Yes—Flag Day (Trump’s Birthday) Is a Free National Park Day in 2026. MLK Day and Juneteenth Are Out. And there’s a big catch.

Short answer: Yes. In 2026, the National Park Service will offer free entry on June 14 (Flag Day, Donald Trump’s birthday) and will not offer fee‑free entry on Martin Luther King Jr. Day or Juneteenth. But starting in 2026, those free days are for U.S. citizens and residents only; international visitors still pay. That’s where the story gets more complicated—and more revealing.

The most important correction first

• Fee‑free days are “resident‑only” in 2026. The NPS’s official page makes clear that free entry dates apply only to U.S. citizens and residents starting next year; nonresidents still pay normal entrance fees and, at some parks, an added surcharge. Source: NPS Entrance Passes page (updated Nov. 26, 2025) nps.gov

That resident‑only twist is the key to understanding what changed—and why.

What’s changing, and why now

The policy shift traces back to a July 3, 2025 executive order titled “Making America Beautiful Again by Improving Our National Parks.” It directed the Interior Department to keep parks more affordable for Americans while raising more money from international visitors. Source: White House executive order whitehouse.gov

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum later framed the changes as putting “American families first,” saying U.S. taxpayers “continue to enjoy affordable access, while international visitors contribute their fair share” to maintaining the parks. Source: NPS news release (Nov. 25, 2025) nps.gov

What the 2026 fee‑free calendar actually includes

The 2026 NPS list adds June 14 and drops MLK Day and Juneteenth. The official fee‑free dates are:

• Presidents’ Day — Feb 16
• Memorial Day — May 25
• Flag Day (also Donald Trump’s birthday) — Jun 14
• Independence Day weekend — Jul 3–5
• NPS’s 110th birthday — Aug 25
• Constitution Day — Sep 17
• Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday — Oct 27
• Veterans Day — Nov 11

These are branded as “resident‑only patriotic fee‑free days.” Sources: NPS Entrance Passes and DOI/NPS communications nps.gov, nps.gov

What the original article got right—and what needed fixing

Correct:

• June 14 is in, MLK Day and Juneteenth are out in 2026. nps.gov
• Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021 and was an NPS fee‑free day in 2024. congress.gov
• The branding and rationale: “patriotic” fee‑free days under a policy to keep costs down for Americans and increase fees for nonresidents. nps.gov, whitehouse.gov
• New pricing for 2026 (details below). nps.gov

Needed correction or nuance:

• The “116 parks” figure isn’t official. Fee‑free days apply at all NPS sites that charge entrance fees—“just over a hundred” units, a number that can vary and is not listed as 116 on NPS.gov. nps.gov
• What Juneteenth commemorates: It marks the enforcement of emancipation in Texas on June 19, 1865; nationwide abolition followed with the 13th Amendment in December 1865. People explainer
• New in 2026: Fee‑free days are for U.S. citizens and residents only—a detail the original article didn’t highlight. nps.gov

The money shift: What it will cost in 2026

Starting Jan. 1, 2026:

• Annual Pass (U.S. residents): $80
• Annual Pass (nonresidents): $250
• Nonresident surcharge: $100 per person at 11 of the most visited parks, on top of standard entrance fees
• U.S. citizens and residents get the fee‑free dates above; nonresidents do not on those days

Source: NPS Entrance Passes and related announcements nps.gov

Note: The NPS pages list the affected 11 parks; the precise enforcement details (for example, what proof of residency is accepted at every entrance station) are not spelled out on the page we reviewed.

The politics in the calendar

It’s not just what dates are on the calendar—it’s what they signal. The addition of June 14 (Flag Day, Trump’s birthday) alongside Constitution Day and Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday packages the year as a sweep of “patriotic” milestones. The removal of MLK Day and Juneteenth from the free‑entry slate, while lawful and within agency discretion, is certain to be read symbolically—especially as Juneteenth had only recently been recognized as a federal holiday and added as a free day in 2024.

What’s verified vs. what needs watching

Verified:

• June 14 added; MLK Day and Juneteenth removed from fee‑free days in 2026. nps.gov
• Resident‑only eligibility for fee‑free days. nps.gov
• “Patriotic fee‑free days” branding. nps.gov
• Executive order directing higher fees for nonresidents and affordability for Americans. whitehouse.gov
• Burgum’s statement about putting American families first. nps.gov
• 2026 pricing, including the $100 nonresident surcharge at 11 top parks. nps.gov

Open questions/limitations:

• Exact enforcement mechanics for residency on fee‑free days are not detailed on the NPS page we reviewed.
• How many parks are covered: NPS does not publish a fixed “116” number; it says fee‑free days apply to all fee‑charging units (generally just over 100), a figure that can change.

How we checked

We verified details against:

• NPS’s official Entrance Passes page (updated Nov. 26, 2025) nps.gov
• NPS/DOI press statements on the 2026 changes nps.gov
• The White House executive order (July 3, 2025) whitehouse.gov
• Federal law making Juneteenth a holiday (June 17, 2021) congress.gov

Bottom line

• True: June 14 is a fee‑free day in 2026; MLK Day and Juneteenth are not. The change aligns with a policy to make access cheaper for Americans and more expensive for international visitors.
• Important caveat: Fee‑free means U.S. citizens and residents only in 2026.
• Correction to the original: The “116 parks” figure isn’t an official NPS number, and Juneteenth marks the enforcement of emancipation in Texas, with nationwide abolition coming later via the 13th Amendment.

If you want the exact list of the 11 parks with the nonresident surcharge or the specific sections of the executive order that mandate higher nonresident fees, we can pull and summarize those next.