Not in 2026. The park service says vehicle reservations were not required anywhere in Glacier National Park in 2026, including Going-to-the-Sun Road. Instead, Logan Pass had three-hour timed parking from July 1 through September 7 and a ticketed express shuttle booked on Recreation.gov. Riding in on a bike has not needed one, though in 2025 a car carrying bikes needed one to park at Avalanche. The park sets its rules each year, so check nps.gov before you travel.
Updated October 22, 2026. Conditions change: check nps.gov before you ride.
For several summers a timed vehicle reservation was the first thing every Glacier trip had to solve. In 2026 the park changed course. Here is what the park service said, and what it means if you plan to ride.
What The Park Said For 2026
The park’s reservation page carries one headline: vehicle reservations will not be required in 2026. The Logan Pass page adds that reservations were not required at Many Glacier, Two Medicine, the North Fork or Going-to-the-Sun Road, and that vehicles may be diverted from entrances when an area becomes too congested. Visitors with service, camping or backcountry reservations were to be let in during a temporary restriction, with possible delays.
What Replaced Reservations At Logan Pass
Two things, both for July 1 through Labor Day, September 7, 2026:
- Three-hour timed parking. Park in an open space, take a free timestamped permit from the kiosk, and put it on your dashboard. The limit was enforced around the clock. Overnight parking was not allowed except with a backcountry or Granite Park Chalet permit.
- A ticketed Logan Pass shuttle. Express buses to the pass from Apgar Visitor Center, Lake McDonald Lodge, St. Mary Visitor Center and Rising Sun. Every rider needed a ticket from Recreation.gov, with a $1 processing fee, tied to a boarding place and time. A share of tickets opened 60 days ahead and the rest at 7 pm the evening before. The shuttle did not serve Avalanche Lake or the Trail of the Cedars in 2026, and it did not run past Labor Day.
The park called these pilots, part of its continued learning as it refines transportation. Expect the rules to be set again before each summer.
What Bikes Need
Riding in on a bike has not needed a vehicle reservation. In 2025 the park did require one for a car parking at Avalanche to ride from there, and in 2026 no reservations were required at all. You pay the park entrance fee at the gate, you follow the park’s bike rules, and in spring you ride past the vehicle closure into the car-free miles. The rules that do apply are the seasonal ones: in summer, bicycles are prohibited eastbound from Apgar to Logan Pass between 12 pm and 6 pm and westbound from Logan Pass to Apgar between 3 pm and 6 pm, through September 27. In spring, the hiker-biker closures move weekly and must not be passed. Our Sun Road biking guide has the full set, in the park’s words.
Will Reservations Come Back?
The park has not said. It describes 2026 as a pilot and posts updates on nps.gov. We will keep this page current with whatever the park announces for next season, and our road status page carries the park’s live alerts.
Plan The Ride
Whatever the park decides about cars, pick up your e-bikes in Whitefish, drive to the West Entrance, and ride. Rent an e-bike for Glacier.