Best Time to Visit Glacier National Park

Pick a month. Best months are in bold.

The best months to visit Glacier National Park are June, September and October — computed from official NPS visitation (2021–2025 average), NOAA weather normals and daylight. July is the crowd peak (761,346 monthly visits); February is quietest at 2% of peak.

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Best months for fewer crowds

The quietest months at Glacier, leaving out harsh weather and months when main access is typically closed.

Monthly crowd curve

Average monthly recreation visits, 2021–2025 (NPS Visitor Use Statistics). Amber bar = current month.

Glacier month by month

Crowds: NPS Visitor Use Statistics, mean of 2021–2025 (2020 excluded as a COVID-19 anomaly). Weather: NOAA 1991–2020 monthly normals, station ST. MARY 1 SSW, MT US (17 mi from park coordinates). Daylight: computed for the 15th of each month at the park's location. Methodology.

How many people visit Glacier each year

Glacier National Park had 3,136,557 recreation visits in 2025, 2% fewer than 2024 (NPS Visitor Use Statistics). The busiest year since 2015 was 2017, with 3,305,512. Over 2021–2025 it averaged 3,053,809 visits a year, which makes it the 11th most-visited of the 63 national parks.

Calendar-year recreation visits as published by NPS Visitor Use Statistics. 2020 is shown here but left out of the monthly averages above, because the COVID-19 pandemic makes it unrepresentative. See how every park compares: all 63 parks ranked by visits.

What to pack for Glacier in June

Computed from June's weather normals — Glacier's best month above. Visiting another month? Each month page has its own weather-computed list.

• Warm mid-layer (fleece or light puffy) — mornings average 42°F
• Packable rain jacket — 3.1″ of precipitation is normal this month
• Sturdy broken-in footwear, navigation and a basic first-aid kit — every park, every month
• Bear spray — recommended by the park in grizzly country (check current park regulations before you carry)

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Common questions

Glacier month by month: notes from the park service

• January: January is when Glacier's ranger-led snowshoe walks begin. In the 2026 season the park ran them on Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 pm from January 10 to March 15: two hours on snowshoes looking for signs of wildlife, not recommended for children under 6, and cancelled when West Glacier is forecast below 10°F.
• February: February is deep winter in Glacier, and the park's ski page puts avalanches first. Before you leave the plowed road, check the Flathead Avalanche Center (flatheadavalanche.org).
• March: March at Glacier still runs on the winter setup. The 2026 ranger snowshoe walks were scheduled through March 15, and the park says most services in and near it do not reopen until late May or early June, so come self-sufficient and book a room outside the park.
• April: April is when the plows go to work on Going-to-the-Sun Road. The park says spring snowstorms and avalanches often force crews to clear the same stretch twice, which is why it sets no opening date for the road over Logan Pass; the full road has usually opened by late June or early July.
• May: May at Glacier comes before the summer season, which the park service says generally runs from late May through September. Most services in and near the park do not reopen until late May or early June, so plan to be self-sufficient.
• June: June is when Glacier's summer arrangements for Logan Pass get booked. In 2026 shuttle tickets for the Logan Pass Shuttle went on sale on Recreation.gov about 60 days ahead on a rolling basis, starting May 2 at 8 a.m.
• July: July is when Logan Pass gets its summer rules. In 2026 Glacier dropped vehicle reservations, but from July 1 to Labor Day it limited parking at Logan Pass to three hours, enforced around the clock, with a free timestamped permit from the kiosk on your dashboard.
• August: In August 2026, getting to Logan Pass for a long hike meant a shuttle ticket, one per person aged 2 and up, sold only on Recreation.gov or by phone (877-444-6777), never inside the park. Tickets opened about 60 days ahead, with the rest released at 7 p.m.
• September: For Glacier in September, timing matters at Logan Pass. In 2026 the three-hour parking limit and the ticketed Logan Pass Shuttle both ran only until Labor Day, September 7, and the park service said neither would continue past that date, so normal parking rules returned afterwards.
• October: October is the month Glacier's alpine road shuts. The park says Going-to-the-Sun Road usually stays fully open until the third Monday in October, weather allowing, after which the west-side gate moves back to Avalanche Creek or Lake McDonald Lodge and the road beyond it is left to hikers and cyclists.
• November: By November Glacier is down to its winter footprint. The park says the Many Glacier Road closes on the third weekend of November, weather permitting, and Two Medicine Road shuts once snow builds up, so the east side gets hard to reach as the month goes on.
• December: A December trip to Glacier is a ski-and-snowshoe trip from the west entrance. The stretch of Going-to-the-Sun Road past Lake McDonald Lodge is not plowed in winter, and the park calls it a popular route for skiing and snowshoeing; rangers also lead snowshoe walks on weekends.

Each month page carries the full note and the NPS page it comes from.

Dive into a month

Comparing parks for the same trip? See how Glacier ranks against all 63 parks in June, September and October.

Last verified 2026-09-24 · all parks