We stayed outside Yellowstone for some of the same reasons your husband states - and we were traveling with 2 teenagers when we went several years ago. You should consider 2 different places - the park is large and traffic moves slowly because of people stopping to see things - and you can get stuck behind a herd of buffalo at any time.

There are not really outside Park options at the south entrance - if you get a map, you can see that Jackson, WY is at the most south, with Grand Teton National Park next, moving north. This is a long, narrow park, and worth a day of your trip. There are condos (Teton Village) right at entrance to GTNP.

But this is not a good choice as lodgin site of Yellowstone, since then you must drive the full length of GTNP to enter Yellowstone, which is continguous on the north.

You might consider West Yellowstone, MT and possibly Gardiner as hotel locations - or something near the east entrance. West Yellowstone has several mid-range chain hotels with TV, internet, and many food choices nearby. Gardiner has fewer.

You will undoubtedly get responses saying you must stay in the Park - and there certainly are many factors that make that wonderful. But when we did family travel (kids now college age) the key to a successful trip was often a balance of what everyone wanted - and for us that was up early, see a lot of things balanced with a swimming pool, TV, familiar food in the evening.

We stayed @ Colter Village cabins inside the park @ Grand Tetons. some of the cabins have 3 or 4 beds. There was only 3 of us, but we had 3 beds. A kettle wasn't in the room, however. It did have decent private bath. The room was very large.

You can get decent lodging in Yellowstone and a lot of the places do have hot water and tea/coffee in the lobby available.

Dornan's is at the entrance to Grand Teton and you might see what they have to offer. It is barely outside the park and I think has more ammenities.

In Yellowstone, if you don't like something around Old Faithful or The Lake Hotel, you can try West Yellowstone and Gardiner for lodging. I would at least see the Old Faithful Inn or have a meal there.

I must admit, it is hard to find a good bed in any national park that I have been to. The bed at Lake Hotel were the best I have seen yet. Just don't expect a temperpedic with pillowtop, lol. This may be hard to find anyway.

Yellowstone is great. You will enjoy it!!

My wife is somewhat picky, she requires a private bathroom. I chose to do a room in OFI without a bath, because I wanted to experience the historic portion of the building. She says, "never again".

We stayed at The Lake Hotel in Yellowstone with our teenage sons 5 years ago. NEVER again. The walls in the bedrooms are so thin that you can hear everything going on in the next room, doors slamming in the hallway and kids running up and down the halls.

We stayed in the park in Yellowstone at Old Faithful Inn, Lake Hotel and a cabin at Mammoth. The Mammoth cabin did have an electric coffee pot but comfy bedding...not so much...but we enjoyed being in the park.

For Grand Teton we stayed at the Signal Mountain Lodge and really liked it. The bed there was comfortable and it had a mini-fridge, microwave and coffee maker.

We also stayed two nights in Jackson, but I am not sure if that is too far away for what you want to do. We split up the nights to see all of the different areas.

Sorry I can't speak to outside of the park lodging. I am sure you will have a fabulous trip no matter what you decide.

If you are considering East Entrence then Cody WY has some decent options.

If you are planing your trip to fly home you could fly out of Cody (small airport) or 2 hour drive North to Billings MT (bigger airport but not gigantic, better conections.)
I have stayed a number of times in Cody WY at the AmericInn and it has some nice spacious rooms with wild west theme of stuffed animals in teh lobby, lumber beds etc.
Hotel is newer with all modern amenities, hot tubs in the room and an indoor pool.
It has a very nice breakfast area with tea etc.
Also right next foor is Bubba's BBQ: one of the best BBQ places w/nice salad bar.
Cody is a nice western flavored town w/a wild west parade etc...

I don't agree with the assumption that in-park accommodations means uncomfortable beds etc. We've spent a week at both Jackson Lake Lodge and Jenny Lake Lodge and thoroughly enjoyed them both. Very nice accommodations, great food and plenty of amenities - far from uncomfortable or basic. We've also had good reports on the Signal Mountain Lodge mentioned above.

And at least to us, the advantages of being in the park are a huge plus in terms of driving, sightseeing, etc.

We stayed at the High Country Motel in Cook City this past summer. The unit we had had a small kitchen with table and a small living area with a separate bedroom and bath. The TV only had 13 channels if I remember correctly. We have also stayed in the Hoosier Motel which is across the street. Basically the same type of accommodations with the same TV set up.

http://www.colorado-west.com/cooke/

Cook City is located just outside the NE Entrance a few miles. Other lodging is available, all that we have stayed in were spartan but were well maintained and clean. Easy access to the Lamar Valley if you are into early morning or evening animal watching. The Valley is the home to several wolf packs.

Just FYI, if space is the issue there are two-room suites at both the Old Faithful Inn and the Mammoth Hot Springs Lodge. We recommend staying in the Park. My picky teen and tween eaters were fine with the food and we were able to do so much without feeling crowded or rushed. Sitting out on the deck watching Old Faithful erupt at twilight was great as was walking the Mammoth Hot Spring Terraces almost alone at sunset. My blog has lots of info http://bit.ly/8R132h - don't forget to go swimming at Fire Hole Falls! Enjoy

We have a cabin just outside west yellowstone and I've spend all of my life in the area.

