Glen Echo Park
Maryland
Tonight
🌗 46% moon
6.6 h fully dark
Open today
Open
Entrance
Free entry
Glen Echo Park began in 1891 as a National Chautauqua Assembly "to promote liberal and practical education." By 1911, it transformed into DC's premier amusement park until it closed in 1968. Since 1971, the National Park Service has owned and operated the site and today, with the help of the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture, offers year-round cultural and recreational activities.
No entrance fee.
Hours & seasons
The grounds of Glen Echo Park are open daily from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. (the next day). No overnight parking.
Generally open:
winterspringsummerfallHours are reported by the park — verify before you go.
📞 3013201400
✉ gwmp_glen_echo@nps.govConditions
Weather now: ⛅ Partly cloudy, 92°F
🌧️ 92°/76°
🌧️ 93°/73°
🌦️ 96°/72°
Log a sky reading
Measured the sky with an SQM meter or app? Add your reading (16 = city glow … 22 = pristine). Opt in under “Travelers like you” to share it on the community leaderboard.
Things to do
Ride the Historic Dentzel Carousel
Accessibility
22 audio-described place(s)
Reported by the park — verify before you go.
Parking
Glen Echo Park and Clara Barton National Historic Site Parking · 267 accessible spacesaccessible
Not an official safety source — always defer to NPS.gov and rangers for life-safety decisions.
By the numbers
A visual read on Glen Echo Park — its character, trails, sky, and weather.
Park fingerprint
How this park scores across the dimensions travelers care about.
Trail difficulty
Difficulty mix across this park's trails.
3-day forecast
Daily high and low temperatures (°F).
Passport stamps
Mark the stamps you've collected — they show in your memory and along your routes.
🎫 North Arcade / Glen Echo Park Visitor Center
Places to see
Arcade
audio
Bridge over Minnehaha Creek
audio
Bumper Car Pavilion
audio
Candy Corner
audio
Caretaker's Cottage
audio
Chautauqua Tower
audio
Clara Barton Home and Red Cross Headquarters
audio
Comfort Station (Former NPS ranger station)
audio
Crystal Pool
audio
Cuddle Up
audio
Dentzel Carousel
audio
Glen Echo Aquarium
audioAudio & media
🎧
🎬
🖼
Learn more
American beech (Fagus grandifolia), the most common tree species in National Capital Area parks, is currently facing the emerging threat of Beech Leaf Disease (BLD).
Learn about the Brood X periodical cicadas that emerged in 2021 throughout the Mid-Atlantic U.S.
Clara Barton's dedication to healthcare and aiding those in need. This is a quick glimpse at her hard work.
What is the future of our forests? A look at forest regeneration capacity in National Capital Area national parks based on 2020 monitoring data.
The latest look at forest regeneration capacity in National Capital Area national parks based on monitoring data from 2021.
Tree seedlings and small saplings are still in short supply in National Capital Region national parks. A look at forest regeneration capacity based on monitoring data from 2022.
Tree seedlings and small saplings are slowly increasing in National Capital Region national parks. A look at forest regeneration capacity based on monitoring data from 2023.
Forest regeneration in the National Capital Region continues to slowly improve, especially in parks that manage their deer populations. A look at forest regeneration capacity based on monitoring data from 2024.
How Glen Echo Park connects
This park's activities, topics, location, and on-the-ground places — one hop in the graph. Drag to explore; click an activity, topic, or related park to follow it.
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