Utah's national parks face visitor decline despite tourism push

Utah's 13 National Park Service sites recorded 1.5 million fewer visitors from 2024 to 2025, a 9% decline that has raised concerns about the state's tourism trajectory[1]. The Mighty 5—Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Zion—drew just over 11 million visits in 2025, a decrease of less than 1% year-over-year, but the individual park results tell a more troubling story[3]. Bryce Canyon, the crown jewel of the southern Utah parks, took the hardest hit. The park famous for its red rock hoodoos saw visitation plummet 21% to 1.97 million visitors in 2025—its lowest annual total since 2015 outside of pandemic-driven declines[4]. Capitol Reef also stepped back, posting a 2.4% drop from its record 2024 numbers, with most of the decline occurring in the fall months. Only Arches bucked the trend, posting a 3% increase[4]. The culprit: federal pricing changes that made Utah's parks dramatically more expensive for international visitors. The National Park Service nearly tripled the cost of its annual America the Beautiful Pass for non-U.S. residents, jumping from $80 to $250 in 2025, while also imposing an additional $100-per-day fee per person at popular parks including Bryce Canyon and Zion[4][5]. Park operators around Bryce Canyon directly attributed the visitor decline to fewer international tourists crossing the border, highlighting how dependent Utah tourism is on foreign travelers[4]. The numbers underscore the delicate balance Utah faces in managing its crown jewel outdoor assets. In 2024, national park visitor spending contributed $3.1 billion to Utah's economy[2], a figure that will likely shrink given the 2025 visitation declines. While some parks like Arches have proven resilient, the broader pattern suggests that federal policy decisions may be having unintended consequences for Utah's tourism-dependent economy.