Assateague Island National Seashore to increase entrance fees for visitors

On Monday, The Assateague Island National Seashore announced they will increase their fees to provide additional funding for infrastructure and maintenance needs to enhance visitors experience. Starting on May 1st, 2018, the per-person fee will go from $5 to $10 per person. While the other fees will currently remain the same.

"All the money comes back to us and it does take money to keep things like this going and with budget cuts that have happened throughout many years this is one of the ways we can recoup some of that money and still keep it affordable for people to come," said assistant public information officer Kelly Taylor.

Officials add that by 2020 they expect to raise all current entrance fees by another $5, making it $15 per person, $25 per vehicle, $20 per motorcycle, and $45 for an annual park pass. They say the modest increase will allow the national seashore to protect and preserve the area for visitors and future generations to come.