Marian

Hoping for some advice. I'm driving from San Francisco to Jackson Hole. The directions on mapquest take me through the South-east corner of Idaho (I-80 to 93 to 84 to 86 to 15 to 20 to 26 to 31 to 33 to 22 to 390)Phew! Ends up being about 16 hours travel time. But when I look at my road atlas, it looks far easier to simply take I-80 through Salt Lake and then hook a left up 189.
Any suggestions as to which is the better / faster / more scenic route? Or is there an even better choice? Also, any suggestions of where to spend the night on the way out?
I will probably meander over, but will be ready to get home quickly at the end of my trip. (After a wedding in Jackson, I'll be staying at Signal Mountain Lodge in the Tetons, then Canyon Lodge in Yellowstone.)
Thanks!

easytraveler

If you start out early enough, you could spend the night in Salt Lake City. There's not much between Reno and SLC, except Winnemucca.

Less than two years ago I drove that route and then kept going east, so can't comment on the balance of your trip. However, it looks like you need to turn north on Interstate 15 from I80 and then cross over from I15 on the Swan Valley Road (which I haven't travelled in many years, so can't tell you the current condition) to 189 (or 89 on my map) and then to Jackson Hole.

As for lodging, we bid on Priceline and got a fabulous "suite" which included a breakfast which alone would have cost two people the $35 we paid for the room!

I80 to I15 would be the way I would go, not the Mapquest route.

Happy driving!

utahtea

It's really a toss up between going to Idaho or Utah. Hwy 93 is a nice highway. There are places to stay at Wells, NV & Twin Falls, ID. Crossing the mountains on Hwy 31 and 22 will be slow mountain driving...I wouldn't recommend doing it after dark when you are tired.

Driving to SLC you will pass the Salt Flats and the Great Salt Lake and the drive on Hwy 89 from Logan to WY will be another slow mountain drive...again I would't recommend doing it after dark when you are tired.

Mile & time wise you save about 60 miles and maybe an hour by going to Idaho.

What way are you coming back? You might want to do one way going and the other coming back.

Utahtea

Marian

Thanks for the replies!
I was definitely considering going different routes on my way to Jackson Hole and coming home from Yellowstone, since I won't be making that drive too often, and should probably take advantage of seeing as many different places as possible!

je

In a drive across country a couple of years ago, we went north on 80 but took a scenic route along the American River (rt 50)south of Lake Tahoe and then on 80 across Nevada and at Wells up to Twin Falls ID to Idaho Falls, another scenic route, and then over to Jackson which also provided some interesting scenery. Admittedly, this is slower but it provided for an interesting route. Didn't do it straight through though.

ronkala

freetrip.com will give you routing, miles, time, and hotels along the way.

Marian

So I'm thinking I will go to Wyoming through Salt Lake, then head back to California through Idaho. Any recommended hotels / restaurants on the way to Wyoming through Salt Lake, and then recommended hotels / restaurants on the way back through Idaho?
Thanks for your help!

fehgeddaboudit

Here's an idea: Drive to San Bruno, leave the car in the long term parking lot. Buy tix from SFO to JAC. Enjoy!

utahtea

fehgeddaboudit,

Believe it or not, there are people who enjoy road trips! Besides if Marian gets at least 17 MPG and gas cost $2.50 per gallon it's only going to cost about $275 in gas. That's almost half of what a round trip ticket would cost. Two nights on the road verse renting a car will depend on how many days Marian will need a car.

Utahtea