girl_in_cal

Hi all, two girlfriends and I are flying into Billing and staying in Columbus for the evening. We will drive to the northeast entrance of Yellowstone and stay in Old Faithful Inn that night. I was wondering if anyone could share how long it might take to get from the entrance to OF? Google says 3 hours 46 minutes from Columbus to the park, so I want to budget enough time for us to get into OF before dark. Thanks!

spirobulldog

If you mean straight driving without any stops= probably a couple of hours. It also depends on how many "jams" you get in. Meaning you can be held up for 30 minutes while Buffalo cross the road or everyone is stopped looking at a bear.

You do have reservations? I hope you are staying in the park for more than a day. There is a tremendous amount to see.

Myer

They say that excluding traffic jams caused by road work or animals and without stopping to get out of the car, driving the whole figure 8 loop will take about 8 hours.

You are going from the top right to the bottom left (northeast to southwest) so that would be about half way.
I would count on almost 4 hours.

And as spiro asked, do you have reservations? Yellowstone is a big park and requires some time to see.

And then there's Grand Tetons.

panecott

I once drove from the Gardiner entrance to Yellowstone down to Old Faithful, via the canyon road and the lake and it took around 4 hours one way. I'm sure the route you're taking would be about the same.

As others have said, there's much to see in Yellowstone and you should spend several days there. If you are just going to the OF area for overnight, be sure to walk the boardwalks of the geyser basin and the path to Morning Glory Pool b/c there is so much more than just the OF geyser in that area, and many attractions are even more interesting.

girl_in_cal

Thank you for the feedback! I was good about booking, have two nights at OF, one night at Lake Lodge, and one in Canyon Lodge. When we arrive at Billing, I've booked the Yellowstone River Cabin as I hear Columbus is nice. With all this driving time however, would it be better to drive to closer to the park once we land? Our schedule is as such:

land in Billing at 5pm
stay somewhere in the middle
drive to the park in the AM
stay in OF that night for two nights
go to Lake Lodge for the following night
go to Canyon Lodge the next
fly out of Billing on the fifth day after lunch

One of my friend is flying overseas specifically to visit YNP. I really want to make sure she gets a trip worth bragging about!

spirobulldog

Google Maps puts it a 89 mile and 2 hours 9 minutes. If you stop at all it will take longer than this.

spirobulldog

Personally, I would drive the Beartooth Hwy either going in or out of the park. You and your overseas friend are going to have plenty to brag about. Its a fantastic place. Your missing Grand Teton and it's only an hour from Old Faithful, but I suspect it's to late to change those plans.

I might be tempted to go to Red Lodge after your flight for that night.