ULTIMATE Planning a Trip to Yellowstone Travel Tips

Are you looking for the best planning a trip to Yellowstone travel tips? Then you have come to the right place! In this guide we cover all our favorite Yellowstone tips and tricks from the best time to book, when to go, where to stay and much much more! 

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Planning a Trip to Yellowstone Travel Tips

The truth is, that actually there is quite a lot of planning that goes into any Yellowstone vacation. You need to know when to book, where to stay and how to plan your time in the park. 

As there is so much to consider when doing a Yellowstone trip we have split out our Yellowstone travel tips into several groups 

• What to know for booking and planning a trip to Yellowstone 
• How to pack and prepare for a Yellowstone vacation and 
• What to do in Yellowstone once you arrive. 

Planning a Trip to Yellowstone Tips, Tricks and Hacks 

So you have decided that you want to plan a Yellowstone vacation. Firstly, congratulations this is a great decision and you are going to have a fantastic time but now you need to make some decisions about how you plan to do your trip. 

When is the best time to book a Yellowstone trip

Firstly my main piece of advice for those planning a trip to Yellowstone is to book your trip as far in advance as you possibly can. 

There are several reasons for this. 

Firstly, Yellowstone is one of the most visited national parks in the country. As such to get accommodation in a location and for a price you want you need to book far in advance. 

Also booking further in advance will likely snag you better deals on flights and car rental. 

However, unlike some of the other National PArk Service sites, Muir Woods and Red Rock Canyon for instance, Yellowstone does not have a reservation system to get into the park. Therefore you do not need to a book a timed entry slot to get into Yellowstone.

However if you plan on camping in the park then you 100% will need to book this in advance (on sites where booking is necessary) otherwise you may find yourself at a camp ground. And please note even if you are choosing to go boondocking in Yellowstone you will be required to obtain  a permit in advance.

However, I will note that it is not impossible to do a last minute trip to Yellowstone. In fact we planned our summer Yellowstone vacation with only 6 days notice.

But I will say we were very constrained in terms of what accommodation was still available and  we certainly ended up paying a premium for the last minute booking.

Booking a Yellowstone trip last minute is certainly not something you want to do if you are doing Yellowstone on a budget. 

Therefore it is my recommendation, that once you have made the decision to go to Yellowstone that you plan and book your trip as far out as possible. 

Where to Stay in Yellowstone National Park

Probably the thing that is going to influence your Yellowstone itinerary and plans most is where you decide to stay.

Now one of the most sort after accommodation types in Yellowstone are the lodges and campgrounds that are actually in the park itself. 

Now, the windows in which you can make reservations in advance has ranged as far in advance as 18 months. However currently the lodge website states that you can book Yellowstone lodge accommodations up to 13 months in advance. 

I recommend checking the lode website for current reservation windows to be sure you don’t miss out. 

Campgrounds on the other hand can be booked 6 months in advance currently. However I recommend checking with the park as soon as you make the decision to book to be sure there hasn’t been a change to the booking windows. 

Now Yellowstone itself has 9 lodges and cabin sites within the park boundaries. The cabin accommodations and lodges within Yellowstone National Park are:

• Canyon Lodge and Cabins
• Grant Village Lodge
• Lake Hotel and Cabins
• Lake Lodge Cabins
• Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel and Cabins
• Old Faithful Inn
• Old Faithful Lodge
• Old Faithful Snow Lodge
• Roosevelt Lodge

I recommend considering staying at one of these in park accommodations as they come with some advantages to visitors to Yellowstone. 

Firstly by staying in the park it greatly reduces your time transiting to attractions and entrances and exits. It always amazes me how how long some of the drives in Yellowstone are. Then again as Yellowstone is 8,991 km² it really shouldn’t have surprised me. 

Also by staying on site you stand a better chance at being in the peak locations for wildlife viewing at the best wilding viewing times (sunrise and sunset). Keep reading for our tips on viewing wildlife in Yellowstone. 

Now all of the lodges have their own benefits and downsides, however if you want to stay in the most central lodges to most attractions I would recommend looking at Old Faithful Inn and lodges.

This is practical on top of the geyser and actually has great views of Old Faithful erupting. 

As we booked last minute we were unable to secure in park accommodation. However if we were to have our time again we would opt to stay in the park, with our first choice being the Old Faithful Inn for its proximity to main attraction at Yellowstone. 

Another option I would consider is staying in a couple of in-site lodgings depending on your itinerary length. This way you could be close to Old Faithful and the geysers for part of your trip, and then near the Hayden and Lamar Valley for wildlife viewing during another part of our trip.

Best Places to Stay Near Yellowstone

However if you have not booked your accommodation fair enough in advance then it is unlikely that you will be able to secure lodgings in one of the in park lodges or campsites. 

Therefore the next question you will want to answer is What is the best place to stay near Yellowstone? 

The closest town to a Yellowstone Entrance is West Yellowstone. The advantage of staying at a West Yellowstone hotel is that with most of the hotels are only a few minutes drive from the entrance to Yellowstone itself.

However please note that from the West Yellowstone entrance it is still around a 40 minute drive to Old Faithful Geyser.

