Use and Share Our Data

Why is the Data Available?

Welcome to Recreation.gov's most valued asset - its recreation data. The federal recreation data, and derivative information, used on Recreation.gov is available for free to anyone who envisions a variety of uses. Recreation.gov was developed to share recreation data widely so other business and government websites can provide reliable information to trip planners and adventure seekers. The data can be consumed directly through our retail and reservation-style website, or we have APIs (Application Programming Interface) to enable efficient transfer of the data to your systems.

Different businesses and individuals can exchange up-to-date information on public recreation sites and activities using Recreation.gov data. As more systems exchange the data in real-time, the consistency of the information seen by online customers improves substantially. The free and open data exchange using REST API standards and technology also helps our users to streamline their operations and reduce costs.

Recreation.gov is an electronic government ("e-gov") initiative that demonstrates the advantages of sharing federal recreation data using APIs. The initiative is successful when customers can find recreation information easily, either through the Recreation.gov website or through other third parties that consume and re-purpose the data.

Create a Web Service to Obtain Federal Recreation Data

Government and non-government organizations are encouraged to use the Recreation Information Database (RIDB) API and create "web services" to disseminate the Recreation.gov data widely, while combining the data with other information sources and business needs. Sharing data according to an established standard enables different computer systems and websites to display up-to-date, consistent information on public recreation places and activities.

Creating web services to obtain data from Recreation.gov can be found in technical documentation on theĀ RIDB web page.

Download and Use the Recreation.gov Data in Your System or Website

Recreation.gov content focuses on outdoor-based and historic and cultural activities available on federally managed lands. It includes information for Federal-government managed and Federal-government affiliated (subordinate, subsidiary or member) sites. It does not list hotels, restaurants, or tourist attractions managed by private companies or other organizations.

You are invited to use Recreation.gov data via the RIDB website in your publication/web application/computer system, and to get automatic updates as frequently as needed.

As stated earlier, the data in Recreation.gov is provided for free, and there's no need to contact us before incorporating Recreation.gov data into your system. In exchange, we encourage you to provide a link to Recreation.gov and acknowledge credit, such as "Data Source: Recreation.gov"

Link to the Recreation.gov Data

Rather than download bulk updates from RIDB/Recreation.gov, you may choose to simply add links on your pages to our website. Add simple HTML code to your Web pages, and customers who follow those links will see the most recent information on Recreation.gov.

Come use our Recreation data, and contribute to its wider availability and use!