First, Where NOT to Stay
If you’ve read my experience of staying near Yellowstone National Park, you know that I made a BIG mistake in choosing where to stay. I picked out a cabin that was sort of halfway between Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Park, but it didn’t work particularly well for either.
To get anywhere, we had to drive 30-60 minutes to a park entrance and it just put us out of the way of everything.
Good
Instead, it would have been much better to stay in a gateway city, since you are going to have to pass through one anyway. For Yellowstone, this means West Yellowstone, Gardiner, and Cody. To a lesser extent, you could try Cooke City/Silver Gate or Red Lodge/Bear Creek at the northeast corner of the park. But up there you’ll have to deal with the Beartooth Highway. The Beartooth is great for a scenic drive, but you may not want to have to drive it everytime you want to get someplace.
Lower down around the Grand Tetons, you can have a very nice stay in Jackson. A little farther off, Driggs or Dubois might have some options for you, but they’re a
The biggest benefit
Better
An even better option would be to stay inside the parks, especially in Yellowstone. It cuts your drive times way down and there are some absolutely beautiful historic lodges throughout the park. You also have the option of camping, which is always a cheaper option if you already have your own gear.
The biggest trouble with booking accommodations inside the park is availability. I remembered looking at what in-park options were available nine months before our trip and even at that far out, there wasn’t much choice. We were able to get a whole house outside the park for much less. So this option is better in terms of your time and vacation value–it would be really cool to stay in one of those lodges!–but you will need to plan pretty far in advance and you might pay more.
Yellowstone Lodges
A word about the lodges in general–you won’t find a TV or even a radio in most rooms and none of them come with air conditioning. Limited i
Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel
Starting at the north entrance of the park next to its namesake terraced hot springs, Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel stands as it was built in 1936 with one wing from 1911. It’s one of two lodges that are open all year, though it looks like there are some months (i.e. March) that it is completely closed. One of the highlights of the hotel is the Map Room featuring a wooden map of the United States made from 15 different species of wood from 9 countries. There is a fine restaurant and bar here and almost always Elk on the lawn.
Summer season is April 26-Oct.13 and prices are between $80-200/night.
Roosevelt Lodge
In the quiet northeast corner of the park you’ll find Roosevelt Lodge has a more rustic experience to offer.
Open May 31-Sept 2, rates are around $100-160/night.
Canyon Lodge
Canyon Lodge is the largest facility in the park with 500 rooms and cabins. Situated next to Yellowstone Canyon, it’s also very centrally located to the rest of the park. Initially built in 1956 but it looks to have expanded since with several lodges on site.
Open May 17-Oct. 13. Prices are around $285-400/night.
Lake Yellowstone Hotel
In the southeast of the park along the banks of massive Lake Yellowstone, you can find Lake Yellowstone Hotel. This Colonial Revival mansion was built in 1891, then redesigned and expanded in 1903 and again in 1928. It features a lovely dining room and sun room facing the lake.
Open May 10-Oct. 7, prices are around $200-550/night.
Lake Lodge
Near the Lake Yellowstone Hotel is the more rustic Lake Lodge, a collection of small cabins around a central log-construction lodge. Here, you can rock on the porch overlooking the lake or a field of bison.
Open June 10-Sept. 22, rate around $150-250.
Old Faithful Inn
Now the granddaddy of all Yellowstone lodges and the very first of the grand park lodges in the American West is the famous Old Faithful Inn. It was built in 1904 with local logs and stone and is the largest log structure in the world. Featuring a 50-foot stone fireplace, this amazing lodge is the epitome of National Park grandeur and the origin of “Parkitecture.” My only regret is that you can no longer climb to the musician’s crow’s nest high above the multi-story lobby due to a 1959 earthquake.
