Yellowstone National Park: Everything You Need to Know
Do you want to get the most of your trip to Yellowstone National Park? It is essential to plan your trip properly, that's why we've created this travel guide, where we cover everything you need to know before visiting Yellowstone National Park. From when to visit, where to stay, and what to see, we've got covered.
For many travelers, visiting Yellowstone National Park, the oldest national park in the USA, means fulfilling their dreams.
We feel absolutely blessed that we could visit the park on our road trip as those three days spent among the geysers, colorful pools, basins, waterfalls, canyons, and the wast land won't ever be forgotten.
The majority of the park lies in Wyoming, three percent is within Montana, and only one percent of the park lies in Idaho state.
Although Yellowstone National Park is one of the most famous and most visited parks in the world, before our visit we had a feeling we could not find relevant information on frequently asked questions in one place.
That's why we have decided to write this post which is focusing on things every traveler and visitor to Yellowstone National Park should know.
We tried to cover everything we wanted to know before our visit, but if anything is missing, or there is a topic we did not cover you are interested in, contact us via the comment section below, and we’ll do our best to update this post.
So without any further ado, here’s everything you need to know before visiting Yellowstone National Park.
HOW TO GET TO YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
There are several options on how to get to Yellowstone National Park, and this topic is closely connected with your itinerary (places you plan on visiting before and after traveling around the park), with the time of the year, place you choose as your base for staying overnight and entrance gate you will decide to use.
In the coming paragraph, we will outline options on how to get to the places you can use as a base for your Yellowstone adventures such as Jackson Hole, Idaho Falls, West Yellowstone, Cody, Bozeman, Billings, or Gardiner.
Plane
When short on time, it is possible to get close to the park by plane, and then cover the rest of the distance by car, bus, or with a tour.
The biggest airport which also serves international flights is in Salt Lake City, but it is still quite a drive from here to the south entrance.
There are other local airports nearby the park in Jackson Hole, Cody, Bozeman, Billings or Idaho Falls, which are open all year round, and then there is one seasonal airport in West Yellowstone, which is serviced between May and mid-October.
Getting to the proximity of Yellowstone National Park by plane is for sure the quickest way, especially if you do not plan on road tripping around, and visiting the park is your main reason for traveling to the area, but it is for sure the most expensive option.
Train
The closest train (Amtrak) to Yellowstone National Park terminates in Salt Lake City, and from here you can take either bus, a multi-day tour, or rent a car.
Bus
Public transport near the park is not somehow extensive, and unless you have plenty of time, we would not recommend it.
Nevertheless, you can find a connection between Salt Lake City and Jackson Hole, Bozeman and West Yellowstone or Idaho and West Yellowstone, but this connection is available only during summer months.
Of course, you can look for bus schedules on-line and find a connection that suits you best according to your itinerary.
One of the most popular transport companies which often run buses between popular tourist places in Greyhound, although we were not somehow impressed by the level of the services when taking the bus from Seattle to Vancouver.
Car
As for us the visit of Yellowstone National Park was part of the USA & Canadian Rockies road trip, and we could take a vacation only for three weeks, renting a car was a no brainer.
But hadn't we needed the car for the whole trip, we would have rented the car for three or four days for traveling in the national park anyway.
As we've mentioned before, public transport in the area is not very flexible, and both getting to the park and then traveling in the park would have been much more challenging without the car.
We are not saying it is not possible, but having the car gave us the freedom and the possibility to explore and see the best things Yellowstone National Park had to offer.
When traveling by car, you have to direct yourself to the city near the entrance you decided to use for visiting the park - follow either road 89, 121, 20 or 212.
Bike
In case you are traveling around the USA on a bike, follow the roads we've mentioned above for cars, depending on the direction you are traveling from, and the roads will take you to one of the five official entrances.
ENTRANCE GATES
There are five official entrance gates to Yellowstone National Park, all of them are named geographically, so it is pretty easy to distinguish between them.
In general, you can use an entrance that geographically suits the best your itinerary, but there are a couple of catches you should keep in mind.
First, and the most important information is, that only North Entrance is open all year round, other gates are opened seasonally, and unless you are visiting the park in the summer, you should always double-check the information regarding opening dates.