We opted to stay in West Yellowstone as we felt this option was best for traveling to Yellowstone with kids. While we were in West Yellowstone we stayed at the Days Inn West Yellowstone.

While the rooms were nothing fancy they were clean and spacious and the hotel had a pool with a good slide which is great for littles that need to blow off some steam at the end of the day exploring Yellowstone.

It is also conveniently located at walking distance from everything in the centre of West Yellowstone itself including many restaurants and the Wolf and Grizzly Wildlife Centre. 

You will find that may of the hotel and motel chains have branches in West Yellowstone. I would opt to pick the one that most closely aligns with your Yellowstone budget or the hotel chain which you have a reward program with i.e. Marriott or Wyndham for instance. 

For those wanting a more outdoors experience outside of the Park then another great option is Under Canvas Yellowstone! Under Canvas is a glamping chain that has sites near many of the major national parks in the US . Everyone I know who has stayed at an Under Canvas site has had a fabulous site, but I would not recommend this type of accommodation for those traveling to Yellowstone with toddlers.

However other nearby towns include Cooke City and Gardner. And for those combining Yellowstone and Grand Tetons into their itinerary you could consider Jackson Hole. 

Cooke City is closer to the the Beartooth Highway and the Lamar Valley so you may want to consider staying here if you want to get into the Lamar Valley (known as the best wildlife spotting area) very early in the morning.

For a full guide on where to stay near Yellowstone check out this post! 

What is the best Yellowstone Entrance?

Another way to think about where to stay near Yellowstone is to consider what is the best entrance for Yellowstone and for your travel plans. 

As Yellowstone is so large it should come as no surprise that there are several entrances to the park, all being geographical spread quite far apart. There are actually five entrances to Yellowstone which are:

• North Entrance
• North East Entrance 
• East Entrance
• South Entrance
• West Entrance 

One way you could select which entrance to use is by picking the entrance that is closest to the direction of travel you are doing. 

For instance we came from Red Lodge in Montana via the Beartooth Highway so we entered through the North East Entrance. 

However if you are coming from the Pacific North West then the West Entrance is definitely a better entrance for you.  While those who are coming to Grand Tetons and Jackson Hole will prefer the South Entrance and the East entrance is perfect for those coming from Cody Wyoming. 

However probably the most important thing to remember when selecting the best entrance for Yellowstone is the time of year you are traveling. That is because some of the entrances at Yellowstone are seasonal. 

In fact the only one which is usually open year round (barring extreme weather and unexpected closures) is the North entrance. Therefore if you are traveling in shoulder season or Winter it is advisable to base yourself in or around the North Entrance. 

Please note: it is advisable whatever time you travel to check the entrance status before travel. If you turn up and an entrance is closed it can be a long drive to get to the next entry point. 

How many days is enough for Yellowstone?

When I am asked “How many days is enough for Yellowstone?” I always answer that you need more than you think. 

Now you can visit Yellowstone for one day, but given its size and all the things there are to see and do in the park, you will never be able to cover everything. 

In fact you. could keep returning and not cover everything. But how long do you really need? 

I would say that 2 days is the minimum I would recommend doing Yellowstone in as there are two loops to complete. And they really can’t be achieved in a day. 

However I would probably recommend 4 days as being the perfect amount of time to see everything, not be rushed and have some contingency time. And trust me you need to add in time for traffic jams and bison jams – more on that later. 

To fully understand how many days you need for Yellowstone be sure to check out our dedicated post which breakdown exactly what can be achieved in certain time frames alongside our ultimate Yellowstone 4 day itinerary. 

Best time to visit Yellowstone National Park

In my opinion there is no wrong time to visit Yellowstone, as there is something to see and do in Yellowstone in every season. It really  should be on everyone’s national park bucket list.

However some of the seasons in Yellowstone do come with some challenges. 

For instance, if you visit Yellowstone in summer you will be visiting in peak season. And as one of the most visited national parks, it should come as no surprise that you will encounter crowds. 

This is particularly evident at Yellowstone parking near key Yellowstone attractions and at Old Faithful at eruption time for instance. 

However what I didn’t expect were the traffic jams in the great outdoors. 

Therefore if you want to avoid crowds you are best avoiding summer. 

Winter also poses some challenges for travel. Yellowstone gets pretty snowy and icy. Only one entrance is open and the weather is extreme. Therefore if you aren’t used to driving in snow and ice then winter is probably not the best time to visit. 

Therefore I recommend the best time to visit Yellowstone is one of the shoulder season months such as April or September and October as the best time to visit. 

However for a more complete summary of the best time to visit Yellowstone. 

However if your only option is to visit in the peak season there are definitely Yellowstone travel tips below that will help you. 

How to pack and prepare for a Yellowstone vacation

Plan your Yellowstone itinerary in advance

I strongly recommend that you plan your Yellowstone itinerary in advance. Yellowstone is vast and you need to plan what you are doing on what day to make sure you don’t miss something out and have to double back. 

Head into the park early

And the key to any park itinerary is heading into the park early. This way you will beat the crowds and also have your best chance at viewing wilding. 

