It just got more a bit expensive to visit Mount Rushmore National Memorial, as the cost of a parking pass was bumped up a buck, to $11, as of today.
The rate bump was sought by the parking concessioner, the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Society, to help cover increased costs associated with maintenance, and operational costs including wage increases.
With this rate increase, the concessioner is researching the option of accepting credit cards as a form of fee payment, a release from the memorial said.
For further information regarding a Mount Rushmore parking pass, contact the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Society at 605.341.8883.
Comments
I think that parking garage raises my blood pressure more than any other thing in the national park system. Given my guess as to the average length of stay, the hourly rate is comparable to expensive urban centers, for no good reason. There is a very low-capacity alternative (though I'm not telling where), so it's essentially a license for the concessioner to print money. Does the NPS get any money out of it?
Why be upset about parking? Mt Rushmore is nothing more than a well-planned tourist trap devised by politicians. It has no historical value other than the artist's skills...(or perhaps the mt. goats that wander around). In fact the entire Black Hills area is a gigantic "DisneyUniverse" built to encourage tourism to the area...and it works! (125,000 motorcycles @ Sturgis!) It's sad to know that the area belongs to the Lakotas & they have been mostly ignored... Why the NPS is @ Rushmore is a mystery. A similar situation would be PArk Rangers assigned to Six Flags or Seaworld... but those places would soon die since Mt. Rushmore doesn't charge admission fees.
why is the parking a cost to a senior that has a National Parks and Federal recreational lands pass, i was told that the parking garage was a privately owned garage by the attendent and that all people must pay to park, in addition i was riding a motorcycle, which could use only half a parking stall, is this garage owned by a congressman or a senator? i would not be surprized, i visited the site on August 8th and my parking permit number is 33287
I'm afraid the parking facility is privately managed, Anonymous. It's been a bit of a consternation to more than a few with those federal passes....
Go to Crazy Horse instead. It is much more interesting and much better managed. You get far more for your $. Its a great demonstration of government vs private run enterprises.
Anonymous, while I'd agree Crazy Horse is interesting, it's decidedly more expensive. $10 per adult..and it seems from their website that anyone over 6 is an adult. And then another $4 per person for a bus ride to the base of the mountain.
That said, the museums are fascinating. The looming question is whether the mountain will ever be completed.
Not in our life time.
It may not be completed, but at least it is not an abomination to the Native spirit.