Usually, the gates are opened every year on the same date, but abnormalities such as long winters can happen, so the opening can be postponed.
We entered Yellowstone via the West Entrance, and three days later we left via South Entrance as we continued to Grand Teton National Park.
Once a gate is open, you can use it every day of a week, 24 hours a day.
North Entrance
Gardiner is a small town close to the North Entrance. This entrance is one of the most popular ones, and also the only way how to enter the park in case you are traveling during winter as it does not close seasonally. It is also conveniently located close to some of the best things to see in the park.
West Entrance
Close to the major geysers, West Entrance is the busiest one when the season is in full swing. This gate is usually opened among the first after winter, it is usually on the third Friday in April and this gate closes first Sunday in November.
Snowmobiles can enter the park via this gate between December and the beginning of March.
Northeast Entrance, East Entrance, and South Entrance
These three entrances usually open later, normally a few weeks after the West Entrance, and the date depends on snow removal conditions.
OPENING HOURS
Opening hours of Yellowstone National Park reflect weather seasons and change during the year.
It is always best to see the official opening hours and road closure before your visit as the raw environment and weather can often affect it. The only season when the park's gates are open 24/7 in summer, during two months to be specific, July and August.
Although those two months are the busiest in the park, you can get around absolutely freely, you can stay in the park even after dark and you will most likely get to the all top sights as no road should be scheduled for maintenance, unless it is absolutely unnecessary.
Autumn and spring can see some road closures, same as winter, which is the least visited season, and your travels can be affected by both snow and road closures.
The only entrance gate which is opened all-year-round is North Entrance.
ENTRANCE FEE TO YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
You have to buy a ticket to get to Yellowstone National Park, and although at first the price for the entry seemed quite high to us (especially because we are not used to paying for visiting national parks back at home), after visiting the park, we are not afraid to say we would not mind paying even more.
Yellowstone National Park is a truly special place, and the parks department really deserves money to maintain the area.
You can either buy the ticket online in advance (please keep in mind that the ticket is valid from the day of purchase, so do not buy it too early), or at the ticket booth when entering the park.
This is what we did, so on the first day we had to wait in the queue to buy the ticket, but the next days, we could drive directly to the park. If you buy an online ticket, we recommend you to either print it out or download it, as you will have to show it to the rangers, and we would not rely on connectivity in the park.
And how much the tickets to Yellowstone National Park cost?
It is 35 USD for a private vehicle - this pass is valid for seven days, and we think this option should suit the majority of the visitors.
In case you live in the area, or you know you might be able to visit the park multiple times during a year, then buy a yearly pass for 70 USD.
Motorcyclists have to pay 30 USD for a seven-day pass, and visitors without a vehicle (pedestrians, hikers or cyclists) have to pay 20 USD for one week.
As we've mentioned before, there are several entrances in Yellowstone National Park, but in case you are arriving from the south through Grand Teton National Park, you will have to purchase another entrance fee for Grand Teton first, which is also 35 USD for a vehicle for seven days.
We traveled to Grand Teton National Park as well, and although we will focus on this topic in our future blog posts, there is one thing we can tell you - the investment on entrance fee is well worth it.
Children under 15 years old do not have to pay for the entrance fee, but it does not matter that much when you are traveling by car as a group.
There are several days in a year when the entrance fee to Yellowstone National Park is waived. In 2020 it is on 20.1., 18.4., 25.8., 26.9., and 11.11.
Although it might be tempting to save some money, it is good to know that the park on these days is even more packed than usual, and traveling might be a bit challenging during these times.
HOW MANY DAYS YOU NEED FOR YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
In general, we would say more days for the park you have, better the experience will be.
But we know that most of the travelers are limited by either time or money, so it is necessary to decide how many days is optimal to spend in Yellowstone National Park in advance.
From our experience, we would recommend you to spend three days in Yellowstone National Park.
This amount of time gave us the possibility to see all the major sights, we did not have to hurry and had enough time to take photos and drive around the park's main designated loops.
Sure, had we planned to do day-hikes, or to go a bit off the beaten path, even three days would not have been enough, but as our Canada & North America itinerary was pretty packed, in the end, we were absolutely happy with what we saw.
