Fort McHenry fee-free days in 2026

What are the 2026 fee-free days at Fort McHenry?

Eight dates: 16 February, 25 May, 14 June, 3-5 July, 25 August, 17 September, 27 October and 11 November. Only 27 October and 11 November are still ahead.

The list comes straight from the Fort McHenry fees page, which applies the national National Park Service calendar. Every NPS site that charges an entrance fee goes free on these dates. At Fort McHenry that means the Historic Zone: the star fort, its barracks and powder magazine, and the outer battery with its cannons.

Both remaining dates fall midweek. That helps. A Tuesday in late October is about as quiet as the fort gets outside winter, and you will not be fighting the July crowds for space at the flag change.

Are fee-free days free for international visitors?

No. In 2026 the NPS gives free admission on these dates to U.S. citizens and residents only. Visitors from abroad pay the normal $15 per adult.

The NPS wording on the fees page is plain: sites that charge a fee "will offer free admission to US citizens and residents". The Interior Department called them "resident-only patriotic fee-free days" when it announced the list, as Newsweek reported in December 2025.

The NPS does not publish how a ranger checks residency at the desk. Carry the photo ID you would use for any pass, since the fees page asks for it with annual and America the Beautiful passes anyway.

Two things soften this for overseas visitors. Fort McHenry is not one of the 11 most-visited parks, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon among them, that charge non-residents an extra $100 from 2026, so you pay the same $15 an American pays on a normal day. And children 15 and under are free for everyone, every day. Do not bother with the $250 non-resident America the Beautiful pass for a Baltimore trip; it only pays off if you are also heading to places like Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon.

What changed from the 2025 fee-free days?

Five dates went and seven came in. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth were among those dropped; Veterans Day is the only date kept from 2025.

According to Newsweek's report of 5 December 2025, the 2025 dates removed were MLK Day, the first day of National Park Week, Juneteenth, the Great American Outdoors Act anniversary and National Public Lands Day. The new ones lean on patriotic anniversaries, which suits a fort that calls itself the birthplace of the national anthem.

If you read an older blog post promising a free visit on Juneteenth or National Public Lands Day, it is out of date. Pre-2026 pages also tend to say fee-free days are "free for everyone". Not any more.

What does a fee-free day save you at Fort McHenry?

$15 per adult aged 16 and over. Everything else at the park is free every day of the year, fee-free day or not.

A couple saves $30. A family of two adults and two kids under 16 also saves $30, because the kids never paid. That is the whole discount. These things cost nothing on any open day:

• The grounds and the parking lot (parking is free)
• The Paul S. Sarbanes Visitor Center, its museum and the 10-minute film
• The paved seawall trail, about a mile around the point
• The Orpheus statue, the lawns and the picnic tables

If you live nearby, compare the $45 Fort McHenry Annual Pass: it covers the holder plus three adults for 12 months and pays for itself on the third visit. Veterans and Gold Star families can get the free Military Lifetime pass, which covers the fort on any day, not just 11 November. Our tickets and prices guide has every pass in one table.

No car? The small-group van tour includes a 20-minute stop at the fort, and it runs in the off-season too.

★ 4.6 · 1.5 hours · from $48

Explore the neighborhoods tour with a fort stop → Tour details

What happens at Fort McHenry on Veterans Day, 11 November 2026?

Expect the normal winter program: flag changes at 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. and a ranger talk at 11:15 a.m. The NPS lists Veterans Day among the fort's big living-history days, but had posted no special 2026 schedule as of 16 October.

The winter ranger schedule runs daily: morning flag change at 10:00, "Ranger's Choice" at 11:15 (25 to 45 minutes, starting at the concrete Chesapeake Bay map behind the visitor center), and the evening flag change at 4:00. Flag changes take place on the parade ground inside the star fort, so on a normal day they need the $15 entry. On 11 November that is free for U.S. residents.

The NPS names Memorial Day, Defenders' Day and Veterans Day as the days with the most living history at the fort. A Wednesday Veterans Day may be lighter than a weekend one. Check the park homepage in early November; it is where Defenders' Day was announced this year.

Practical point: the Baltimore Water Taxi stops serving the fort after 31 October, so on 11 November you come by car (free parking), the free Charm City Circulator or an MTA bus. Our getting-there guide covers each one.

How do you plan a fee-free day visit?

Arrive at 9:00 a.m., go straight to the visitor center, and be in the fort for the 10:00 a.m. flag change. Allow about two hours in total.

The park opens at 9:00 a.m., the registers run 9:00 to 4:00, and last entry is 4:45 p.m. The NPS suggests about an hour inside the fort and two hours for the whole visit.

Do not buy a 7-day pass on recreation.gov for a fee-free date by mistake. Those digital passes are non-refundable. The park is also cashless, which matters if you visit on another day: cards only at the desk.

On 27 October you can still pair the fort with a boat. Watermark's harbor cruise sails April through October, which puts 27 October in the last week of the season for the 45-minute sightseeing cruise past the fort. Check that date in the booking calendar. By 11 November the cruise boats are done for the year, and our winter post lists what still runs.

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