Manassas Battlefield to stop entrance fees Jan. 1

Effective on January 1, 2016, the National Park Service will no longer be charging an entrance fee for visiting Manassas National Battlefield Park. 

Since the 1980s visitors to the park have been required to pay a fee upon entering the battlefield. 

Throughout the existence of the fee program, the park has collected the fee at the Henry Hill Visitor Center, near the center of the park.  The current fee is $3 per adult, ages 16 and over.

An assessment of the fee program earlier this year, however, determined that collecting an entrance fee is no longer cost effective.  With a high cost of collection compared to the revenue raised from the program, park superintendent Jon G. James proposed to eliminate the fee at the end of the current year. 

Superintendent James was quoted as saying in a press release, “After a careful analysis of projected revenues and expenditures, the park determined that the fee program was no longer financially viable.  This is just one step in our ongoing efforts to ensure the cost-effectiveness of all park operations.  We invite our visitors to stop by the Henry Hill Visitor Center, attend an interpretive program, or walk on some of our 20 miles of hiking trails, as the National Park Service prepares for its Centennial year in 2016.”

In addition to the elimination of the entrance fees, Manassas will no longer be offering the America the Beautiful-The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands passes or other Interagency passes. 

These passes can be purchased at most federal recreation sites that collect entrance fees, or through the Federal Recreation Pass website at http://www.nps.gov/findapark/passes.htm .

The park will continue to collect the entrance fee at the Henry Hill Visitor Center through December 31, 2015.  For more information, contact the Visitor Center at 703-361-1339.