On the other hand, in the case that apart from the top attractions, you want to see less known places, or you are a keen hiker, plan at least four or five days in the park to make the most of your visit.
According to our opinion, one day in Yellowstone National Park is really not enough, however it’s still better than no day at all.
In one day you will be able to see the highlights, but not all of them, and you will have to carefully plan your day. When pressed for time, you might want to consider taking a tour, but more about the options later.
Either way, as Yellowstone National Park is absolutely outstanding, we see two days in the park as a bare minimum to take in the beauty of nature without rushing.
Only the luckiest travelers have a chance to use the seven-day pass to the maximum, and if you are one of them, congratulations.
Let us know in the comment section how was your week in Yellowstone.
BEST THINGS TO SEE AND DO IN YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
We will cover the best things to see and do in Yellowstone National Park in a separate post, but here we just want to give you a short intro into what to expect in the park.
Geysers, geothermal activity, colorful pools, bubbling mud, exceptional flora, and wildlife, that's in short what you will see.
When we saw all of this in our first minutes in the park, we absolutely knew why Yellowstone is often rated among the best national parks in the world.
And what are the attractions you should not miss?
For sure it is Grand Prismatic, the most famous natural wonder in the park thanks to its colors, iconic Old Faithful Geyser, Lamar Valley where your chances are high to spot wildlife, beautiful Grand Canyon with amazing waterfalls, photogenic Mammoth Hot Springs or Porcelain Basins.
HOW TO GET AROUND
Unfortunately, except for private tours (more about it later), no shuttle buses are running in the park, therefore renting a car is, according to our opinion, the best way how to get around Yellowstone National Park.
Also, as we did not want to stay in the park, we had to travel every day from the park to West Yellowstone, where we slept.
Sure, you can hike or cycle in the park (there are hiking trails scattered around the park, but no special bike lanes), and slowly move around, but in that case, you will need more time, and we were pretty limited this time.
We were on a big road trip which started in Vancouver, where we also rented the car, but you will find rental car shops even in all small towns which are gateways to the park.
When traveling by car outside the season, always chack up-to-date road closures to ensure your travels will go smoothly. It is even possible to rent an RV and stay in the park overnight in one of the campgrounds.
Due to the abundance of snow in the park in winter, not all roads are open for motor vehicles, but during winter months you can travel around using snowmobile or snow coaches, but often, you must have a guide with you.
WHERE TO STAY IN YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
When visiting the park, you have several options on where to stay overnight.
As Yellowstone National Park is America's leading travel destination, you have to expect higher prices, but when traveling on a budget, there are some cheaper hostels or campgrounds as well.
We decided to stay in West Yellowstone, and every evening we were returning to the village. The reason was simple.
Not only accommodation but also food and other services were cheaper here than in the park. But as the options are plentiful, you can choose the best possibility which will suit your budget and travel plans.
HOTELS
Most of the hotels and hostels in the towns near the park's borders are open all-year-round, but it is essential to make the reservation in advance, especially between June and September.
If you decide to stay within the park, always check the availability first, because some of the lodges are open only during high season.
Here's a list of the places where you can spend a night when visiting Yellowstone National Park.
Jackson | We drove through this town when we were leaving the park, and even a brief look told us that this place lives out of tourism and flourish. Hotels here are quite expensive, but when making a reservation in advance, you will find here even reasonably priced places.
West Yellowstone | Another town where you can spend a night is West Yellowstone. The town offers a great infrastructure for travelers, and even budget travelers will find here a bed.
Gardiner | When arriving in Yellowstone National Park from the north, the most convenient place to sleep is Gardiner. There is no shortage of accommodation, restaurants, and grocery stores as well.
Cody | When traveling from the East, why not to stay in Cody, which is a jumping-off point for the park, and it is a perfect base for enthusiastic hikers and nature lovers.
Inside the Park
Lodges inside the park have their charm, but be prepared to pay for the privilege. Some of the lodges are opened only seasonally, but some are open even during the winter months. One of the most popular summer lodges is Old Faithful Snow Lodge & Cabins or Lake Yellowstone Hotel & Cabins. When traveling off-season, your best bet would be Mammoth Hot Springs & Cabins.
