Plan Your Visit to Shenandoah

Choose your own adventure!

Tucked away in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and only 75 miles from our nation’s capital, Shenandoah National Park offers more than 75 overlooks and vistas along its iconic, 105-mile Skyline Drive. With more than 500 miles of hiking trails, Shenandoah also houses 101 miles of the Appalachian Trail. There are so many ways to explore Shenandoah, and we hope this page will help you plan your visit!

While visiting the park, we at the Trust ask that you recreate responsibly. That means planning your visit carefully based on seasonal park closures and public safety concerns.

On this page, you’ll find…

Basic park info
Things to do with kids and/or pets
Suggestions for day hikes
Old Rag info
Camping resources
Accessibility info
Places to stay in/around the park
The #SNP52 Hiking Challenge

Alert System

Subscribers to SHENALERTS will get emergency notifications and significant event texts. These alerts will include hazardous situations, road closures on Skyline Drive, wildland fires, and other significant incidents that may affect visitors’ time in Shenandoah National Park.

To subscribe, text SHENALERTS to 888777. Skyline Drive status can also be tracked via our Facebook and Twitter feeds, or by calling 540-999-3500, option 1, option 1.
Subscribers may opt in and out at any time. No subscriber information is retained and text content will be specific to the channel they choose.

I want to learn about…

Family-Friendly Adventures

Memorable Day Hikes

Camping & Backpacking Experiences

Old Rag

Places to Stay – Our Sustainable Travel Partners

Accessibility in Shenandoah

The #SNP52 Hiking Challenge

Our partner, Kevin, from Pixels & Pointers has put together an achievable hiking in Shenandoah, complete with detailed maps, videos, an online community, and collectible trail tags!

The challenge includes trails spanning the entire park and ranging in distance. All trail maps are available online, as are videos of Kevin tackling the challenge with his wife, 1-year-old daughter, and dog.

For each hike you complete, you can snag a trail tag from Pixels & Pointers’ online store, and they’ll donate $1 of each tag sold to SNPT to support trail maintenance, educational programming, and more in the park!

Tag along as Kevin, Tobey, Lucy, and Addie hike Dickey Ridge Trail, #1 in the SNP52 Hiking Challege!

Bringing a pet? Here’s what you need to know:

Pets are allowed in campgrounds, and pet-friendly lodging is available.
Your pet must be on a physical leash no longer than 6 feet at all times.
Pets are not allowed on Ranger Programs.
Bag your pet’s waste. Be sure to have a bag or canister to put it in until you can find a trash can. Do not leave pet waste bags in trees, on trail posts, or discarded in the woods. If there’s no trash can immediately available, take it with you until you find one.
Pets are allowed, if leashed, on most trails.

Pets are prohibited on the following trails:

Fox Hollow Trail (mile 4.6)
Stony Man Trail (mile 41.7) except for portion that follows the Appalachian Trail
Limberlost Trail (mile 43)
Post Office Junction to Old Rag Shelter
Old Rag Ridge Trail
Old Rag Saddle Trail
Ridge Access Trail (Old Rag area)
Dark Hollow Falls Trail (mile 50.7)
Story of the Forest Trail (mile 51)
Bearfence Mountain Trail (mile 56.4)
Frazier Discovery Trail (mile 79.5)

Experience the park from home through photos, music, and our social media!

Explore Media