, detection technology changes, or staff capabilities for operating and maintaining the count system evolve.
Visitor Use Data
Annual visitor use statistics are released during the first quarter of the following calendar year. Please review our Visitor Use Data page for a comprehensive overview of the data available and important considerations when using this dataset.Visitor Use Stats In the News
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Visitor Use Statistics Data PortalLast updated: November 3, 2026