canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/nps.gov/nps # Nps Gov National Park Service API The National Park Service API provides data about US national parks, exposing parks, campgrounds, alerts, events, places, and visitor centers over a REST interface. It lets you list parks and filter them by state, read current alerts and closures, find campgrounds and things to do, and retrieve park boundary map data. Requests carry an API key as a query parameter and return structured JSON your application can act on. ## For AI agents List national parks, campgrounds, alerts, events, and visitor centers, and read park boundary map data with the National Park Service API. Covers 29 read-only endpoints across parks and related content. ## Scope Does not handle reservations, ticketing, or payments. Use for reading park information, alerts, and related content only. ## Capabilities - List national parks and filter them by state or query - List campgrounds and read their details - Read current park alerts and closures - List events and things to do at parks - List places and visitor centers - Retrieve park boundary map data for a park by its site code ## Use cases ### AI Travel Planner via Jentic An AI travel planner can build a national park itinerary without a developer wiring the NPS API by hand. Through Jentic the agent searches for the parks and things-to-do operations by intent, receives the endpoints and their input schemas, and calls them with the API key injected at execution time. The planner then assembles parks, campgrounds, and activities into a trip. Example prompt: Search Jentic for 'list parks by state', call GET /parks for the state, then GET /thingstodo and GET /campgrounds for the chosen parks ### Park Alert Monitoring Applications that inform visitors need current closures and warnings for the parks they cover. The National Park Service API reads active alerts, so a monitoring job can surface closures before a visitor sets out. Because the alerts come straight from NPS, the notices stay current with official park status. Example prompt: Call GET /alerts filtered to the target parks and surface any active closures or warnings ### Park Content Directory Travel sites that list national parks need structured details for each one. The NPS API reads parks, visitor centers, and places, so a build job can assemble a directory of parks with their facilities. This keeps the directory aligned with the official park data. Example prompt: Call GET /parks for the base list, then GET /visitorcenters and GET /places to enrich each park entry ## Key endpoints | Method | Path | Description | | --- | --- | --- | | GET | `/parks` | List parks | | GET | `/campgrounds` | List campgrounds | | GET | `/alerts` | List park alerts | | GET | `/events` | List events | | GET | `/places` | List places | | GET | `/visitorcenters` | List visitor centers | | GET | `/thingstodo` | List things to do | | GET | `/mapdata/parkboundaries/{sitecode}` | Get park boundary data | ## Key resources - **Parks** — List national parks and read their details - **Campgrounds** — List campgrounds and their facilities - **Alerts** — Read current park alerts and closures - **Events and Things To Do** — List events and activities at parks - **Map Data** — Retrieve park boundary data by site code ## Why Jentic - **Setup:** Wiring the National Park Service API by hand means appending your API key to every query string and calling each park, alert, and campground endpoint yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import the API from the API Directory, store the key once, and your agent calls it. - **Permission scoping:** The National Park Service API is read-only; every operation is a GET. A rule can still narrow the agent to just the resources it needs, such as GET /parks and GET /alerts, while withholding others. You choose which operations the agent may call. - **Credential handling:** Your National Park Service API key is stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. It never enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context. - **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'list parks by state' or 'read park alerts', and Jentic returns the matching National Park Service operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs. ## Related APIs - **Foursquare** — Places search and points-of-interest data - **Yelp** — Business and place listings with reviews - **OpenWeatherMap** — Weather forecasts to pair with park locations ## FAQ ### What authentication does the National Park Service API use? The National Park Service API authenticates with an API key passed as a query parameter, as declared in its OpenAPI spec. Through Jentic the key is stored encrypted by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time, so it never enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context. ### Can I list parks by state with the National Park Service API? Yes. Call GET /parks and filter by state to return the parks in that state, then call GET /campgrounds or GET /thingstodo to enrich each park. All responses are JSON your agent can parse directly. ### What are the rate limits for the National Park Service API? The OpenAPI spec does not specify rate limits. Check the National Park Service developer documentation at https://www.nps.gov/subjects/developer/ for current limits before running high-volume requests. ### How do I read park alerts through Jentic? Search Jentic for 'list park alerts', which resolves to the GET /alerts operation, and Jentic returns its input schema so your agent can filter alerts to the parks it covers. Credentials are injected at call time from your own instance. To run it on your own infrastructure, install Jentic One from its GitHub repo. ### Can I restrict what my agent is allowed to do with the National Park Service API? Yes. The API is read-only, and you can still narrow the agent to just the resources it needs, such as GET /parks and GET /alerts, while withholding the rest, and every call it makes is logged by your own instance. You add other operations to the allowed set only when you decide to. ### Is there a National Park Service MCP server? You don't need an MCP server to give your agent the National Park Service API. Jentic connects it directly from the API Directory: import the API, store your key once, and your agent calls the parks, alerts, and campground operations on demand without loading another server's tool definitions into its context.