SHARE THE EXPERIENCE™ 2026 CONTEST OFFICIAL RULES
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. MAKING A PURCHASE WILL NOT AFFECT YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. THIS CONTEST IS OPEN ONLY TO NATURAL PERSONS WHO ARE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR WASHINGTON, D.C., AND WHO ARE AT LEAST THIRTEEN (13) YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AS OF SEPTEMBER 1, 2026. ANY ENTRANT UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN (18) MUST HAVE A PARENT/LEGAL GUARDIAN CONSENT TO ENTER THIS CONTEST. ENTRY IN THIS CONTEST CONSTITUTES ACCEPTANCE OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
1. ELIGIBILITY: This Share the Experience™ 2026 Contest (“Contest”) is only open to individuals who:
(a) are legal residents of one of the 50 United States or Washington, D.C.; and
(b) are at least thirteen (13) years of age or older as of September 1, 2026. Any entrant under the age of eighteen (18) years old must have a parent/legal guardian consent to enter the Contest,
except for employees, officers, directors, agents and representatives of Booz Allen Hamilton (the “Administrator”) assigned to this 2026 program, National Park Foundation (National Park Foundation, and the Administrator are collectively, the “Sponsors”), the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Forest Service (National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Forest Service are collectively, the “Federal Recreation Agencies”), Historic Hotels of America, Celestron, YETI, (Historic Hotels of America, Celestron, and YETI are collectively the “Prize Sponsors”) and their respective affiliates (including without limitation their parent, sister and subsidiary companies, partnerships and other commercial entities), their advertising and promotion agencies and any other person directly connected with the production and distribution of or the supply of goods or services in connection with this Contest, their respective owners, directors, officers, employees and agents (collectively, with the Sponsors, hereinafter referred to as the “Released Parties”) and their respective immediate families (mother, father, sister, brother, child, husband or wife, and their respective spouses, regardless of where they reside), and those living in the same household of any such individuals, whether or not legally related. This includes official volunteers of the Federal Recreation Agencies, part-time or seasonal employees, former employees or official volunteers of the Federal Recreation Agencies employed within two years of the start of the Contest Promotion Period, and those who become employees during the Contest Promotion Period. The Contest is intended as an amateur photo contest; professional photographers are ineligible to enter and win any prizes. For the purposes of the Contest, a professional photographer is defined as anyone who meets one or more of the following criteria: (i) is or has been employed full or part-time as a photographer or in a like capacity; (ii) has an established photography business with the purpose of earning a majority of their income; or (iii) currently or previously identified as a professional photographer. The final determination for an entrant’s status as a professional photographer is in the sole discretion of the Sponsors utilizing the aforementioned criteria. Sponsors’ determination is final and binding. This Contest may only be entered from and in eligible jurisdictions. Void where prohibited by law.
2. PROMOTION PERIOD: This Contest runs between September 1, 2026, 10:00 a.m. EDT through December 31, 2026 11:59 p.m. EST (“Promotion Period”). The Promotion Period consists of the two (2) phases (each, a “Phase”, collectively, the “Phases”) as set forth in the chart below:
Submission Phase: September 1, 2026 at 10:00 a.m ET through December 31, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. ET
Judging Phase: January 1, 2027 through April 30, 2027
The Administrator’s computer system is the official time-keeping device for this Contest.