The Old Faithful Inn is the most-requested accommodation in the park and will take some significant planning to book a room. Currently, it is booked for the entire 2019 season except for the first couple of weeks in early May and a few nights in October. Apparently, the way to get your room of choice is to call on May 1 of the year prior to your visit when all reservations. open to the public. So for a 2020 stay, call at 8 am Mountain time (11 am Eastern) on May 1, 2019. Note that all rooms might not be in the original 1904 structure, but ironically, rooms in the Old House are cheaper because they don’t come with en suite bathrooms.
Open from May 3-Oct. 7. Prices start at a reasonable $150/night and go all the way up to $740.
Old Faithful Snow Lodge
The newest lodge in the park is the Old Faithful Snow Lodge, finished in 1999. This is the only other lodge besides Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel to be open (mostly) year-round. The Snow Lodge is designed with heavy timber construction and rustic touches for an authentic National Park feel. The Snow Lodge is part of the larger Old Faithful Historic District with the Inn, two additional lodges, a visitor center, shopping and dining, all situated around the famous geyser.
Open year-round, costs is $200-350/night.
Old Faithful Lodge
Situated opposite the Old Faithful Inn, the Old Faithful Lodge is soaring log structure hosting dining and meeting space, surrounded by smaller basic cabins. Built in 1920.
Open May 10-Sept. 29, cabins are $100-170.
Grant Village
At the bottom of the park near the West Thumb Geyser Basin lies Grant Village, a shopping and dining center with six, two-story motel-like buildings housing 50 rooms each. Built in 1984.
Open May 23-Sept. 29. All rooms are $270.
Yellowstone Campgrounds
If camping is more your style, there are several campgrounds that accommodate both tents and RVs, plus several scattered around on a no-reservation (and no amenities) basis. When you reserve a paid site, you are required to have the exact measurements of your tent and/or RV plus any towing vehicles. If you show up with something different, they may not be able to accommodate you.
Grant Village Campground
Along with the motel buildings at Grant Village, there is also a large campground at the side of West Thumb. Grant Village is one of three campgrounds that don’t take reservations the first week of the season, due to unpredictable weather (i.e. snow.)
Open June 1-Sept 15, $31/night.
Bridge Bay
Up the
Open May 17-Sept 22, $26/night.
Fishing Bridge RV Park
This all-RV Fishing Bridge campground is closed for extensive renovations the entire 2019 season. It currently looks like a parking lot, so maybe that will get better. All sites have full hookups.
Last reported cost was $50/night.
Madison Campground
Madison Campground is situated in the middle of the park to the west, between Old Faithful and the Norris geyser basin. This one is reportedly a favorite for those who like to fish, since it lies along the Madison River.
Open April 26-Oct 20. $26/night.
Canyon Campground
The most popular campground of them all is the Canyon Campground for its forested sites and central location in the park. There is also a large village area with shops and dining, and all the hiking trails around Yellowstone Canyon. This is the third campground with no reservations taken during the first week of the season.
Open May 24-Sept. 22. $31/night.
Additional No-Fee Campgrounds
There are several other smaller campgrounds around the park, but with no flush toilets, hookups, or dump stations. These are all over, just look for the tent icon on park maps. It does seem that most of the paid campgrounds with amenities are in the lower half of the park (around the lake and the geysers) and more free, rustic campgrounds are in the top half in the plains and the creeks.
Best
Any of the above in-park options are going to be amazing experiences, at whatever comfort level you choose. And s
But I think the absolute BEST option for visiting Yellowstone is a room in the Old Faithful District and in the original Inn, if at all possible.
First of all, the Old Faithful Inn is just really, really cool. And the Old Faithful Geyser is freakin’ amazing! There is a ton to do and see just in that one area, both man-made and natural. I would have loved to have walked on the boardwalk all the way to the Morning Glory Pool.
But most of all, I think staying near Old Faithful puts you in the best position to visit the entire Yellowstone Park plus visit the Grand Tetons to the south, which I absolutely recommend you do. Grant Village will put you a bit closer to the southern edge of the park, but the Old Faithful area is far more interesting.
Next
Stay tuned for how we spent our one day in Yellowstone, and how we managed to see quite a lot and have a few nice meals along the way.
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