Campgrounds
If you want the ultimate experience and be in nature as much as possible, there is a possibility to sleep in a campground.
There are surprisingly many spots available, and prices are more than reasonable.
Twelve campgrounds are spread across the park (suitable for tents and RVs), but only Mammoth Campground is open year-round, the rest of them are available between May and September or October.
Five campgrounds take reservations, while the other seven work on a first-come-first-served basis.
WHERE TO EAT
We must admit that we did not buy anything inside the park. We always did grocery shopping in West Yellowstone, and as we traveled around in rented campervan, we always had a food handy with us, same with water.
But in case you do not want to take care of the food while traveling much, no worries.
There are quite many shops, restaurants or cafeterias within the park, usually located near the lodges.
In general, you will always most likely find a restaurant near top attractions. Prices are a bit inflated here, but that is probably something you would expect.
If you decide to dine in one of the lodges within the park, you might be surprised how fancy-looking the interiors are.
Do not worry that you wear your outdoor clothes, and enjoy lunch or coffee.
WHEN TO VISIT
Every season in Yellowstone National Park has its pros and cons. We visited the park in mid-September and had we visited the park again, we would probably have considered the same month.
Winter
Winter is for sure the most challenging time of the year to visit the park, but we are pretty sure that when Yellowstone turns into a snowy wonderland, it must be something incredible.
Winter in the park lasts approximately from December to the beginning of March, and during this time, less than 3% yearly visitors travel here.
In general, you will have the park just for yourself.
What are the cons?
Winter is harsh in the park, not all roads and services in the park are open, so it can happen, you will not see all the highlights. According to our opinion, you should be a bit more experienced when traveling in the park in winter.
Spring
Spring is the time of the year when everything wakes up.
More visitors arrive in the park, but it is hard to choose the best month for your visit. As most of the entrances and roads usually open during April, we would focus on May when the weather will be a bit more stable. March can be still affected by snow and road closures.
Summer
The highest volume of visitors sees summer, from June to August. The best part about summer in Yellowstone is the (mostly) sunny weather, long days and pleasant temperatures, the only downside is the crowds.
Boardwalks during summer are packed with visitors, and you can often experience traffic jams and full parking lots at the most favorite sights.
It is only up to you if you decide to travel to the park during this time, but in case you are a bit flexible, we would recommend you to wait a bit and arrive during the off-season.
Fall
Autumn is our favorite time of the year, as it is often photogenic, temperatures are still pleasant, and there are not that many tourists. In Yellowstone, the best month in autumn would be September.
October should be fine too, although it can be rainier and more unstable.
November is the month when most of the services close their business, and the park is preparing for winter.
WHAT TO PACK
Even when the park is best to be explored by car, it does not matter you'll be just driving and sitting inside.
No, the best things are of course awaiting outside, and we even cannot count how many times a day we parked our car and started exploring the area.
We must say that in late September we really lucked out the weather, but we still packed responsibly, just in case the weather would have changed.
In the summer you can most of the time expect sunny days and warm temperatures, but as it can rain and be windy any time of the year, do not underestimate nature, and be always prepared.
When traveling in the winter, that's a completely different story, and you will for sure need proper gear.
Here's a list of must-have things when traveling in Yellowstone National Park.
First, you should have a comfortable daypack with a waist strap and quality back support.
Then, always make sure you have a rain poncho (or an umbrella) and quality trail walking shoes. We always love wearing layers as only then we are flexible and feel comfortable.
Pack or wear a functional t-shirt, fleece jacket, windbreaker, waterproof jacket, shorts, hiking pants or leggings.
Also, the sun can be harsh here, so a hat is a good idea, only make sure it fits you well because we saw quite many hats in the bubbling pools which were taken by the sudden wind.
Sunglasses and sunscreen should go without saying any time of the year.
In winter layers are even more important, and you should have a down jacket, winter hat, gloves, and waterproof boots.
WILDLIFE
One sunny morning in September we entered Yellowstone National Park and after approximately five minutes in the park, we had to wait in a queue for a while.
Why? Well, there was a family of bison walking slowly along the road.