3. TO ENTER: During the Submission Phase, eligible individuals may enter this Contest without having to purchase anything by visiting www.sharetheexperience.org and completing the free online entry form in accordance with the instructions provided and submitting up to fifty (50) photographs during the Submission Phase that capture a moment that has been experienced on America’s federal public lands and waters (i.e., the photo must be taken on federal public lands or waters managed by one of the following participating agencies: (1) National Park Service; (2) Bureau of Land Management; (3) Bureau of Reclamation; (4) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; (5) U.S. Forest Service; and (6) U.S. Army Corps of Engineers). Photograph(s) must be submitted in .jpg format and be a minimum of 1500 pixels on the long edge. Sponsors retain the right to disqualify photos that, in their sole discretion, have been noticeably and/or excessively altered. All photos must be made with a camera. No synthetic or generated images are allowed. Tools and processes that significantly alter, add, or remove information from the photo are not permitted. Photos must be a fair and accurate representation of what the photographer witnessed, as determined by the Sponsors in their sole discretion. For those photos that are finalists, the Contest Sponsors have the right to request the photographer provide the file that was recorded by the camera, such as RAW files. Photographs with watermarks, writing, or symbols of any kind will be rejected. Photograph(s) depicting anything that does not adhere to the rules of the Federal Recreation Agencies, contains unsafe acts, presents resource or public use management concerns, or that are highly controversial, inappropriate, indecent, or obscene, as determined by Sponsors in their sole discretion, shall be disqualified. All applicable Federal Recreation Agencies rules must be followed when taking photographs at such locations – any photograph that is taken or was taken out of compliance with current or then-applicable Federal Recreation Agency rules may be deemed ineligible. All required fields on the online entry form must be completed. Incomplete entries will not be accepted and will be automatically rejected. Entrants must be the registered subscriber of the email account from which the entry is made. By submitting your entry, you (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agree that the photograph(s) conforms to the guidelines and content restrictions set forth above and that the Sponsors, in their sole discretion, may remove the photograph(s) and disqualify you from this Contest if it believes, in their sole discretion, that the photograph(s) fails to conform to such guidelines and restrictions.
By entering, entrants (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) represent and warrant that the photograph(s) that they submit:
· Are their own original creations;
· Do not infringe any other person’s or entity’s rights; and
· Have not previously been designated a winner in previous Share the Experience Photo Contest years.
Entries must be submitted by the original creator. Photograph(s) created by someone other than you but submitted by you will be disqualified. You must be the sole owner of the copyright of any photograph(s) submitted. Your submission of each photograph is your guarantee that you are the author and copyright holder of such photograph.
All photographs must be taken on lands managed by one (1) of the six (6) Federal Recreation Agencies between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2026. Sponsors may require evidence from entrants to verify when the photographs were taken. Photographs taken in state and city parks do not qualify, unless the underlying land is owned by one of the Federal Recreation Agencies and is managed or administered by the state or city in partnership with the Federal Recreation Agency.
By entering, entrants grant Sponsors a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable license, with the right to sublicense and authorize third parties, to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, distribute, publicly display, broadcast, and create derivative works from the submitted photographs, in whole or in part, in any and all media now or hereafter devised, for any lawful purpose, including without limitation advertising, promotional, editorial, commercial, fundraising, licensing, merchandising, digital display platforms, subscriptions services, and other content distribution channels, without additional compensation, notification, or permission, unless prohibited by law.. By entering this Contest, entrants (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agree to have their submitted photograph(s) used and displayed, either singularly or in combination with others and in any size, on the official Contest website and social media platforms and on the websites, social media, and print materials of the Sponsors, as well as Sponsors’ authorized partners, in perpetuity without additional compensation, notification, or permission, unless prohibited by law. Credits, descriptions, or titles, if any, used with the photograph(s) are in the Sponsors’ sole discretion. In the event that ownership of any photograph(s) submitted is challenged in any manner by any person, Sponsors may disqualify that photograph(s) and will discontinue use of the photograph(s).
Online access and an email account are required to participate in this Contest. Many public libraries, retail businesses, and others offer free access to computers, and several Internet service providers and other companies offer free email accounts.
There is a limit of fifty (50) entries per individual per contest year. Additional entries received from any individual beyond the first fifty (50) entries received will be void. Entries generated by script, macro or other automated means and entries by any means which, in the opinion of the Sponsors, are intended to subvert the entry process will be void. All entries, including photograph(s) submitted, become the property of the Sponsors and their respective designees, and none will be acknowledged or returned.
No third-party entry or entry through Contest service permitted. Any individual who attempts or otherwise encourages, directly or indirectly, the entry of multiple or false contact information under multiple identities, multiple email accounts, or uses any device or artifice to enter or encourage, directly or indirectly, multiple or false entries, as determined by the Sponsors, will be disqualified. If, in the Sponsors’ opinion, there is any suspected or actual evidence of electronic or non-electronic tampering with any portion of this Contest, or if a computer virus, bug, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical difficulties, or failures compromise or corrupt or affect the administration, integrity, security, fairness, or proper conduct of this Contest, and/or this Contest is not capable of being conducted as described in these Official Rules, the Sponsors shall have the right, at their sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process and to void any entries submitted fraudulently, and/or to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend this Contest, and to select the prize winner from all non-suspect entries received prior to action taken, or as otherwise deemed fair and appropriate by the Sponsors. If this Contest is cancelled, modified, suspended, or terminated, notice will be posted on www.sharetheexperience.org.[](http://www.sharetheexperience.org/) The Sponsors reserve the right to prosecute any fraudulent entries to the fullest extent of the law. At the Sponsors’ sole discretion, Contest winner may be disqualified at any time.
