The 7 Most Competitive US Hiking Permits To Apply For in 2025

Every year, millions of hikers venture into America’s most iconic wilderness areas. While 2024 numbers haven’t yet been released, in 2023, national parks alone saw 325,498,646 visitors. With some of the most beautiful (and varied) landscapes in North America, it’s no surprise that both domestic and international travelers are drawn to the country’s natural wonders.

But as outdoor recreation grows more popular, some of the country’s most spectacular trails and destinations are suffering from the effects of too many people. That’s why many parks, campgrounds, and even specific trails now require hiking permits — and securing one is often no easy feat when it comes to the most coveted passes. From the vertigo-inducing chains of Angels Landing in Zion National Park to the surreal sandstone swirls of The Wave in Arizona, the demand for permits far exceeds supply, with organizations like the National Park Service (NPS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and US Forest Service (USFS) running hiking permit lotteries, designed to both protect fragile environments and give everyone an equitable shot at winning.

Navigating these competitive systems can be daunting, especially since each permit system operates differently. Some rely on once-a-year lotteries, while others have monthly or quarterly draws. Some may have last-minute passes available in person, while others use high-tech mobile systems to distribute remaining passes.

And like the elevations, the stakes are also high: Arizona’s The Wave, for instance, sees less than three percent of applicants win a spot. But that challenge is what makes the effort so rewarding, especially if you’re one of the lucky few to get a winning email, and can start planning the bucket-list hiking trip you’ve been dreaming of.

New-ish features on the Recreation.gov app can notify you of cancellations and last-minute permit availability. Photo: Suzie Dundas

Every application is different, so strategies that may work for some of the most competitive hiking permits won’t work for others. But there are a few general principles you can follow to maximize your chances of winning. However, there’s one thing that doesn’t matter: what time you enter. Unless a permit website says specifically otherwise, as long as you enter during the lottery window, you have the same chance of winning, whether you submitted your application on the first day or last day.

1. Assume you’ll need to try for a last-minute permit: While you should definitely enter the early lotteries, if you know you’re going to be visiting the destination whether or not you win, budget enough time into your trip to try for a last-minute permit. For example, if you didn’t win an early lottery permit for The Wave, plan to spend at least three days in the area. That will give you time to enter the last-chance lottery, just in case you don’t win the advanced lottery. And on the lucky chance you do win an early permit, that’ll give you a few extra days to explore other area hikes, like some in Zion National Park.

2. Avoid weekends: Since most people work Monday to Friday, weekends are the most in-demand dates for nearly all permits on this list. In many cases, the odds of winning one of the most competitive hiking permits are much better if you prioritize Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday dates. For permits that allow you to list multiple dates, listing midweek dates as first choices is better than starting with weekend dates.

3. Keep your group small: Each permit application can represent multiple people, but the number of permits distributed is by person, not group. That means it’s easier to accommodate a three-person group on a trail than it is a 10-person group. We’re not saying to cut people from your team, but make sure you only list the group size you need. Leaving blank spaces for extra people who may decide later if they want to come sounds like a good idea, but it’ll make it harder to win a permit.

4. Choose early- and late-season dates: Choosing dates on the fringes of the popular seasons will give you a better shot at winning. Keep in mind that for some trails, it can slightly increase your chances of weather issues. For example, the Half Dome cables in Yosemite are usually up from late May until mid-October. Choosing October dates will ensure less competition, but slightly increase your chances of snow or winter weather causing the cables to come down early, thus closing the trail. That said, the date range for each trail is based on years of experience and weather patterns, so if the National Park Service or USFS thinks a hike will be accessible during certain dates, they’re probably correct.

5. Submit multiple applications (if allowed): For permit systems that allow it, have everyone in your group submit an application with themselves listed as the group leader to maximize the chance of someone winning. Note that most applications will not allow the same person to be a group leader and alternate group leader, so be careful to use each person only once, regardless of what role they fill on the application.

6. Obsessively monitor Recreation.gov: If you didn’t get a permit, bookmark the trail page on Recreation.gov and check it obsessively (we’re talking several times a day). Many hikes that have permit lotteries make unclaimed permits and campsites available online after the lottery on a first-come, first-served basis. Checking the page first thing in the morning and just before going to bed can be some of the best times to snag a permit someone else cancelled. You can also have the Recreation.gov app send you a notification if the permit you want becomes available on a certain date.

• Distance: 5.4 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 1,490 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 30 percent

Angels Landing in Zion National Park doesn’t publish full stats on how many permit applications it gets each year. But it’s safe to say it’s quite a lot, since the permit program (instituted in 2022), was a solution to solve the trail’s overtourism problem. Depending on the date you want to hike, your odds of winning a permit could be as high as 100 percent (midweek winter) or as low as eight percent (holiday summer weekends).