Allow extra time

And no matter how much time you have putting your itinerary to get between the best Yellowstone attractions, add in more. You never know when you will experience a bison jam which can add a LOT of time to your journey. 

Yellowstone Packing List

One of the best ways to prepare for a trip to Yellowstone is by packing correctly. 

We have a full Yellowstone packing list here but some of the things that you should pack whatever time you visit Yellowstone include:

• Layers! 
  Layers are absolutely key to any packing list for Yellowstone no matter the season. Yellowstone days are long, and you will often be in the park for sun up. Therefore you will need lots of added layers to cope with lower temperatures. 
  

• Hiking boots with a good sole
  Whether you are going on long hikes or perhaps just sticking to the boardwalks, it is essential to have good hiking boots with a good non slip sole for Yellowstone. 

• Backpack
  A good backpack is an essential for carrying your Yellowstone day pack essentials such as food, water and snacks.
• Waterproof
  The weather can change quickly, especially if you are heading into the park at sun up. A light compact waterproof is an essential.
• Lunch, Snacks & Water
  Though there are fuel stops, cafes etc at some of the lodges you want to make sure you have the provisions for the day. You will not be near a lodge or amenities for your entire day and it is hard to plan exact timings in Yellowstone. Therefore we recommend taking plenty of lunch, snacks and water with you. We also love to take a flask of coffee with us for those early starts. 
• Chargers
  With cell phones constantly searching for signal, and especially if you use your iPhone for photos and videos you will need to have a car charger!

You may also want to consider taking some bear deterrents with you if you plan on going some of the longer hikes.

For a complete list check out this Yellowstone summer packing list.

Pack a Lunch and have snacks

As I mentioned above, although there are some cafes and coffees shops in the park, they are not all that convenient or close to all of the attractions. 

Therefore we recommend having ample supples of water, snacks and lunches with you/

Prepare for no cell service

Large parts of Yellowstone National Park have absolutely no cell service. So make sure you have all the maps you need downloaded and are prepared for having a lack of cell service. 

Tips for viewing the main Yellowstone sites

So now you know how to plan a trip to Yellowstone and prepare yourself for long park days we will finally tell you our tips for viewing and enjoying the main Yellowstone sites and attractions. 

Tips for viewing geysers

Yellowstone Geysers are on of the biggest attractions at Yellowstone National Park. Old Faithful is perhaps the most famous of the geysers in Yellowstone but there are lots of others that are well worth viewing.

If you want to view Old Faithful, or other geysers we recommend checking on the Yellowstone website for that day’s eruption timings.  

Contrary to popular belief Old Faithful actually erupts every hour and twenty minutes (plus minus ten minutes either way). It is important you know and check the time of that day’s eruptions to plan your day.

As this is one of the most popular stops in the whole of Yellowstone I recommend planning to do this in the early morning.

If you forget to check the website or find yourself in the many areas without service be sure to call in at one of the lodges as they will have latest geyser info for all of the parks geysers due to erupt that day!

And most importantly follow all safety precautions around the geysers and stick to the boardwalks. Geysers are very dangerous, especially to children. Be sure to follow all safety procedures and stick to the geyser rules. 

Grand Prismatic Lake Tips

The Grand Prismatic Lake is one of the most popular places to visit due to the amazing colors in the lake.

If want to see colours then the afternoon is the best time to go. That is because the Grand Prismatic Lake in the afternoon is far less steamy so you will be able to see the colors more.  

In my opinion the Grand Prismatic lake is best viewed from the Fairy Falls trail that runs above the lake.

Best areas to see wildlife in Yellowstone

The best areas to see wildlife in Yellowstone National Park is undoubtedly the Lamar Valley and the Hayden Valley. This is because in these valleys you stand a chance of seeing wolves and grizzly bears alongside bison which are more commonplace around the park. 

However if you are interested in seeing wildlife in Yellowstone it is important to respect the rules . 

One of the rules for viewing wildlife in Yellowstone is that you never stop on the road to view animals – unless there is an animal blocking the way. 

The only place you should stop to view wildlife is only in designated pullovers and parking lots. 

But the most important rule is obviously that you should never touch a wild animal, get out of the car close to them or generally get too close to Yellowstone wildlife. 

Take a Hike

While it can be nice to just hit everything on the Yellowstone bucket list it can be nice to go on a longer walk or hike. This is a great way to escape the crowds at Yellowstone and see Yellowstone from a different perspective. 

Plan to do some activities

And while it is nice to just drive the loop roads, your Yellowstone vacation will be enriched by adding some activities into the mix. 

There are loads of different ways to see Yellowstone or experience it but some of the top ones are:

• horse back riding
• fishing or even 
• snowshoeing in Winter. 

Have you been to Yellowstone? What are your top Yellowstone travel tops for planning a trip to Yellowstone.

And before you head off why not check out some of our other Yellowstone travel guides:

• Yellowstone with kids 
• Yellowstone with toddlers
• last minute trip to Yellowstone 
• Best Geysers in Yellowstone 
• Where to stay near Yellowstone
• Yellowstone Packing List
• Yellowstone 4 day itinerary