A great way to do your trip would be to stay in Jackson Hole for a couple of nights. Do not go into the park while there, but enjoy the Tetons, Elk Herd, Rafting, Cowboy shootout (entertainment each day in town) and all the other great things that Jackson has to offer.

Then drive up through Teton Park and start exploring Yellowstone. Explore the park during the day and then stay in West Yellowstone each night. West has a Grizzly Park, IMAX theater (regular theater also) decent restaurants and a great little rodeo a few miles out of town. There are various hotels that have cabins or look at VRBO and see if something fits. I would also look for a place with a swimming pool so that the kids can unwind after the car time.
I would also spend a little time with the kids at firehole... it was one of the funnest things to do when I was a kid.

Avoid Cook city as there is construction on the pass this summer and if you stay to the north it is a longer drive to get to the main attractions.

>Avoid Cook city as there is construction on the pass this summer and if you stay to the north it is a longer drive to get to the main attractions.

There is always road construction going on in the park and has been for the 25 plus years we have been enjoying the park. If you want to avoid road construction avoid Yellowstone altogether..

Don't avoid any area in and around the park. Cooke City is located close to the Beautiful Lamar Valley, one of the premier locations for wildlife viewing. The chances of seeing bear, bison and even wolf is very good. Cooke is also a good jumping off point for a drive over the Beartooth Highway.

http://www.colorado-west.com/cooke/

http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2281/

http://www.tfhrc.gov/pubrds/06jul/03.htm

Thank you all for such wonderful suggestions. Any help on Accomodations near Tetons .. all the lodges are very expensive. We looked at the Ranch Inn at Jackson Hole but not sure if the place is decent or not. Any input?? I am leaning towards it because it has a kitchenette and in yellowstone for 5 nights (Canyon Lodge) we will be eating out every day. Thanks

If you want a comfortable inexpensive place, check out Colter Village. We loved our cabin. Had 3 beds, even though there was just 3 of us. If you are wanting luxory, most of the National Park places to stay are porbably not for you. I wouldn't stay in the same spot in Yellowstone for 5 days. I would try 2, maybe even 3 spots. Just, my preference. I don't mind packing up and moving. It saves hours driving and backtracking(which isn't a bad thing in YS)

We're spending a night at the Motel 6 in Jackson. It was about the cheapest place we could find.

Lee Ann

So you've changed your mind and will be staying inside the Park? I would not stay 5 nights at Canyon, you will be doing a lot of backtracking. We stayed one night in Jackson at the Super 8 and it is a decent hotel with breakfast. We then stayed in Jackson Lake Lodge which is very nice, then Old Faithful Inn which I totally recommend because of being so close to Old Faithful. You can sit on the deck with drinks and watch her go off even in the evening. Or the Snow Lodge is right next door to Old Faithful Inn. We then stayed at Canyon. If possible, I would suggest packing a cooler with drinks and food. Take in peanut butter and bread and fruit. Eating inside the park with a family will get very expensive so I would supplement that cost with taking in breakfast and lunch items. Have fun! Yellowstone and the Tetons are great!

We stayed in Teton Village last year with our kids, which worked out nicely because there are some activities right there at the base of the mountain to give them some downtime between hiking and park-going. There's a remote southern entrance to the park about a mile down the road from Teton Village, so we were able to get up before dawn one morning and set out on a hike in the park very easily. We did have some luck finding a hotel/motel there for about $135 a night on Priceline. I think it was called the Jackson Inn. It was fine for us (comfortable beds) and a pool, but the TripAdvisor reviews vary from great to atrocious. It's showing some wear and tear and was a bit noisy, but it was a good bargain for our budget and needs.
As for Yellowstone, we went with VRBO and found an awesome cabin north of Gardner. The drawback was a lot of driving to get into the park and then our destination for the day...but we had privacy, silence, a place to relax away from it all and a kitchen to easily prepare dinner and pack our cooler for our daily outings. That made a big difference with little kids. It was such a wonderful trip!

We stayed in a small town called Silver Gate located just out side the north east entrance. Pine Edge Cabins have full kitchens with nice beds.

We have been to YNP and GTNP the past 4 summers and have stayed at the Ranch Inn each time. We found it to be clean,with comfortable beds and clean bathrooms, and with an above average free continental breakfast. It is within walking distance to all downtown Jackson restaurants and shopping.

We also have stayed at Canyon over the years and like it for its fairly central location in Yellowstone. The quality of the rooms varied though and it was obvious some have been recently renovated and some not. You may want to request or inquire if you have the newer cabins.

We have also rented a home in Gardiner found on VRBO as already mentioned above. The drives will be longer, but we like having some home cooked/prepared meals and the ability to do LAUNDRY was a big plus. staying in West Yellowstone is also a good idea also mentioned above.

Lots of options, all will work, have fun on your trip!

I need my coffee, too. If you're driving, you could bring a kettle or coffee pot - I sometimes travel with an electric kettle. My trip report to GTNP and YP was all about the coffee.

We stayed at Signal Mt last year and we were pleasantly surprised to get a mini kitchen. And a balcony with a view. The bed was very comfy. There are Keurig machines at Lake Lodge Cabins and Old Faithful Inn (VERY comfy bed). Mammoth did not.

Stay in the park if you can, and split your stay between areas. The park is so big that you wind up driving too much if you stay in one spot. Staying outside the park guarantees lots of driving.

Have fun.

I suspect this trip has either taken place in 2010 or 2011 or was cancelled.