Location: Fritch, TX
13,000 years ago, this site was well-known by mammoth hunters as a source of flint for tools. Centuries passed, but the colorful flint never lost its value or usefulness in the Texas Panhandle. Learn how important this site was to the survival, commerce and culture of the people of the High Plains.
Fees: All services and programs are free.
Hours Info: Alibates Flint Quarries Visitor Center is open every day of the year except Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/alfl/
Location: Del Rio, TX
An oasis in the desert, Amistad National Recreation Area consists of the US portion of the International Amistad Reservoir. Amistad, whose name comes from the Spanish word meaning friendship, is best known for excellent water-based recreation, camping, hiking, rock art viewing, and its rich cultural history. Amistad is also home to a wide variety of plant and animal life above and below the water.
Fees: To enter the park there is no fee.
Hours Info: Amistad National Recreation Area is open throughout the year. However, some areas may experience temporary closures because of low water levels. Please see our Operation Hours and Seasons page for more specific details.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/amis/
Location: The big bend of the Rio Grande, TX
There is a place in Far West Texas where night skies are dark as coal and rivers carve temple-like canyons in ancient limestone. Here, at the end of the road, hundreds of bird species take refuge in a solitary mountain range surrounded by weather-beaten desert. Tenacious cactus bloom in sublime southwestern sun, and diversity of species is the best in the country. This magical place is Big Bend...
Fees: This fee includes all occupants of a private, non-commercial vehicle and is valid for 7 days.
Hours Info: Big Bend National Park is always open. You can enter and exit at any time of the day or night. Park entrances are open 24 hours daily, all year.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/bibe/
Location: Beaumont, TX
Life of all types abounds in the Big Thicket. This national preserve protects the incredible diversity of life found where multiple habitats converge in southeast Texas. Hiking trails and waterways meander through nine different ecosystems, from longleaf pine forests to cypress-lined bayous. It is a place of discovery, a place to wander and explore, a place to marvel at the richness of nature.
Fees: Big Thicket National Preserve does not charge an entrance fee.
Hours Info: Big Thicket National Preserve is open 24 hours. To camp in the preserve, you need a backcountry camping permit, available from the visitor center.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/bith/
Location: El Paso, TX
Chamizal is more than just an urban park to recreate or enjoy a quiet afternoon. These grounds are a reminder of the harmonious settlement of a 100-year boundary dispute between the United States and Mexico. We celebrate the cultures of the borderlands to promote the same mutual respect that helped to diplomatically resolve an international disagreement.
Fees: Chamizal National Memorial is a fee-free park. There is no entrance fee for the park grounds or Cultural Center exhibit. Programs and events sponsored or presented by the Memorial's park rangers are free to the general public.
Hours Info: The Memorial grounds are open to vehicle and foot traffic only when the gates are open.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/cham/
Location: Various States TX,LA
Explore a diverse array of histories contained within El Camino Real de los Tejas’ 150-year life, including the Spanish struggle to missionize American Indian nations, the growth of cattle ranching in the Mexican period, and the movement for Texan independence and statehood.
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for El Camino Real. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail is not a clearly marked hiking trail. Instead it is a route that passes through communities, urban areas, public lands, and Wilderness. The route travels across a variety of land ownerships and management, including private land. Each location varies as to the hours of operations and access. Please contact individual trail sites before your visit for more information.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/elte/
Location: NM,TX
Travel along El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail to experience and learn from a complicated legacy of 300 years of conflict, cooperation, and cultural exchange between a variety of empires—European and non-European alike.
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for El Camino Real. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail is not a clearly marked hiking trail. Instead it is a route that passes through communities, urban areas, public lands, and Wilderness. The route travels across a variety of land ownerships and management, including private land. Beyond the United States, the trail reaches Mexico City, Mexico. Each location varies as to the hours of operations and access. Please contact individual trail sites before your visit for more information.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/elca/
Location: Fort Davis, TX
Fort Davis is one of the best surviving examples of an Indian Wars' frontier military post in the Southwest. From 1854 to 1891, Fort Davis was strategically located to protect emigrants, mail coaches, and freight wagons on the Trans-Pecos portion of the San Antonio-El Paso Road and on the Chihuahua Trail.
Fees: Per Person Fee over 15 years of age. 7 Day pass
Hours Info: Daily Hours are 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Holiday Closures: Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, and Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/foda/
Location: Salt Flat, TX
Come experience mountains and canyons, desert and dunes, night skies and spectacular vistas within a place unlike any other. Guadalupe Mountains National Park protects the world's most extensive Permian fossil reef, the four highest peaks in Texas, an environmentally diverse collection of flora and fauna, and the stories of lives shaped through conflict, cooperation and survival.
