he Passport To Your National Parks® program, launched in 1986, provides information and encourages visitation to all of America’s national parks. It includes a
passport book that lists all national parks in the United States and U.S. territories, and provides space for ‘cancellation’ stamps which can be found in almost every national park in the system. The program also encompasses several other supporting publications, such as the Kids’ Passport To Your National Parks Companion® and the Passport to Your National Parks Explorer Edition®, which is a larger, more-detailed version of the original
passport book.
A set of adhesive-backed stamps is produced annually, which features one park from each of the nine geographic regions of the program and one national stamp. The photos used on the stamps are taken by park employees and volunteers and are selected through an annual photo contest. Recently, Eastern National published the Passport To Your National Parks® Stamp Series Collector’s Book (1986-2016), as a means of collecting and preserving the annual stamps.
In 2011 the Passport to Your National Parks® program is celebrating its 25th anniversary and has more of an impact than ever. It has created a devoted following in the United States, which includes groups like the
National Parks Travelers’ Club who collect the much-revered cancellation stamps and trade experiences with other enthusiasts by utilizing message boards on the Internet, through annual conventions, and on organized visits to parks.