4. WINNER SELECTION: Winners will be determined via the process set forth below.
Monthly Promotion Phase: Three (3) monthly promotion winners will be selected from eligible entries submitted during each month of the Contest by a judging panel selected by the Sponsors, based on the following criteria: (i) originality, (ii) artistic composition, (iii) technical quality, (iv) photographic technique, and (v) whether the photograph showcases the best of America’s recreational opportunities.
Annual Promotion Judging Phase: During the Judging Phase, a judging panel will review all eligible entries and will determine a maximum of two hundred and fifty (250) top entries. Finalists will be selected and judged based on the following criteria: (i) originality, (ii) artistic composition, (iii) technical quality, (iv) photographic technique, and (v) whether photograph showcases the best of America’s recreational opportunities. Each of the criteria will be given equal consideration when selecting finalists. In the event of a tie for any final spot, the entry judged to most effectively showcase originality will be the finalist. A priority of the contest is to select a grand prize-winning image that may be featured on the Annual National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass. As such appearance and feasibility of use on the Annual National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass will be considered as part of the judging criteria for the grand prize winner. Only images from those national parks and federal recreational lands that charge an entrance or standard amenity fee, for which the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass can be utilized, will be considered for the grand prize.
Annual Promotion Winner Selection: By April 30, 2027**,** the judging panel will choose the nine (9) winners, comprising of one (1) grand prize winner, four (4) category prize winners, and four (4) honorable mention prize winners. Best efforts will be made to notify these nine (9) winners on or around April 30, 2027. In the event of a tie for any prize, the entry judged to most effectively showcase originality will be the finalist. Winner (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agrees to conduct any and all media interviews related to the promotion if requested and not to criticize or disparage any of the Released Parties during interviews. All judging decisions are final.
PRIZES: One (1) grand prize comprising of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) cash check, a two (2) night stay at a Historic Hotels of America participating location (ARV Five Hundred Dollars ($500)), one (1) YETI prize (ARV Three Hundred and Fifteen Dollars ($315.00)), one (1) Celestron prize (ARV One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)), and one (1) Annual National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass (“Pass”) (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded and the winning photograph may be featured on the 2028 National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass. The approximate aggregate retail value of the grand prize is Ten Thousand and Nine Hundred Ninety-Five Dollars ($10,995.00).
Four (4) category winner prizes (one winner per category listed below), as follows:
Categories, Hotel, and Additional Prizes:
- History & Culture: Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) cash check, a two (2) night stay at a Historic Hotels of America participating location (ARV Five Hundred Dollars ($500)), one (1) YETI prize (ARV Forty Dollars ($40)), one (1) Celestron prize (ARV One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)), and one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- People & Recreation: Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) cash check, a two (2) night stay at a Historic Hotels of America participating location (ARV Five Hundred Dollars ($500)), one (1) YETI prize (ARV Forty Dollars ($40)), one (1) Celestron prize (ARV One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)), and one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- Scenery & Seasons: Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) cash check, a two (2) night stay at a Historic Hotels of America participating location (ARV Five Hundred Dollars ($500)), one (1) YETI prize (ARV Forty Dollars ($40)), one (1) Celestron prize (ARV One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)), and one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- Wildlife: Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) cash check, a two (2) night stay at a Historic Hotels of America participating location (ARV Five Hundred Dollars ($500)), one (1) YETI prize (ARV Forty Dollars ($40)), one (1) Celestron prize (ARV One Hundred Dollars ($100.00)), and one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
Four (4) category honorable mention winner prizes (one winner per category listed below), as follows:
- History & Culture honorable mention: one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- People & Recreation honorable mention: one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- Scenery & Seasons honorable mention: one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
- Wildlife honorable mention: one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded.
