Sunday, November 25, 2012
I've purchased an Empire Passport for the last couple of years, in part to make it easier to go to NY State Parks in-season (many parks don't charge an entrance fee during fall, winter, and spring) and in part to support our state park system, which has been struggling due to years of budget cutbacks and ever-rising maintenance costs. And I was planning to get a new one next spring when my current one expires.
So I was very happy to hear that the Dept of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation is offering a discount tomorrow on the 2013 Empire Passports - $40 instead of $65, but they can only be purchased on-line. This is a great deal - you only need to make 6-7 visits in the summer for it to pay for itself - and I strongly encourage anyone who is a supporter of our wonderful NYS Parks to pick one up at the discounted price. In addition to the reasons I gave above, I also suspect it's s subtle vote for the importance of our state parks - the more people who buy them, the harder it is for the folks in Albany to claim that parks just aren't a priority to NYS residents.
The press release is included below:
Cyber Monday Deal Offers Discounted 2013 Season Pass for Online Sales
State Parks to offer invaluable gift of outdoors at specially reduced price
"One cannot put a value on all the benefits of spending time outdoors," said State Park Commissioner Rose Harvey. "Whether you are purchasing the discounted Empire Passport for loved ones or for yourself, I am pleased that we are able to offer the affordable, yet indispensable gift, of health and fun this holiday season."
The discount will strictly apply only to online orders placed between 12 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. on Monday, November 26. Purchases will be accepted online at www.nysparks.com during this time, but will not be accepted in person or by phone. Each customer will be able to purchase up to three passes at the reduced price.
The Empire Passport offers unlimited vehicle access to New York State Parks for all four seasons. The 2013 Passport will be valid now through March 31, 2014, at upwards of 250 state-operated parks, recreation areas, boat launch sites, arboretums and forest preserve sites.
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees 179 state parks and 35 historic sites, which are visited by 58 million people annually. For more information on any of these recreation areas, call 518-474-0456 or visit www.nysparks.com, connect on Facebook, or follow on Twitter.
