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Post by shanniebananie on Jan 2, 2020 18:22:19 GMT
Over Christmas, my extended family decided we would like to take a trip to Jackson Hole and Yellowstone this summer. We realize we are months behind in planning and that this is the high season. There will be 13 of total and we are looking to stay in cabins or a nicer hotel at each location. We would like to stay inside Yellowstone, if possible. Our budget is $350-500/night for each room.
I have never been to either location and I am just looking for a place to start searching.
Any first hand experience with either location? Would do you recommend or what should we stay away from?
Any help is greatly appreciated!
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Post by Outspoken on Jan 2, 2020 18:36:52 GMT
In Yellowstone, try to stay at Old Faithful Inn just for location and architecture.
ETA - forget my suggestion. Sold out for the summer! Sheesh!
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Post by peasapie on Jan 2, 2020 18:41:14 GMT
I think for a big group the only places inside the park are Canyon Village (a newer place with several lodges that have large suites for big families) and Lake Yellowstone. If you can't get a room, keep calling every few days. People book far in advance but cancel all the time. We got our reservation two weeks before the trip for that reason. You can also AirBnB it or stay at a hotel in West Yellowstone, outside the park.
Old Faithful Inn - it's fun to eat there and see the rough-hewn beam construction, but the rooms are small and really need a refresh. I wouldn't spend the money to stay there again.
It can get quite cold even in summer, so be sure to pack sweatshirts and pants.
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Post by freecharlie on Jan 2, 2020 18:44:52 GMT
I'd jump now on lodging as that is often booked far, far in advance.
How long and what do you want to do?
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Post by librarylady on Jan 2, 2020 21:35:43 GMT
You are probably too late for most of the lodging in Yellowstone.
The drives through the park make a figure 8. We stayed in the Canyon Lodge Cabins which are near where the 8 roads cross and near the Canyon that is the "canyon of the park"
It made it rather convenient to drive the park roads. If I had to do it over, I would stay in the lodge. The cabins are down a road and we had to walk to get to the dining area (short walk though).
The speed limit in the park is 20 mph if I recall, so there is plenty of time to look for wildlife.
Unless things have changed, no wifi or TV in the cabins. Wifi was available in the lodge.
We went the week after Labor Day...in fact arrived on either that Sunday or Monday. If you can do that it is fantastic timing. Families with children are gone and most people coming later have not arrived yet. When we went to Old Faithful there were less than 100 people viewing it. The big lodges were booked then by tour groups so we had to stay in the cabins. If you can, have a picnic one day. It was so pleasant and the chipmunks were delightful.
We did see bears and wolves as well as elk.
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Post by scraphappy0501 on Jan 2, 2020 21:41:10 GMT
I just checked Xanterra's website (they are the concessionaire for Yellowstone's accomodations) and it looks like Canyon Lodge and Lake Yellowstone might have some availability during the summer if you have some flexibility in room types. Lake Yellowstone doesn't have a lot of availability for rooms with 2 queens but does with rooms with 1 bed. Canyon Lodge has availability for 2 queen bed rooms. The more popular locations book up a year or more in advance. Read the descriptions of the accommodations carefully. Sometimes there are shared baths and quite a few of the lodgings do not have air conditioning. It can get pretty hot in certain parts of the park (like the Mammoth Hot Springs area.)
We camp in Yellowstone and/or Grand Teton every summer. Grand Teton is north of Jackson and south of Yellowstone and we prefer it to Yellowstone (less people and we enjoy the scenery there more than Yellowstone.) The lodgings in Grand Teton are run by Grand Teton Lodge Company. There looks to be some availability at Jackson Lake Lodge. Very pretty area, but no air conditioning in any of the rooms there. There are also some rustic cabins available at Colter Bay. They do not have air conditioning either. Flagg Ranch (also known as Headwaters at Flagg Ranch) looks to have availability. It is located between Yellowstone and Grand Teton and is managed by the Grand Teton Lodge Company.
We don't know too much about accommodations in Jackson as we haven't stayed in any. I've heard that the Wort Hotel is nice but it looks like the rooms will be out of your price range in the summer. I just checked higher-rated lodging in Jackson and most are sold out for July and August. West Yellowstone has accommodations as well and a lot of people I know stay there rather than Jackson.
Non-lodging advice: Yellowstone is a huge park and you can spend many hours in your car getting from one area to another. All of the main areas in the park have something to offer so I can't really say to skip a certain area if time is an issue. Yellowstone in the summer is crowded and certain areas are prone to traffic jams (or bison-jams, when people slow down or stop to see bison and hold up traffic.) Some of the parking areas can fill up early in the day so it's a good idea to plan to be out and about earlier in the day rather than later.
Grand Teton is a much smaller park with breathtaking scenery and less people, which is why we prefer to stay there every year. But we go more to relax and enjoy nature since we've seen all of the major Yellowstone and Grand Teton sights many times over.
The town of Jackson is a typical tourist town. Not kitschy-tourist, but just a town with a lot of stores catering to visitors. It's neat to walk around there for a day or so, but it will be crowded in the summer. There are public parking lots near downtown but they tend to fill up by early afternoon.
Activities: In Jackson or Grand Teton, a float trip (calmer) or a rafting trip on the Snake River are fun. Of course there's lots of hiking in both national parks. Both parks also have horseback riding, boat tours and/or rentals and some organized tours. In Jackson, the Bar J Wranglers have a popular dinner and show.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head but I'll be happy to try and answer any questions you have!
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Post by tenacious on Jan 2, 2020 21:58:38 GMT
We have gotten VRBOs at Teton Village several times, and don’t book this far ahead.
If you have time and like art, we really like the art museum in Jackson! Some gorgeous landscapes there.
Enjoy! We love that trip!
ETA Teton Village is in Jackson Hole
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Deleted
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May 19, 2024 14:41:12 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2020 22:47:53 GMT
Another vote for grand tetons if you can't get lodging in yellowstone. They share a border and you can do both. Jackson hole, not so close.
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