Three (3) monthly promotion prizes of one (1) Pass (ARV Eighty Dollars ($80.00)) will be awarded each month of the contest submission period for a total of twelve (12) Passes awarded to monthly promotion winners.
The approximate aggregate retail value of all prizes is Twenty-Six Thousand and One Hundred Dollars ($26,100.00).
Monthly promotion winners are eligible to also win one other prize in the contest. Excluding the monthly promotion prizes, entrants may only win one prize in the Contest. Hotel vouchers and hotel prizes are subject to hotel availability and blackout dates; reservations required. Lost or stolen prize will not be replaced. No assignment, transfer, conversion to cash or cash redemption or substitution of the prize is permitted, except the Sponsors reserve the right to substitute the prize with a prize of comparable or greater value should the prize, or any portion thereof, become unavailable. All prize details are at the sole discretion of the Sponsors and subject to change at Sponsors’ discretion. Any changes to the prizes will be published wherever these Rules are available. The winner (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agrees to accept the prize “as is”, and entrants hereby (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) acknowledge that Sponsors have neither made nor is in any manner responsible or liable for any warranty, representation, or guarantee, express or implied, in fact or in law, relative to the prize, including express warranties (if any) provided exclusively by a prize supplier that are sent along with the prize. Any valuation of the prize(s) stated above is based on available information provided to the Sponsors, and the value of any prize awarded to a winner may be reported for tax purposes as required by law. The winner(s) will be solely responsible for all applicable state, federal, and local taxes associated with the acceptance and use of any awarded prize.
5. ENTRANTS’ AGREEMENT: The submission or attempted submission of an entry for this Contest constitutes the entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to these Official Rules and to any decisions made by the Sponsors, all decisions of which pertaining to this Contest shall be final and binding without any right of appeal. Winning a prize is contingent upon entrant fulfilling all the requirements of and all terms and conditions provided in these Official Rules. Failure to comply with these Official Rules may result in disqualification from this Contest.
All entries, including photograph(s) submitted, and any Request for Information and Waiver or Affidavit document provided to the Administrator become the property of the Sponsors and will not be returned.
6. NOTIFICATION: The potential winner will be notified, at the Administrator’s sole option, by means of email or telephone.
7. VERIFICATION OF POTENTIAL WINNERS:
An entrant (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) who is selected pursuant to the process set forth above is not considered a winner of any prize unless and until the entrant’s eligibility has been verified by the Administrator and the entrant has been notified that verification has been completed. In connection with such verification, the potential winner will be required to execute and return a Request for Information and Waiver form or Affidavit, within ten (10) days of the date that such form is sent by the Administrator to the potential winner. Non-compliance with the foregoing or with any of these Official Rules, the return to the Administrator of the prize notification or the Request for Information and Waiver form or Affidavit as non-deliverable or the Administrator’s inability to contact the potential winner within ten (10) days of its first attempt to notify will, at the Administrator’s sole option, result in disqualification of the potential winner and, at the Administrator’s sole option, an alternate winner being selected by the judges from the remaining eligible entries.
In the event of a dispute over the identity of a potential winner, the entry will be declared made by the authorized account holder of the email address submitted at the time of entry, and the potential winner may be required to provide identification sufficient to show that he/she is the authorized account holder of such email address. “Authorized account holder” is defined as the person assigned to an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the email address in question. Proof of sending or submission will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by the Administrator.
8. LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY AND RELEASE: The Released Parties are not responsible or liable for:
(a) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by entrants, non-authorized human intervention, printing errors, or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in this Contest;
(b) technical failures of any kind, including, but not limited to, malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines, network hardware or software, cable, satellite, cellular tower, or Internet service provider;
(c) bugs, viruses, worms, unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or this Contest, or any other causes which impair the fairness, integrity, or administration of this Contest (in such event, the Sponsors reserve the right, at their sole option, to modify, terminate, or suspend this Contest);
(d) typographical, printing, network, mechanical, electronic, technical, human or other errors or malfunctions of any kind relating to or in connection with this Contest including, without limitation, errors or problems which may occur in the administration of this Contest, the processing of entries, the announcement of the prizes or other errors in these Official Rules or in any other Contest-related materials;
(e) any liability, loss, injury, or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from entrant’s participation in this Contest or receipt, use, or misuse of any prize; or
(f) lost, incomplete, late, misdirected, garbled, undelivered, incomplete, stolen, or mutilated transactions, subscriptions, or entries; or garbled, lost, misrouted, or scrambled transmissions. (If, for any reason, an entrant’s entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, entrant’s sole remedy is another entry in this Contest.)
