This Just In ...National Parks Are for Everyone: Accessible OpportunitiesLast year more than 276 million people visited sites managed by the National Park Service (NPS) - each one finding their own meaning and value in a personal way. What about visitors with special needs – are they given the same opportunities to experience and appreciate the national parks?In most cases - yes. The NPS has developed and made available a website to aid visitors with disabilities and special needs to find accessible trails, programs, activities, and other features at national park units nationwide. It is hoped that we can assist visitors and their families and friends in travel planning to the NPS site of their choice. Visit the “National Parks: Accessible to Everyone” website at National Park Service -- Accessible Parks to learn about what opportunities are available in parks for visitors with disabilities and special needs. “I am proud of all that the National Park Service is doing to provide opportunities to enjoy the parks for everyone who wants to visit,” said Mary A. Bomar, Director of the National Park Service. “We still have a way to go before we can say we are accessible to all, but that is our goal and we will continue to work to achieve that – it is the least that we can do.” National park units are constantly moving forward to provide accessible trails, campgrounds, museum exhibits, ranger programs, and other visitor opportunities for visitors with disabilities. This website will remain a work in progress and we will continue to add information as it becomes available. We may have missed information from some park and if an NPS unit is not highlighted here, it does not mean it does not have accessible features. To obtain information about units not included in this website, please call them or visit their websites, which can be reached via www.nps.gov. Many parks include sections on their websites about accessibility; look for these sections in websites’ indexes.
Adapted from a press release from National Park Service
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