National Park Service to Offer Off-Road Vehicle Permits for the 2014 Season Online - Hatteras Island Vacation BlogHatteras Island Vacation Blog

The National Park Service has announced that it will begin offering 2014 Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) permits on its website starting on Sunday, December 1, 2013. This new feature will further streamline the process of obtaining the necessary permits to access the ORV routes in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

There are two easy ways to obtain a National Park Service (NPS) ORV permit:

Online beginning December 1, 2013 by visiting http://www.recreation.gov/ and going to the Cape Hatteras page on the site.
In person, at one of three NPS off-road vehicle permit offices:

Bodie Island at the north end of Coquina Beach parking lot – 8101 NC Highway 12, Nags Head;

Hatteras Island by the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Visitor Center – 46368 Lighthouse Road, Buxton;

Ocracoke Island by the NPS Visitor Center – 40 Irvin Garrish Highway, Ocracoke.

All three offices are open year-round from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., seven days a week, except Christmas Day.

Annual permits cost $120; with a seven-day weekly ORV permit costing $50. If you purchase a permit online, there are additional processing and shipping fees. It will cost an extra $4.50 if you order your permit online and then pick it up at one of the offices listed above. If you choose to have your permit mailed to you, it will be an additional $11.00.

Remember to plan ahead if you are ordering online since it will take 14 days to process if you choose to have your ORV permit mailed to you. You only need to order a day in advance if you plan on picking it up in person.

The 2014 annual permit can be used beginning December 1, 2013 and is valid through December 31, 2014. Weekly permits can be purchased up to two calendar months in advance.

For additional information on off-road vehicle use in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, or to obtain a permit, visit http://www.nps.gov/caha/planyourvisit/off-road-vehicle-use.htm or the Cape Hatteras page on http://www.recreation.gov/.