With National Parks rising in popularity after Covid, the use of lottery permits has become a popular way to select and limit the number of people visiting popular trails within the National Park Service. It allows them to protect the trails from being overrun with people and protect the natural landscape we all love. However, unless you now how it works, it can get a little confusing on how it all works.
So how do you apply for these lotteries? And who’s in charge of running them? Most permits are found on Recreation.gov. For these, all you need to do is make an account on their website and pay a small application fee for each lottery you apply to. Each lottery has an open and closing window for when you can apply. After the application window closes, emails will be sent out with results to let you know whether you were selected.
There’s so many permits out there to apply for, it can hard to know which ones are the best. The permits we chose are ones that we’ve previously applied to and have gotten selected, or permits we still apply for and hope to get in the future. These are all found on Recreation.gov, and more details can be found in the links below. If you’re ever curious about any other lotteries that are available, they can all be found on their website.
Tip: If you’re able to, try and apply for days that tend to be less desirable for others — weekdays, days directly after holidays (i.e. July 5th, Decembe 26th), etc.
1. Zion North Creek Left Fork (Subway) Lottery
Event Date: 4/1/2025 – 6/30/2025
Application Opens: Sat 2/01/2025
Application Closes: Tue, 2/25/2025 10:00 PM UTC
Results: Thur, 2/27/2025
Details: This hike in Zion NP is known for its unique slot canyon about 1/4 mile long that is only accessible by this trail. It is considered a strenuous 9-mile hike that requires you to wade through knee-deep water and do some moderate boulder scrambling, so you do need to be prepared for a technically challenging hike. A permit is always required to do this hike, so this is the only way you’ll be able to complete it. Utah can get hot around this time of year, so make sure to be prepared and stay hydrated. NOTE: The hiking trail is considered bottom-up hiking route- there is also a canyoneering route that is top-down. There’s plenty of signage at the trailhead, but don’t forget to check!
2. Coyote Buttes North (The Wave)
Event Date: Sun 6/1/2025 – Mon 6/30/2025
Application Opens: Sat 2/1/2025, 9:00 AM MT
Application Closes: Sat 2/28/2025 11:59 PM MT
Results: Sat 3/1/2025, 9:00 AM MT
Details: The Wave in Arizona is probably one of the most well known slot canyons due its photogenic scenery. This does require an AWD to access the trailhead, and there’s minimal signage on the trail to follow. This is a hike you’ll need to be prepared for, but it’s 100% worth it! There is very limited space on this trail and it is ran by BLM. NOTE: We FINALLY won a permit for the Wave last year, you can take a look at our other blog post to see more details on the Wave.
3. Mount Whitney
Event Date: Thur 5/1/2025 – Sat 11/1/2025
Application Opens: Sat 2/1/2025 9:00 AM PST
Application Closes: Sat 3/1/2025 11:59 PM PST
Results: Sat 3/15/2025
Details: The tallest point in the lower 48 states, a bucket list item! This California hike starts at 8,360 feet elevation and ends at 14,505 feet elevation. You’re likely to make some human and/or marmot friends along the way up. This lottery has the option to apply for a single-day or overnight permit. It’s a doozy of a hike, but if you give yourself plenty of time or apply for the overnight hike, it’s manageable.
NOTE: This is one of our favorite hikes we’ve done. We love it so much, we’ve done it twice! (Blog coming soon for details on how we prepared and tackled this crazy hike).
4. Angel’s Landing – Summer Seasonal
Event Date: Sun 6/1/2025 – Sun 8/31/2025
Application Opens: Tue 4/1/2025 8:00 AM MDT
Application Closes: Sun 4/20/2025 11:59 PM MDT
Results: Fri 4/25/2025
Details: Another iconic hike in Zion National Park. It provides incredible views along the entire hike, and leads you up to a bird’s eye view of the canyon below. This hike can get very crowded and very hot, so we recommend to start this early to beat the heat.
5. Great Smoky Mountains Firefly Viewing Lottery
Event Date: June 3-10
Application Opens: Friday 4/26 10 AM EDT
Application Closes: Monday 4/29 11:59 PM EDT
Results: Mid-May:
Details: This is a pretty unique experience that you can do in the Great Smoky National Park in Tennessee. There are only a few species of fireflies in the world that can synchronize their flash patterns, and this is one of those unique places you can see it yourselves. It only occurs a few weeks out of the year during breeding season, and it’s quite the site to see.
NOTE: If you’re unable to get a permit for the Smokies, there’s another lottery for the Congaree Firefly viewing in South Carolina — see honorable mentions below.
Honorable mentions:
These are a few other permits that we think are worth mentioning. Each of them are a very unique experience of their own. Click on the links below to find out more information on the event and when the permit applications will be open.
- Half Dome Preseason Lottery 2025 (Yosemite NP, California)
- Congaree National Park Firefly Viewing (Congaree NP, South Carolina)
- Brooks Lodge Lottery (Katmai NP, Alaska)
Comment below & tell us about any adventures you’ve had at one of these spots! Also let us know any recommendations you have for other permits that we should look out for.
We hope this helps inspire some trips to be planned! See you out on the trails!