Indiana Dunes National Park will begin charging an entry fee starting in March. Indiana's federal dune area has undergone a lot of changes since it became a National Park, and the park has plans to make sure that doesn't end soon. Indiana Dunes passes will be sold at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center, Indiana 49, just outside the park in Porter, and at Paul H. Like any community, Indiana Dune National Park must ensure that trails, beaches, historic sites, public buildings and everything else within the park Stay vibrant, clean and well maintained.
However, the challenge for Indiana Dunes is how its 15,000 acres are scattered along 15 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline with multiple entry points. The fee only affects the national park and does not change the fee charged by the state to enter Indiana Dunes State Park. Don't forget to “leave no trace” when you visit the Indiana dunes and take everything you bring with you when you leave. Passes will be on sale at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center, the Paul H Douglas Center and, seasonally, at the West Beach entrance station or online at www.
The park also surrounds the separately managed Indiana Dunes State Park, whose separate fee structure will not change. Other major parks with Lake Michigan beaches in Indiana and southwestern Michigan charge admission during the summer, and Michigan state parks require a “paid state passport” year-round, while some small beaches in the municipality do not charge. Another 20% would go to a fund shared by national parks that have no quota, a fund that has benefited Indiana Dunes until now. This new fee only affects the national park and does not change the fee charged by the state to enter Indiana Dunes State Park.