This news story about the Angels Landing permit lottery system is based on a December 2, 2021, National Park Service press release. You can read the original release here.
As we reported back in August, Zion National Park has been considering implementing a day-use lottery system for the popular Angels Landing hike. Now, the National Park Service announced that this Angels Landing permit lottery will actually go into effect next year.
After over 300,000 people hiked to Angels Landing in 2019, this year’s visitation has gone through the roof even more. So far this year, Zion National Park recorded more than 4.5 million recreational visits, which is an absolute record.
Many of those visitors visit the park to hike Angels Landing, one of the most iconic and famous hikes in America.
Over the years, this has resulted in increasingly crowded trails, more trash, a less-than-ideal visitor experience and, arguably most importantly, a higher risk of accidents on this extremely steep and narrow trail.
This new lottery system to issue permits to hike Angels Landing aims to reduce crowds, better manage resources in Zion National Park and provide a better national park experience.
NPS Announces New Angels Landing Permit Lottery System in 2022
In its press release, the National Park Service said that starting on April 1, 2022, “hikers going to Angels Landing will need a permit.”
These permits will be issued through online lotteries at Recreation.gov, the National Park Service’s reservation website. You can enter the first lottery for Angels Landing hiking permits on January 3, 2022.
“Angels Landing is one of the most iconic destinations in Zion National Park and issuing permits will make going there fair for everyone,” said Zion National Park Superintendent Jeff Bradybaugh.
“The system we’ve put in place will reduce crowding on the trail, address safety concerns and make it easy for visitors to plan ahead.”
Visitors can get a permit by entering seasonal lotteries or a different lottery the day before their planned hikes. It will cost $6 to enter any of the lotteries and successful permit holders will pay a $3 per person fee.
These funds will cover costs to manage the lotteries and for additional NPS rangers who will assist visitors and check permits on the trail. You can learn when and how to enter the lotteries on the national park’s website.
This is a pilot program, and the NPS will monitor and adjust it as needed. The pilot permit program reflects comments from nearly 1,000 members of the public, park neighbors and other stakeholders. It also reflects lessons NPS learned by metering the number of hikers on the trail in 2019 and 2021 and distributing tickets to use the park shuttle system in response to COVID-19 in 2020.
Angels Landing is one of many places people enjoy visiting in Zion National Park. The park recorded about 2.8 million visits in 2011 and nearly 4.5 million visits in 2019.
As the number of people who visit Zion continues to rise, the Park Service is preparing a plan designed to provide high quality visitor experiences and sustainably manage park resources. The Angels Landing Pilot Permit Program will inform that planning process.
Learn more about Zion’s Visitor Use Research here.
Christine Russell
Wednesday 5th of January 2022
I applied for my permits just earlier today, although how do you get a camping spot nearest to Angels Landing when and if the permit is issued?
Bram
Tuesday 1st of February 2022
Hi Christine! There are two campgrounds near Zion Canyon: the South Campground and Watchman Campground. Both are adjacent to one another. It's highly recommended that you make reservations as soon as possible since these campgrounds fill up essentially every night in the high season. You can find more information here: https://www.nps.gov/zion/planyourvisit/campgrounds-in-zion.htm