Cape Cod beaches are free to the birds, but humans will have to pay a little bit more this summer/NPS

It's going to cost you a little bit more this summer to enjoy the sand and surf at Cape Cod National Seashore.

For the first time in a decade the Seashore will be raising its entrance fees: $3 per person per day (pedestrians and bicyclists); $10 per motorcycle per day; $20 per vehicle per day; and $60 for the seasonal Cape Cod National Seashore sticker for a single, private, non-commercial vehicle. The new fees take effect Friday, May 22.

There is no entrance fee for active duty military and their dependents with proper ID, nor for any children under the age of 16. The "America the Beautiful" National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass series, valid at over 2,000 federal recreation sites, includes a lifetime Senior Pass that may be purchased for $10 by U.S. citizens or permanent residents 62 years or older. The series also includes an Access Pass, which is available for free to U.S. citizens or permanent residents with permanent disabilities, and an $80 annual pass for individuals.

The original entrance fee increase proposal from the fall of 2014, which was revised, was to raise the per person daily fee from $3 to $10; the motorcycle daily fee from $5 to $15; the daily vehicle fee from $15 per vehicle to $20 per vehicle; and the seasonal Cape Cod National Seashore pass from $45 per vehicle to $60 per vehicle. That proposal was developed to bring fees in line with standards recommended by the National Park Service.

A total of 59 correspondences were received during the public comment period, which ran from October 27 to December 6, 2014. After review and discussion of the feedback, park managers submitted a revised fee structure for approval to the National Park Service's Washington Office.

"This is the first increase in our entrance fees since 2005," Cape Cod Superintendent George Price said. "We appreciate the feedback we received from the community. Many people expressed concern that the proposed increase of the individual fee from $3 to $10 was unreasonable and contrary to the National Park Service commitment to encouraging bicycle and pedestrian access to our six beautiful beaches. We believe that walking and bicycling are excellent ways to stay active and healthy, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In response to public comments, we have not made an increase to the per person entrance fee, which will remain the same as it has been since 2002."

Beach entrance fees are collected daily from late June through Labor Day at all six seashore beaches: Coast Guard Beach and Nauset Light Beach in Eastham; Marconi Beach in Wellfleet; Head of the Meadow Beach in Truro; and the Race Point Beach and Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown. Fees are also collected on weekends and holidays from Memorial Day to late June, and after Labor Day through the end of September, at Race Point, Herring Cove, Nauset Light, and Coast Guard beaches. For Coast Guard Beach, fees are collected at the Little Creek parking and shuttle area;at all other beaches, fees are collected at the entrance stations located at the beaches.

Entrance fees are an important source of revenue for the national seashore. Eighty percent of the revenue collected is retained to support park operations and maintenance projects, such as the cost of lifeguards at the beaches, the audio-visual system at Salt Pond Visitor Center, restoration of the historic landscape at Fort Hill, youth programs, and improvements to trails. Seashore staff is also able to apply for the 20 percent fees collected, which are managed nationally, for additional projects such as the recent $5 million bathhouse and concession complex at Herring Cove Beach.