Need tons of help. Am looking at going to Yellowstone for our one year anniversary in June. I understand that this is very short notice and I might have trouble getting a place to stay (we'll just postpone it then), but we are going to try our best to get everything worked out by then. I need your help on deciding where to stay, where to eat, what to do, what hikes to go on, etc, etc. We are both looking for adventure along with a romantic atmosphere. We will be coming from Eastern North Dakota and don't have a clue of where to start or what to see first. Am looking for any suggestions. We will be planning a 5-6 day trip. Please help make an itinary for me. I am so clueless! Desperate for fast help!!!! Thanks in advance.

A huge area that is very easy to manage.Assuming that you can drive and don't need airline arrangements, I would recommend that you check the early bird rates at both YNP and GTNP. Both websites list the lodgong options. YNP has 1 stop shopping but GTNP will involve a few calls. Try to haggle and be pleasantly persistent. My personal favorite would be the rooms with a view at Jackson Lake Lodge in GTNP. The earlier in June the cheaper. Don't be intimidated - you will love it.

Not sure what route you will be coming on, but on Interstate 94 near Medora, ND is Theodore Roosevelt National Park and worth a stretch of the legs stop. Also just before Billings, Montana is Pompey's Pillar National Monument...another interesting place to stop and stretch your legs.

As for Yellowstone. I like to plan 2 - 3 days in the Old Faithful/ Norris area to see the geysers, another day for the Lake and Canyon, another day for the Falls and Roosevelt area and one day for the Mammoth Hot Springs area.

It's been 30 years since we stayed in the cabins in Yellowstone because we've been camping ever since. Others will be better at this information. That said, I would keep calling the park and hope to get in on someone elses cancellations. I would try for the Old Faithful area if possible. Mammoth is a great area if you can get in for a night or two. If all else fails, then stay in West Yellowstone just outside the park. It's the easiest location to get to the major areas of the park.

They have a stagecoach ride and cookout in the Roosevelt area... and it's been 30 years since we did it, but I can remember it like yesterday...it was a lot of fun.

Utahtea

I think your challenge will be finding accomodations at that time of year. Try inside the park, but book something out of the park.

I was searching online and found some nice cabin rentals in Island Park, Idaho (outside the park on the west side). It would be about a 30 minute drive into the park, but a place like some of the ones I saw would be a great place to celebrate an anniverary. You may find things you want to do outside the park and just drive in for a couple of day. Beautiful countryside.

There are great forums on National Park sites online. I don't have the link but spent hours researching before my trip. I celebrated my birthday in a room just steps away from Old Faithful at the Old Faithful Inn. What a way to be awoken in the middle of the night! What's that sound? Oh! It's Old Faithful!

Hi Starrsville,
Your strategy is right on.
I agree, staying in Old Faithful is amazing.
We were never awakened by it, but we did venture out at midnight, and then at dawn, sitting and watching in utter amazement.

Try Grand Geyser or Castle Geyser under a full moon on a clear night. Enchanting.

You will not be the only geyser junkies out there. Grand invariably draws a crowd because it is the most spectacular of the predictable geysers.

Of course predictable in geyser talks is a relative term. But, Grand is worth the wait.

I also happen to like Riverside Geyser. Its eruption arches over the Firehole River with a delicate spray. While we were waiting, we saw the outline of a great owl up in a tree.

As for places to stay: I think the Old Faithful Snow Lodge is good. But, it may be sold out; Old Faithful Inn opens late this year because of revamping.
It is an extensive project.

Thanks for all of your great advice, it is really helping me out. We had originally planned to stay in a resort type place, but I noticed a lot of comments on camping. What would you recommend?? Would you strictly just stay in a resort, or would you stay a few days camping and the other in a resort? Is it expensive to camp and worth the headache of setting up a tent?? Are the campgrounds around pretty scenery??? Also you will be coming on I-94 from Fargo, ND, which place would we hit first? Yellowstone or GT?? Do you have any idea how far of a drive it is, just trying to plan if we will need a full day of traveling?? Thanks for your help!!

Fargo, ND to Billings, MT is 610 miles. I don't think I would go much farther than that in one day. If you really wanted to push it, I'd go as far as Red Lodge and then drive in on the Beartooth Highway (Hwy 212) the next morning.

Depending on where in Yellowstone you are to Grand Tetons is anywhere between a little over an hour to 3 1/2 hours drive.

Camping is between $12 and $17. The smaller more remote campgrounds fill up fast and are on a first come, first serve basis. If you are staying near by, then you might try early one morning for a campsite. Madison is one of the larger campgrounds and it takes reservations. It's in a wooded area but the campsites are really close together. There is a tent only loop. I like this campground because of it's location. There are no showers here but you can pay for showers at three other locations. Bridge Bay and Canyon campground also have good locations.

Here is a link to the campgrounds & their info:

http://www.nps.gov/yell/planvisit/services/campgrnd.htm

The very first time we stayed in Yellowstone, some 30 years ago, we stayed in the cabins. It was fun, but the next time we camped and I really enjoyed that experience more....but then I like camping.

Utahtea

I pulled up the website for old faithful inn and it says that it does not open until july, is this correct and if so, where else would there be to stay???

cdo, apparently you are not taking the time to read the responses to your own question. If you do so, you will find the answer in Bob Brown's post.

I'm signing off this thread. As much as I love Yellowstone and surrounding areas, I dislike spending time "helping" posters that don't read or research even more.

You've been given excellent input on how to start your search and evidently have no interest in reading that input.

Where to stay IN Yellowstone?
Any of the Western cabins anywhere in the park are good. The Old Faithful Snow Lodge is fairly new. It is pricey, but the best in the park I think.

Some people tell me that the Frontier class cabins at Canyon are ok.

I would not camp unless you are experienced at it and know you like it.
I was a camper in my younger days when I lacked the money but wanted to go and see the place. It was fun then.

But this sounds like a special event.
So make it memorable.

Other than the predictable geysers - Castle, Grand, Great Fountain, Riverside, Daisey, and Old Faithful, I like the falls of the Yellowstone River and the golden canyon itself, particularly that section that has tones of red mixed in with the gold and yellow.

A very pretty walk is the path to Lone Star Geyser. We have taken our lunch, had a picnic by the river, and waited under the trees for Lone Start to erupt. It does so about every 3 hours in two stages. The walk itself is along the upper Firehole river through unburned forest and pretty meadows. Some of the path is an old road, so it is paved. That way, it is never muddy. But the climate is dry in the summer, usually.

I like visiting Yellowstone, but I must admit that some of the cabins are sparsely furnished. Those in the "budget" and "pioneer" categories are cheaper, but less comfortable by far.

If you can't find lodging in the park, then West Yellowstone is the best location for outside the park.

Utahtea