Overwhelmed - Yellowstone Advice Please?

We visited Yellowstone back in the late 90’s after the big fire. We stayed in a cabin outside the park for three days. It was Labor Day weekend and there was snow in the upper elevations. You better check and make sure the park is open, their season is not very long.

We drove around the upper circle the first day and the lower circle the second. Binoculars are a must. There were not a lot of other people there and we could stop and take pictures wherever we wanted. I thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the park and would love to go back someday.

We went a few years ago and stayed in Jackson. It was great for having tons of great restaurants, but definitely made long driving days longer. If you can, hit the Grand Tetons while you're there, we actually liked it better than Yellowstone.

We stayed in a lodge in the park, in the Canyon area. If you imagine the main road in the park being a giant figure 8, the Canyon area is near where the roads cross. We had a cabin that had someone else in the other side of the cabin (porch between us). We walked a very short distance to a lodge that had meals. No wifi in the park. No TV in the room. (You are there to experience nature.) We ate our other meals in various lodges. We did have to drive to see
Old Faithful etc. We drove over to "Grand Canyon of Yellowstone" and then hiked (easy hike) along the rim. One day we had a little picnic lunch and chipmunks joined us on the rock where we were sitting to
beg for food.

We were there the week following Labor Day (arrived on Tuesday) and there were very few tourists. We had no trouble seeing things because there were no huge crowds to navigate or block our views.

We saw a pack of wolves at dusk and some bears then also.

When we left Yellowstone, (using the southern gate) we stayed in an ancient motel named The Hatchet. We drove around the "flats" that evening and saw several herds of antelope. (We got home and learned our friend had worked at The Hatchet when she was in college.) We never made it over to Jackson Hole.

Went back and read the OP. Sounds like you travel like we do. The Hatchet is old, but was clean and in good repair. I think they had meals available in the restaurant. If you want to stay in the park, you need to check on reservations ASAP as things get booked quickly.

I will add that the year we went, we had just purchased a hybrid sedan. I felt so lucky we had the hybrid because there was a lot of s-l-o-w driving and I kept thinking that I was so glad that I was not idling away gas. I think most of our "in the park" driving was done in the all electric mode of our car.

We did Yellowstone last September.
We flew into Bozeman on hen entered park through the west entrance and stayed 2 nights at Grant Village.

We explored the northern part of the park.

Then did 2 nights at Old Faithful Inn (AMAZING) and explored southern part of park.

Then did 2 nights in Grand Tetons.
Then spent day exploring Jackson - and flew out of Jackson.

We've been to Yellowstone numerous times (our daughter lives in Wyoming). We have stayed in Cody, West Yellowstone and a cabin halfway between Cody and the Yellowstone east entrance. If you intend to stay inside the park, I suggest you go to National Park Service very soon and look at lodging availability. The NPS link will take you to the actual lodging website, but you'll see the map of lodge locations inside the park at the NPS site. If you have to stay outside the park, West Yellowstone is closer to the park entrance than Cody is, and there are plenty of hotels/cabins/motels located there.

Since you said you like rustic, this is where we stayed for three nights last year (on the east side, about halfway between Cody and the East Entrance). Absaroka Lodge They did a campfire each night and roasted marshmallows. The river running next to the cabins was loud and beautiful! The cabins are pretty basic (they do have a bathroom), but they were clean. We enjoyed staying there!

I highly recommend downloading the Guide Along App. The narrator is full of info, and it's enjoyable to listen to him. The app works via GPS; not data. It stops when you stop, and restarts at the next guide point along the way.

Another great resource for planning a logical trip inside Yellowstone is Dirt In My Shoes. Ash is a former park ranger, and her suggested daily itineraries for the national parks are logical and easy to follow. She points out lesser known spots and suggests hikes of all lengths and for all abilities. (Don't forget the bear spray if you intend to hike!!!)

Since you'll be in the area, other places I'd highly recommend are the Bear Tooth Pass and Chief Joseph Scenic highways. The views on each of these drives is nothing short of spectacular; especially Bear Tooth. Guidealong has an audio tour for Bear Tooth too.

If you have any specific questions, please feel free to message me.

Bring food! The options for dining are limited. Be sure you plan ahead. I'd have some sandwich fixings and fruit. You will need to bring your cooler in to your hotel inside the park. You don't want to provide a snack for bears.

You can do it in 3 days without being too rushed. I'll echo the others, get out early to see the most wildlife and bring layers. It's cold in the morning, but can be quite warm in the afternoon. It is also much colder at the higher elevations.

Don't skip the little spur roads. You'll want to see things like Virginia Cascade.

We went to Yellowstone in July 2016, it was fabulous.  We stayed in West Yellowstone which was a good place.  In six days we saw almost the whole park.  We were usually up by 6 am to avoid most traffic.  We spent one night in Cody which was a great way to see the south east side of the park.  We also went river rafting and horse back riding.  A really great trip but you need to get up early and be prepared to drive a lot.

This was before the ticketing system, so I don't know how that works.