Most North Carolina state parks charge nothing for day use: 37 of the 43 open units we checked list free day-use access. Three lake recreation areas (Falls Lake, Jordan Lake and Kerr Lake) are free most of the year with a per-vehicle fee on certain days, and Chimney Rock charges per person at its attraction. Fees below were read from each unit’s own page on ncparks.gov on 2026-10-18.
What costs money
| Item | Where it applies |
|---|---|
| Day-use entry | Free at 37 units. Falls Lake, Jordan Lake and Kerr Lake: free most of the year, per-vehicle fee on certain days (amount not on the park pages we read). Chimney Rock: per-person fee at the attraction, free at Rumbling Bald. Pilot Mountain and Lower Haw River: day-use admission not stated on the page. |
| Camping, cabins, boat launches, swim passes, boat rentals, event permits, facility reservations | Charged at many units; each park page lists what applies. |
Source: NC State Parks, unit pages, checked 2026-10-18.
Admission and dogs, park by park
| Park | City | County | Region | Day-use admission (checked 2026-10-18) | Dogs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Beach State Park | Carolina Beach | New Hanover | Coast | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or in camper cabins |
| Carvers Creek State Park | Spring Lake | Cumberland | Sandhills | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Chimney Rock State Park | Chimney Rock | Rutherford | Asheville & Foothills | Rumbling Bald day use free; Chimney Rock attraction charges per person (amount not on park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or in the elevator at the Chimney Rock attraction |
| Cliffs of the Neuse State Park | Seven Springs | Wayne | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach, inside buildings, or in camper cabins |
| Crowders Mountain State Park | Kings Mountain | Gaston | Charlotte Region | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Dismal Swamp State Park | South Mills | Camden | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Elk Knob State Park | Todd | Watauga | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Eno River State Park | Durham | Durham | Triangle | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Falls Lake State Recreation Area | Wake Forest | Wake | Triangle | Free most of year; per-vehicle entrance fee on certain days (amount not on park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on swim beaches or inside buildings |
| Fort Fisher State Recreation Area | Kure Beach | New Hanover | Coast | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach or inside buildings |
| Fort Macon State Park | Atlantic Beach | Carteret | Coast | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach, inside the fort, or inside buildings |
| Goose Creek State Park | Washington | Beaufort | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or in camper cabins |
| Gorges State Park | Sapphire | Transylvania | Asheville & Foothills | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Grandfather Mountain State Park | Banner Elk | Avery | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings; many trails steep |
| Hammocks Beach State Park | Swansboro | Onslow | Coast | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings, on the ferry, or in the swimming area |
| Hanging Rock State Park | Danbury | Stokes | Triad | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach, inside buildings, or in vacation cabins |
| Haw River State Park | Browns Summit | Guilford | Triad | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Jockey's Ridge State Park | Nags Head | Dare | Coast | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings; hot sand, protect paws |
| Jones Lake State Park | Elizabethtown | Bladen | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach or inside buildings |
| Jordan Lake State Recreation Area | Apex | Chatham | Triangle | Free most of year; per-vehicle entrance fee on certain days (amount not on park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on swim beaches or inside buildings |
| Kerr Lake State Recreation Area | Henderson | Vance | Triangle | Free most of year; per-vehicle entrance fee on certain days (amount not on park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on swim beaches or inside buildings |
| Lake James State Park | Nebo | McDowell | Asheville & Foothills | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach or inside buildings |
| Lake Norman State Park | Troutman | Iredell | Charlotte Region | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed on the swim beach, inside buildings, or in camper cabins |
| Lake Waccamaw State Park | Lake Waccamaw | Columbus | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Lower Haw River State Natural Area | Pittsboro | Chatham | Triangle | Not stated on park page | Not stated on park page |
| Lumber River State Park | Orrum | Robeson | Sandhills | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Mayo River State Park | Mayodan | Rockingham | Triad | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Medoc Mountain State Park | Hollister | Halifax | Triangle | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Merchants Millpond State Park | Gatesville | Gates | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Morrow Mountain State Park | Albemarle | Stanly | Charlotte Region | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed at the pool, inside buildings, or in vacation cabins |
| Mount Jefferson State Natural Area | West Jefferson | Ashe | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Mount Mitchell State Park | Burnsville | Yancey | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| New River State Park | Laurel Springs | Ashe | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area | Hillsborough | Orange | Triangle | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max |
| Pettigrew State Park | Creswell | Washington | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Pilot Mountain State Park | Pinnacle | Surry | High Country | Not stated on park page | Leash 6 ft max; not in buildings |
| Raven Rock State Park | Lillington | Harnett | Triangle | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or in camper cabins |
| Rendezvous Mountain | Purlear | Wilkes | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Singletary Lake State Park | Kelly | Bladen | Eastern Plain & Inner Banks | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or inside cabins |
| South Mountains State Park | Connelly Springs | Burke | Asheville & Foothills | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Stone Mountain State Park | Roaring Gap | Alleghany | High Country | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve | Southern Pines | Moore | Sandhills | Free day use | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings |
| William B. Umstead State Park | Raleigh | Wake | Triangle | Free day use (fees for some services; see park page) | Leash 6 ft max; not allowed inside buildings or in cabins |
Counties come from each park’s address city because most park pages do not state a county; a few parks span more than one county. Regions follow the Visit NC sub-regions map; McDowell County is not on that map and we placed it with Asheville & Foothills. Three units are left out because their own pages say they are not yet open to the public: Bob’s Creek State Natural Area, Pisgah View State Park and Salmon Creek State Natural Area.
Dogs
Every unit that states a rule requires dogs on an attended leash no longer than six feet. Most bar them from buildings and cabins; beach and swim areas are often off-limits. Check the park page before you go.
Do North Carolina state parks have stroller rules?
The park pages we read do not state stroller rules, so we have not listed any. Call the park office (numbers on each park page).
Are North Carolina state parks free?
Day use is free at most of them. Lake recreation areas can charge per vehicle on busy days, and camping, cabins, boat rentals and swim passes cost extra.
Do I need a pass to visit a North Carolina state park?
Not for day use at the units listed as free. We did not find a statewide day-use pass on the pages we read.
Planning the drive? See drive times to 20 North Carolina destinations, and browse events by region.
Sources: ncparks.gov unit pages, read 2026-10-18. See our editorial standards.
Cite this page: It's North Carolina, “North Carolina State Parks Passport: Free Day Use, Fees and Dog Rules”, itsnorthcarolina.com/state-parks-passport/ (updated ). By the It's North Carolina editorial team. Free to quote with attribution and a link to this page; data and tables are licensed CC BY 4.0.