( CNN ) -- Grand Canyon National Park wants to increase its entrance fees , and several other national parks may do the same . For the first time in eight years , the National Park Service has given park sites that charge entrance and amenity fees permission to increase their rates by set amounts . They have to engage their communities , note what the increases will cover and get approval by park service headquarters . Fee increase proposals are due by March 15 . Though just 133 of the 401 National Park Service sites across the United States charge an entrance fee , they 're some of the parks that travelers often think of first . Think Yosemite , Yellowstone and of course , the Grand Canyon . Grand Canyon is proposing to increase several fees for the first time since 1997 . The single vehicle entrance fee would increase from $ 25 to $ 30 for a seven-day pass , and the individual and motorcycle rate of $ 12 would increase to $ 15 per individual and to $ 25 per motorcycle . The individual park 's annual pass would increase from $ 50 to $ 60 . The cost of national park system passes will remain at $ 80 for the regular annual pass , $ 10 for the lifetime senior pass and free for the annual military passes and access passes ( for those with permanent disabilities ) . These are five national park sites we think you must see , either now or after any fee increases take effect . They 're still a bargain ! Grand Canyon National Park , Arizona . The Colorado River cuts through the bottom of the magnificent Grand Canyon for 277 miles , and it 's a full vertical mile from the South Rim to the canyon floor . The canyon 's width varies , but it measures 18 miles in several spots . The South Rim is open year-round , but the North Rim -- generally the coolest place in the park -- is open during the spring and summer . Current vehicle entrance fee : $ 25 . Grand Canyon filled with river of clouds . Yosemite National Park , California . Yosemite National Park , which released its fee proposal in October , wants to increase its weekly entrance pass from $ 20 to $ 30 . Camping fees would rise from the current range of $ 5 to $ 20 per night for family sites ( $ 40 per night for group sites ) to a range of $ 6 to $ 24 per night for family sites ( $ 48 per night for group sites ) . President Abraham Lincoln first protected Yosemite with his signing of the Yosemite Land Grant on June 30 , 1864 , 150 years ago . Yosemite will celebrate 125 years as a national park in 2015 . Yellowstone National Park , Wyoming , Montana and Idaho . Old Faithful calls this place home . Established as the United States ' first national park in 1872 , Yellowstone is also one of the first 12 sites on UNESCO 's World Heritage List , which recognizes the world 's most important natural and cultural wonders . Yellowstone is one of the few remaining intact ecosystems of significant size in the northern temperate zone on Earth , including a volcano , more than 300 geysers and more than 10,000 thermal features . Current vehicle entrance fee : $ 25 . Arches National Park , Utah . Arches National Park is one of the most unique spots on Earth , home to the world 's highest collection of natural sandstone arches . They include the largest , Landscape Arch , and the tallest , Double Arch South . Current vehicle entrance fee : $ 10 . Great Smoky Mountains National Park , North Carolina and Tennessee . It 's free ! Despite its reign as the most-visited national park in the country last year , with 9.4 million visitors , Great Smoky Mountains National Park is our bargain park , with no entrance fees . ( There are camping and other amenity fees . ) That 's because the park 's Newfound Gap Road was once owned by the state of Tennessee . When the state transferred it to the federal government , the state required that no fee `` ever be imposed '' to travel the road .
Yellowstone allowing fee increases for first time in annual . Grand Canyon National Park , Yosemite and 131 other park sites charge fees . National parks are still a bargain .