From this very moment, we knew this is it. We had heard rumors about wildlife in Yellowstone but did not expect we will see those iconic animals for the park first-hand right after our arrival.
Except for bison, Yellowstone is famous for bears, foxes, wolves or deer.
Because the wildlife in the park is abundant, and Yellowstone is their home, while we are only visiting, keep that in mind, and always when driving or walking, watch out for animals.
To stay safe, read a paragraph below focusing on an encounter with animals.
If you are a photographer, we recommend you to bring a proper gear, it will definitely pay off.
As the visit of Yellowstone National Park is all about beautiful nature, wonderful landscapes, and wildlife, we recommend you to consider bringing binoculars and a camera with a telephoto lens.
Tripod is also a must, especially if you plan on photographing wildlife from a distance (well, you shouldn't approach wildlife anyway).
TOURS IN YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
When planning the ultimate Yellowstone itinerary, we know that one can easily feel overwhelmed. But no worries, you will figure out everything, and hopefully, our travel guide will help you with that.
For the rest of you, who are either short on time, or who prefer to join guided tours, and let professionals arrange the boring stuff, we have good news.
It is possible to arrange tours in Yellowstone National Park, and we've handpicked the best ones, so you can decide according to your preferences which will be the best for you.
Yellowstone Full-Day | In case you have only one day for exploring the park, this tour is the best you can find online.
Yellowstone in Two Days | This tour includes the best you can see in the park in two days, and in case you do not have a car, you should consider booking it.
Yellowstone and Grand Teton | An ultimate four-day tour will show you the beauty of two parks in the area, Yellowstone and Grand Teton.
Yellowstone Snowcoach Tour | Because winter is a slow season in Yellowstone, and it is harder to get around, taking a snow coach tour is one of the possibilities.
SAFETY
When traveling in Yellowstone National Park, you should always keep in mind that you are visiting a geothermal area, where different rules apply.
This park is a place where nature can within a blink of an eye show you how powerful it is, and wildlife such as bison, wolves, and bears are home here.
Visiting Yellowstone is pretty safe when you follow a few simple rules.
When walking around bubbling mud pools and in general in areas with visible geothermal activity, always stick to the boardwalks, and when there are none, always walk on a clearly visible path, do not wander off.
You would be surprised how many injuries (or even deaths) were caused by breaking this simple rule.
When traveling with kids, always keep an eye on them. As keen photographers, we know how easy it can be to forget about your surroundings, but we advise you to be really careful here, especially when taking selfies.
It is not unusual to see wildlife in the park. It is essential to keep a distance (100 meters from bears and wolves, 25 meters from other wildlife), do not bother animals, and most importantly, do NOT feed them.
You would be surprised how even large animals can be nimble and fast, and you can be sure you would not outrun them.
When you will be stuck in a traffic jam in the park, you can be sure it is either because of roadblocks or because of wildlife crossing the road or pasturing near the road, so always pay attention.
There are quite many bears in the park, so when you plan on hiking in the backcountry, it is always better to travel in a group and carry bear spray.
We've written a post on How to Stay Safe in a Bear Country, and although this article was based on our experience from the Canadian Rockies, we are sure you will find it useful even here in Yellowstone National Park.
Travel Insurance
We never leave home without travel insurance that was designed to cover our expenses if something goes wrong during the trip.
Travel insurance protects against theft, flight delays, injury, illness, cancellations, and much more.
World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers to cover their trip essentials, including sports and adventure activities.
SafetyWing is affordable travel insurance for backpackers, long-term travelers, and digital nomads.
Travel smarter and safer!
Travel Resources
Here you can find links to all the travel resources we use and which you might find helpful when planning your next holiday.
Accommodation: When looking for accommodation, we usually search hotels via Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Tours: Although we love to travel independently, some places are better to visit with a guided tour.
We prefer GetYourGuide for its easy-to-use interface and solid reputation. Another great alternative is Viator.
Rental Cars: When going on a road trip, we always use Rentalcars.com, a reliable site for booking a rental car in advance.
Flight Tickets: When looking for flight tickets, you can search Skyscanner to find the best price.
Travel Insurance: World Nomads and SafetyWing cover against risks of travel.
