Provincial parks across Alberta are free to visit around the year except for those in Kananaskis Country.
Located in the Canadian Rockies/foothills about 100 km from Calgary, Kananaskis Country or the Kananaskis Improvement District is home to many of the most popular Alberta Parks featuring breathtaking hikes, unique features and waterfalls accessible around the year.
In 2021, the provincial government introduced a paid pass system for the area, Kananaskis Conservation Pass, so that the government could allocate more staff to care for the area experiencing much more traffic than Banff National Park.
The vehicle entry pass costs $15 per day or $90 per year.
First Nations, low-income Albertans participating in provincial support programs and residents of the Kananaskis Improvement District are exempt from the pass requirement.
For all others, Kananaskis Parks are free to visit on the first Wednesday of every month and on some special days.
These are the upcoming free entry dates for this year:
First Wednesday of every month – 2023:
- Wednesday, February 1st, 2023
- Wednesday, March 1st, 2023
- Wednesday, April 5th, 2023
- Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023
- Wednesday, June 7th, 2023
- Wednesday, July 5th, 2023
- Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023
- Wednesday, September 6th, 2023
- Wednesday, October 4th, 2023
- Wednesday, November 1st, 2023
- Wednesday, December 6th, 2023
Other upcoming 2023 free days:
- Monday, February 20, 2023: Family Day
- Saturday, April 22, 2023: Earth Day
- Wednesday, June 21, 2023: Indigenous People’s Day
- Saturday, July 15, 2023: Parks Day
- Friday, September 22, 2023: Kananaskis Country’s Birthday
- Saturday, November 11, 2023: Remembrance Day
- Thursday, December 21, 2023: First day of winter
- Monday, December 25, 2023: Christmas Day
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