Free state park access for eligible Vermonters continues for second season

By Timothy Page on May 6, 2026 • ( Leave a comment )

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Vermonters enrolled in 3SquaresVT, the Essential Person Program, Fuel Assistance, General Assistance, Reach Up, Summer EBT or WIC are eligible for free day-use entry to Vermont state parks from May through October.

*Mt. Philo State Park in Charlotte, Vermont. Photo by LunchboxLarry via Flickr*

By Claire MacDonald

Eligible Vermonters can access state parks for free again this season. That’s thanks to the Park Access Fund Pilot Program launched last May by Vermont Parks Forever, the nonprofit foundation supporting Vermont’s 55 state parks.

Vermonters enrolled in 3SquaresVT, the Essential Person Program, Fuel Assistance, General Assistance, Reach Up, Summer EBT or WIC — about 100,000 people — are eligible for free day-use entry to Vermont state parks from May through October.

“You bring your card to the state park, you show it when you check in at the park, and you will be letting you and your household in for free to enjoy the park for the day,” said Sarah Alberghini Winters, the executive director of Vermont Parks Forever.

The Park Access Fund Pilot Program grew out of the Vermont Parks Forever Park Access Fund, which began in 2016 as a way to help more foster families access outdoor spaces.

“We know how beneficial time spent outdoors is for people’s mental health and physical health and for our community’s health,” Alberghini Winters said. “The more people we get out into the parks to enjoy them, the stronger and healthier our Vermont community is.”

The Park Access Fund Pilot Program is funded entirely through private sources, including grants and donations.

Alberghini Winters said the program’s first year was a big success.

“In the first year, we didn’t know what was going to happen,” she said. “We ended up with 30,000 day visits through the program, which is thrilling.”

She said surveys done by students at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business showed that 88% of survey participants said they would’ve visited the parks less frequently if the entry fee was required.

Alberghini Winters said she expects the program to grow in 2026.

“We know that if we break the financial barrier for people, more people will come and visit the parks and reap all the benefits.”

Most state parks open May 22.

Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship, in partnership with Vermont Public.