Fees: An entrance fee of $10 per person (16 years of age and older) is required; entrance fees/passes permit 1-7 consecutive days of use in this national park. Holders of the Annual, Senior, Military, 4th grade and Access Pass can bring in 3 adults free of charge under their pass. Any pass must be displayed in a vehicle while in the national park.
Hours Info: The Pine Springs area, including the campground, visitor center, trailhead, and associated parking areas are open and accessible all of the time during normal operations. Camping is permitted in designated campsites only.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/gumo/
Location: Fritch, TX
Within the dry, windswept plains of the Texas Panhandle lies a hidden oasis, a welcoming haven where wildlife and people find relief from the dry grasslands above. Through this flat plain, the Canadian River has cut dramatic 200-foot canyons, or breaks, where humans lived 13,000 years ago. Lake Meredith occupies these hidden coves and is a haven for migratory birds and other wildlife.
Fees: Fee for entering Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
Hours Info: The National Recreation Area is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/lamr/
Location: Johnson City, TX
---Lyndon Baines Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park tells the story of our 36th President beginning with his ancestors until his final resting place on his beloved LBJ Ranch. This entire "circle of life" gives the visitor a unique perspective into one of America's most noteworthy citizens by providing the most complete picture of any American president.
Fees: The park does not charge an entrance fee.
Hours Info: The park is open every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. For hours specific to visitor centers and tours of historic buildings please see descriptions elsewhere.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/lyjo/
Location: Corpus Christi, TX
Padre Island National Seashore separates the Gulf of Mexico from the Laguna Madre, one of a few hypersaline lagoons in the world. The park protects 66 miles of coastline, dunes, prairies, and wind tidal flats teeming with life. It is a safe nesting ground for the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle and a haven for over 380 bird species. It also has a rich history, including the Spanish shipwrecks of 1554.
Fees: This fee provides entrance into the park for one private, standard passenger vehicle for up to 7 days. It covers all occupants of the vehicle.
Hours Info: The park is open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. However, park facilities are not open 24 hours per day. Hours for the entrance station, where the required entrance pass is sold, vary from day to day. If the entrance station is not open when you arrive, you can proceed into the park. If you are camping, go back to the entrance station the next morning and obtain an entrance pass. If not camping, pay the entrance fee as you leave if the entrance station is open.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/pais/
Location: Brownsville, TX
On May 8, 1846, United States and Mexican troops clashed on the prairie of Palo Alto. The battle was the first in a two-year long war that changed the map of North America. Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park preserves the site of this notable battle and provides an understanding of the causes, events, and consequences of the U.S.-Mexican War.
Fees: There is no fee to enter Palo Alto Battlefield or attend park programs and events. Enjoy your visit!
Hours Info: The park is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The park's busy season runs from November through May. During the month of May, the visitor center and trails are often busy with school field trips in the mornings. Park trails close at 4:30 p.m. All gates are locked at 5 p.m.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/paal/
Location: Southwest Texas, TX
For 196 miles, this free-flowing stretch of the Rio winds its way through desert expanses and stunning canyons of stratified rock. For the well prepared, an extended float trip provides opportunities to explore the most remote corner of Texas and experience the ultimate in solitude, self-reliance, and immersion in natural soundscapes.
Fees: To access the Rio Grande Wild & Scenic River, you will enter Big Bend National Park. Entrance fees apply.
Hours Info: Rio Grande Wild & Scenic River is open 24 hours a day, 365 days per year.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/rigr/
Location: San Antonio, TX
Welcome to San Antonio Missions, a National Park Service site and the only UNESCO World Heritage Site in Texas. After 10,000 years, the people of South Texas were faced with drought, European diseases, and colonization. In the early 1700s, many Native people of South Texas foreswore their traditional life to become Spanish, accepting a new religion and agrarian lifestyle in hopes of survival.
Fees: Entrance to the park is free.
Hours Info: Following guidance from the CDC and recommendations from state and local public health in consultation with NPS Public Health Service officers, Park Store is open 9 am to 1 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm, 7 days/week. Park grounds are open. Park grounds are closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/saan/
Location: Waco, TX
Standing as tall as 14 feet and weighing 20,000 pounds, Columbian mammoths roamed across what is present-day Texas thousands of years ago. Today, the fossil specimens represent the nation's first and only recorded evidence of a nursery herd of ice age Columbian mammoths.
Hours Info: Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/waco/