Lake Yellowstone Hotel in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming( NPS photo- Neal Herbert)
Commercial facilities in national parks are owned by the U. S. Government but operated under lease by private firms. The price travelers pay for lodging is generally established by agreements between park officials and their business partners. The National Park Service solicits bids from private firms interested in operating the restaurants, gift shops and lodges, typically for a length of 10 years. In place of fixed rent, operators are required to pay the parks a percentage of gross revenues generated by the business. For example, a contract may require a lodge or gift shop operator to remit 15 % of gross revenues to the park.
Several factors boost the expense of operating commercial facilities in the national parks. Many parks have short seasons.
Glacier National Park’ s most popular lodge, Many Glacier Hotel, is typically open from late May through mid-September. Yellowstone’ s iconic Old Faithful Inn generally welcomes guests for only five months annually. Short seasons result in a limited period to earn a year’ s worth of revenue. The operators compensate by charging relatively high prices.
34 Valdosta Scene | June 2025