INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — Nevada State Parks over the past several years has welcomed a record number of visitors and will move to a reservation system in response to the increased demand.

Nevada State Parks in September will launch Reserve Nevada, a new online reservation system that will allow visitors to buy day-use passes, book campsites and cabins, purchase annual permits, and make special event reservations online. Once implemented, visitors can plan and schedule their Nevada State Park adventures in advance, knowing that their accommodations will be reserved for their visit.

But the reservation system, Reserve Nevada, will not apply to Sand Harbor or Spooner state parks, officials told the Tribune on Thursday. Although day-use reservations may be possible in the future at Sand Harbor.

“With the exception of Big Bend of the Colorado, we’ll only be doing reservations at parks that offer overnight camping,” said Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Education & Information Officer Jennifer Jackson. “Technically Spooner Backcountry has overnight camping, but we won’t be doing reservations there. It has not been determined whether day-use reservations will be brought to Sand Harbor.”

Reserve Nevada is scheduled to go live on Sept. 1, with reservable sites being phased in over time. The first park to take reservations will be Valley of Fire State Park in southern Nevada, followed by Big Bend of the Colorado State Recreation Area near Laughlin and Washoe Lake State Park near Reno in October. The remainder of reservable sites will be online by the end of the year. As part of a pilot program, Big Bend of the Colorado will require advance reservations for day-use during a certain window of the day to help relieve traffic congestion at the park entrance. After that time window, the park will open to first-come, first-served day-use visitors. For now, other popular day-use parks, such as Sand Harbor State Park, will not offer reservations.

“Last year, nearly four million visitors explored Nevada’s 27 beautiful state parks. With outdoor recreation on the rise, our new online reservation system will make it easier than ever to discover the beauty of Nevada.” said Bob Mergell, Nevada State Parks administrator. “Nevada’s goal is to manage park operations and protect natural resources more efficiently through Reserve Nevada, and we expect our visitors and staff will appreciate the convenience of an online experience.”   

The reservation system will follow an 11-month rolling window, with sites opening up for reservation at 8 a.m. Online camping reservations must be made at least three days in advance; however, reservations are not required to stay at a Nevada State Park. Visitors are welcome to stay at unreserved sites on a first-come first-served basis, depending on availability.