The hike isn’t particularly difficult compared to others on this list, with a distance of about 5.4 miles and an elevation gain of less than 1,500 feet. But the steep and narrow section at the top can be intimidating for anyone with a fear of heights, especially with dozens of other hikers attempting the same route at the same time.

• Distance: 24 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 6,100 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 27.3 percent

Mount Whitney in California’s eastern Sierra Nevada has an unbeatable claim to fame, as the highest point in the mainland United States. To find taller peaks in the US, you’d have to go to Alaska. That draws a plethora of experienced hikers each year who are anxious to say they completed the grueling hike. Whether you want to camp halfway up the mountain or do it as an incredibly long day hike, you’ll need a permit. In 2023, more than 100,000 people applied for permits, but only a small fraction actually won.

• Distance: 24 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +4,500 feet/-6,000 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 25 percent

The Rim-to-Rim hike in Grand Canyon National Park is no joke, coming in at roughly 24 miles long. It drops more than 6,000 feet if you start at the North Rim and crosses the Colorado River before climbing back up the other side. While the hike’s distance and elevation changes are formidable, the true challenge lies in the environmental extremes, like searing summer heat in the canyon’s depths and freezing conditions at higher elevations, not to mention extreme dryness.

For most people to finish the hike, they’ll need to camp in the canyon, and there’s only one campground in the middle of the trek: Bright Angel Campground. More than 30,000 applications are received each year for a site, but only about a quarter of people are lucky enough to snag one.

• Distance: 17 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 4,800 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 20 percent

Half Dome in Yosemite National Park is one of the most famous hikes in California, and the recognizable shape of the summit has become a defacto symbol for both Yosemite National Park and California outdoor recreation in general. It’s a long hike, most famous for its 500-foot-long section up a granite slope so steep that hikers have to use steel cables to pull themselves along (and avoid slipping and falling thousands of feet). Even with permits, many people decide to turn around when they reach the sub-dome — a steep, exposed section of granite that comes before the cabled section.

It’s one of the most competitive hiking permits in California, as the National Park Service limits access to 225 hikers per day. With a success rate of only about one in five, many would-be hikers have to enter multiple years in a row before they score a pre-season Half Dome permit.

• Distance: 16 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 2,400 feet
• Annual permit success rate: Low

The Havasupai People own the land where you’ll find Havasu Falls, which is partially surrounded by Grand Canyon National Park. Havasupai means “people of the blue-green waters,” reflecting the beauty of Havasu Falls and other streams and rivers on their land. Many members live in Supai Village, located in a remote canyon within the Havasupai Indian Reservation. It’s one of the most isolated communities in the United States and accessible only by foot or horseback.

That means you’ll have to hike in on foot to see Havasu Falls. And you’ll also need to plan far in advance, since the only way to see it is by scoring a three-night reservation at Supai Village’s campground or mid-range hotel. Access is off-limits for everyone else. The Havasupai Tribe doesn’t make reservation application statistics available, but based on accounts from people who have tried to score a reservation, it’s one of the most competitive hiking permits in the US, with hundreds of reports online of people waiting for years to finally win.

• Distance: 6.7 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 1,200 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 3 percent

The Wave is in Arizona, though the trailhead is in southern Utah. It’s a one-of-a-kind geological formation of mesmerizing sandstone swirls and vibrant red, orange, and yellow hues that resemble undulating waves frozen in stone. The sandstone stripes, formed over millions of years, are extremely susceptible to erosion, which is why the Bureau of Land Management limits access to only 64 people per day. The combination of its surreal beauty and restricted entry makes it one of the most competitive hiking permits in the country, with the vast majority of applicants going home empty handed at the end of each lottery.

• Distance: 18.5 miles
• Elevation gain/loss: +/- 4,500 feet
• Annual permit success rate: 1.9 percent

The Core Enchantments Zone in central Washington state is the postcard-perfect version of a high-elevation alpine wilderness: blue lakes, snow-capped peaks, and shimmering granite slabs, dotted with the occasional hopping mountain goat. There are five zones within the Enchantments, some of which have shorter trails that allow for day hikes. But the Core Enchantments Zone smack in the middle is arguably the prettiest, as well as the hardest to reach. That means most people visiting choose to camp in the Core Zone, and with a ridiculously small amount of people allowed each day, the right to camp in the Core Enchantments has made it one of the — if not the — most competitive hiking permit in the entire US.