Yellowstone National Park visitation on record pace through May

Yellowstone National Park saw more than 570,000 visitors pass through its entrance stations last month, the busiest May on record, and is currently on pace to exceed its overall record year.

Visits to the park in May were up 1% from 2025, the previous record for that month, and a whopping 20% higher than May of 2021, which was Yellowstone’s record-breaking year with more than 4.8 million visitors.

Through the first five months of 2026, Yellowstone has hosted 773,653 recreation visits, up 1.1% from 2025, and 19% higher than in 2021.

In 2025, Yellowstone saw its second-highest visitation on record with more than 4.7 million visitors. The near-record numbers came despite a 43-day partial government shutdown in October and November, when the park saw a dip in visitation by nearly 8% from previous years.