Qiaoyi

Hello. I'm planning next summer's trip. This will be our family's first time to these two parks. We love nature and national parks. Our three kids will be 16, 13 and 7. We all love hiking and boat trips and view of wild animals. I'm thinking staying 5 nights in each of the two parks. Or should I give more time to Yellowstone? Any suggestion will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

jill_h

i think 5 nights is fine for both parks (unless you can stay longer!)

Regarding Yellowstone, some mention to split time between the lower loop and upper loop to save on driving and having to double back.

Qiaoyi

Thank you jill_h Alas, there is never enough money and/or time for travel.

db6040

Sorry this just might be me but are you planning for 5 nights in Yellowstone and 5 separate nights in the Tetons, or 5 nights total for both parks? If you are talking about 10 days, you might consider a night in Cody or a day to drive the beartooth highway. Cody is a great town with a world class museum and a rodeo that is very fun.

Qiaoyi

db040, Thank you. I was thinking 10 days or even 12 days for both parks. We do love museum as well, so this is great advice.

maxima

There are 9 lodges/cabins in Yellowstone in different locations. There are also campsites if you like camping. There is also a variety of lodges and cabins in Grand Teton. All of the accommodations fill up fast, so make reservations asap. The number of days you will spend in the parks may depend on whether you can book a reservation.

you can also stay outside of the parks, but you have to deal with traffic getting in and out of the park entrances, and may do more driving than you planned on each day.

you can take a look at the park service websites for each park to get an idea of the range of activities... the park rangers will have free programs geared for families.

Cody is a distance from Yellowstone. Depending on where you will be coming from you may or may not want to stop there.

Qiaoyi

maxima, thank you very much for the advice.

I know Yellowstone typically book up one year in advance. And my original plan was for next August. When I looked into lodging back in June, since it is more than one year away, no calendar was available. Then comes summer vacation and school, I put everything on hold. Now I finally have the time to plan, only to find out almost all the rooms are booked. I was able to so far only book 3 nights in Grand Teton. Apparently everybody is heading there to see the solar eclipse just like us. I did not know there are so many enthusiast. If I cannot get any rooms, I will have to propone these national parks trip till some other year, and head to a different to see the eclipse.

gail

If you have about 10 days I would spend 3 in Grand Teton, 4-5 in Yellowstone, and the remaining 2 days in either Jackson or Cody area. We saw a local rodeo, did a rafting trip.

I would not rule out staying outside Yellowstone. The towns of West Yellowstone and Gardiner, for example, are right there at the entrance and while the lodging options are not as authentic, you are minutes from the entrance. And better food options and stores to stock up on provisions for lunches and hiking. Most teens also welcome a little more access to wifi in the evening. I would keep the GTNP lodging reservations, make some out of Yellowstone cancelable reservations (in 2 locations) and keep checking back for in Park cancellations.

emalloy

Because people make reservations a year in advance, they often find as time gets close that they can't make the trip. So, make a reservation outside the park as Gail recommends then keep calling back to pick up the in park cancellations.

Your kids are the perfect ages to visit these parks.

Qiaoyi

gail, emalloy, thank you both for the advice. Yeah, I really don't want to give up the trip yet. My family loves National Parks, and have visited all the ones on the eastern side, now we need to head west.

gail

Think about lodging this way. You can stay in some authentic and historic Park lodging. But National Parks are really day-time venues. You don't want to go driving around GTNP at night and run into a moose or Yellowstone and come upon a buffalo herd after dark. And unlike some other Parks, outside Park lodging is so close to the real reason you are there. We also visited many National Parks when our kids were kids. Once they hit teenage years, reality was after dinner, we started hearing "I'm bored". By compromising with a little access to TV, wifi, and a greater variety of food, we were all able to truly enjoy time as a family during the day.

We saw it as not catering too much to the teens, but family compromise that allowed everyone to have a good time.

Qiaoyi

gail, thanks. I was able to book at West Yellowstone. We are definitely going on this trip. Now we just wish the weather will cooperate, so we can actually see the solar eclipse.

basingstoke2

I completely agree with gail. You did not say where you booked at West Yellowstone but we found the 3 Bear Lodge to be excellent and a fine value. Even if you do not stay there, try the restaurant which is a cut above in the quality of food.

If you are looking to save some cash, the 3 Bear Lodge has an attached motel. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but the rooms themselves are extra large, very clean, nicely furnished and very comfortable. The lodge is only about a 2 minute drive to the park entrance.

Qiaoyi

Thank you, basingstoke2. We actually were able to book at 3 bears lodge. This is great.

basingstoke2

Qiaoyi - I believe you will be happy there. Their furniture is particularly interesting, much of it is handcrafted to a high standard. Ask about it.