THE PARTIES (PARENT/LEGAL GUARDIAN IF ENTRANT IS A MINOR IN HIS/HER STATE OF RESIDENCE) AGREE, ACKNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTAND THAT THE SPONSORS’ TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ANY MATTER ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THIS CONTEST, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR UNDER ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, SHALL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF: (1) $100; OR (2) THE AMOUNT OF THE ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET COSTS INCURRED BY ENTRANT ASSOCIATED WITH ENTERING THIS CONTEST.
By entering into this Contest, each entrant (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agrees to release, discharge, and forever hold harmless the Released Parties and their shareholders from any and all claims, actions, damages, demands, manner of actions, causes of action, suits, debts, duties, accounts, bonds, covenants, warranties, indemnities, claims over, contracts and liabilities of whatever nature or kind arising out of, or in connection with, the entrant’s participation or attempted participation in this Contest, compliance or non-compliance with these Official Rules and the delivery, non-delivery, acceptance, use, misuse or non-use of the prize and, if selected as a potential winner, to sign and deliver the Request for Information and Waiver form or Affidavit before receiving his/her prize.
Each entrant (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) acknowledges that the Sponsors shall not be required under any circumstances to award more prizes than the number of available prizes as set out in these Official Rules.
9. CAUTION: Any attempt by any person(s) to damage any website or undermine the legitimate operation of this Contest is a violation of criminal and civil laws and, should such an attempt be made, the Sponsors reserve the right to seek damages and/or other remedies (including attorneys’ fees) from any such person(s) responsible for the attempt to the fullest extent permitted by law.
10. DISPUTES: Except where prohibited by law, entrants (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) agree that:
(a) any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the state or federal courts located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States of America;
(b) any and all claims, judgments, and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Contest, and in no event shall any entrant be entitled to obtain attorneys’ fees or other legal costs;
(c) under no circumstances will entrants be permitted to obtain awards for, and entrants (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) hereby waive, to the extent permitted by applicable law, all rights to claim indirect, punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased; and
(d) all issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of the entrants and the Released Parties in connection with this Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the Commonwealth of Virginia or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth of Virginia.
11. TRADEMARKS: Unless noted otherwise, all trademarks used herein are the property of the Sponsors. The names of individuals, groups, companies, products, and services mentioned herein, and any corresponding likenesses, logos, and images thereof reproduced herein, have been used for identification purposes only and may be the copyrighted properties and trademarks of their respective owners. The mention of any individual, group, or the Released Parties, or the inclusion of a product or service as a prize, does not imply any association with or endorsement by such individual, group, or the Sponsors, or the manufacturer or distributor of such product or service and, except as otherwise indicated no association or endorsement is intended or should be inferred.
WINNERS’ LIST: For a complete list of the names of the winners (available after June 30, 2027) send a self-addressed, postage pre-paid envelope to: Booz Allen Hamilton, 8283 Greensboro Dr, McLean, VA 22102. All winners’ list requests must be received prior to December 31, 2029.
12. PUBLICITY; GENERAL: Each entrant (parent/legal guardian if entrant is a minor in his/her state of residence) grants the Sponsors, and their respective designees, a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, broadcast, publish and otherwise use the entrant’s name, city and state of residence, statements regarding this Contest, image, photograph, video, voice and/or likeness for advertising, promotional and/or any other purpose in any and all media now or hereafter devised worldwide in perpetuity without additional compensation, notification or permission, unless prohibited by law. This Contest and all entries are subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited by law.
13. PERSONAL INFORMATION: Unless the entrant has otherwise authorized the Sponsors or another entity related to the Sponsors to contact him or her, the personal information gathered from entrants in connection with this Contest is subject to the Contest privacy policy (available at www.recreation.gov/privacy-policy). Entrants’ personal information will not be shared with Prize Sponsors unless the entrant expressly opts in to receive such communications.
Sponsors:
National Park Foundation, 1500 K Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC, 20005
Booz Allen Hamilton, 8283 Greensboro Dr, McLean, VA 22102