Travelodge Joins NPCA in Engaging National Park Advocates

With hotels around the country, including hundreds near national parks, it’s fitting that Travelodge wanted to act to protect these incredibly special places and join National Parks Conservation Association in engaging park advocates to speak up for them, while providing a basecamp for adventurers and park visitors to refuel.

Beginning at Zion National Park and spreading across the country, Travelodge and NPCA are working together to raise awareness about the challenges facing our parks and provide ways for people to advocate for them.

Here are some of the highlights of the work we will accomplish on the first stops of our tour!

Zion National Park, Utah

From August 28 through September 2, NPCA and Travelodge participated in Utah Symphony’s Great American Road Trip featuring outdoor classical music concerts and stargazing parties to celebrate and highlight Utah’s natural resources and cultural heritage, as well as its exceptionally dark and clear night skies. In collaboration with the Natural History Museum of Utah, Center for Dark Sky Studies at the University of Utah, Colorado Plateau Dark Sky Cooperative and Salt Lake City chapter of the International Dark-Sky Association, NPCA talked with Utah communities about the importance of protecting the night sky from air pollution, one of the most serious threats facing national parks. Air pollution from the burning of fossil fuels, especially by coal-fired power plants and oil and gas development, as well as vehicle and agricultural and industrial emissions, threatens scenic views, harms wildlife and historic sites, and affects the health of visitors. Learn more about our work to protect Zion here.

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, Texas

This September, the city of San Antonio, Bexar County, San Antonio River Authority, The Alamo, National Park Service, Las Misiones, 300 San Antonio, National Parks Conservation Association, Visit San Antonio, Rivard Report and Mission Heritage Partners will host our second annual World Heritage Festival. This festival celebrates the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park and the Alamo — San Antonio’s five Spanish colonial missions — as the 23rd World Heritage Site in the United States. The weeklong event of live music, interactive booths, educational activities and more, raises funds to better preserve, maintain and connect the community to this world-class historical site. NPCA has supported this park since 2015 when it joined with governmental and community leaders to secure its World Heritage designation and continues to help educate and engage local leaders to promote and protect the park, while cultivating the next generation of stewards to preserve Texas’ national treasures.

Mojave National Preserve, California

Since 2008, NPCA has partnered with the Mojave National Preserve Conservancy and the Pasadena Old Town Sidewalk Astronomers to host biannual star parties, connecting thousands of people to the desert park landscape and clear, dark night skies at Mojave National Preserve. This November, we’ll return to Mojave to introduce desert lovers and newcomers — including youth who have never before been to a national park — to the brilliance of the night sky and the need to protect it.

We hope that you follow along with us and Travelodge’s Ambassador of Adventure, Sleepy Bear, on this tour across the country to learn about NPCA’s ongoing work to protect our national parks.

Join us as we continue to travel to parks across the country — and visit our corporate partner page to learn more about NPCA’s work with our partners and its impact on our mission!