Zion National Park received a record number of visitors in 2009. Recorded visitation was 2,735,401, representing a 1.7 percent increase over 2008, the previous record year.
A portion of the increase in visitation may be attributed to the park’s Centennial celebration in 2009. Numerous Centennial events and programs brought visitors to the park throughout the year. In addition, the park’s backcountry continues to draw more visitors. In 2009, the number of backcountry users increased by 17.3 percent over 2008.
Visitation through the South and Kolob Canyons Entrances increased while visitation decreased through the East Entrance and in the Kolob Terrace section of the park. Compared to 2008, there was a 29 percent decrease in the number of visitors arriving by tour bus.
The park has set new visitation records four times since 2002. Since 1919, when the park was renamed Zion National Park, 88,904,937 visitors have entered the park. Visitation has exceeded 2 million per year since 1990. In the last decade alone, over 25 million people have visited Zion. The visitation records reveal that whether in good or challenging economic times, Zion National Park remains a very popular tourism destination.
Additional visitation information is available online at www.nature.nps.gov/stats.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
