Hi,
I'm helping my brother plan his family trip to Yosemite in June. They'll be flying from Austin, which is not a good market for flights. According to the Yosemite website, Fresno is the closest and they also recommend Oakland, San Francisco, and Sacramento as alternatives. The fare to Fresno is just too high, so they'll have to pick from the other choices. Do you have a recommendation for which airport is easiest? Also, any recommendations for family friendly lodging close to Yosemite? It will be my brother, his wife and their two kids, ages 6 and 9. They will want to have a hotel pool, safe location, and convenience to the park and other activiites. Thanks for your help!

San Jose or Sacramento are probably the easiest for Yosemite.

Sacramento is really easy to get out of and since Sac itself isn't surrounded by a lot of other cities (like in the Bay Area) you don't have to drive really far through congested areas to get out.

San Jose airport is in the middle of San Jose, so it takes some driving to get out of town, but it is easier than Oakland and SFO.

As for places to stay - lodging will be tight. Tell your bro to make reservations anywhere he can at this late date. We are going in April and made our reservations a year ago.

I agree - either Sacramento or San Jose. T

They probably won't have their choice of accommodations - they should just book ASAP.

They should first try in Yosemite Valley and hope there is a cancellation for their dates.

If not, start looking in places like Yosemite West and such . . . . .

If they are going in the summertime, they could fly into Reno and drive over Tioga Pass and through Tuolumne Meadows. The total drive to the valley is about 4.5 hours, but I much prefer it to the drive from anywhere in California---less traffic and more scenic.

Oh, I just saw the "June". That is a problem, as there is no guarantee that Tioga will be open. In late June, it is very likely that it will be, but there is a slight chance they would have to take the long way 'round. So maybe not the best choice after all.

Reno if Tioga Pass is open....Bakersfield, but probably not any cheaper than Fresno, or Sacramento. I'd probably do SFO before San Jose because if you are heading East I think you get out of the Bay Area more quickly from SFO.

I wouldn't choose SFO over San Jose unless the fare to SFO was lower or I could get a non-stop rather than a connecting flight from my home airport. San Jose to Yosemite is definitely easier than SFO to Yosemite. From SFO, you've got to go across the entire Bay Area, west to east. From SJC, you just take Hwy 101 south to Gilroy and head heast on 152. You are out of the Bay Area in 30 minutes. Even if you leave the airport at commute times, 101 has a carpool lane all the way down.

J_Correa is absolutely correct. SFO makes the least sense of any airports mentioned (UNLESS the fare/schedule is too good to pass up)

Bakersfield isn't really much of an option since there are non-stops from only about 9 or 10 cities mostly in California or Mexico.

And Reno is a nice airport - but you can't guarantee they can get to Yosemite w/o driving far out of their way if Tioga Pass is closed.

Sacramento is the easiest drive. If they arrive in the morning they have time to travel down hwy 49 through all the gold rush/winery sites in the foothills.

San Jose is almost as good - as long as they aren't arriving during the lengthy weekday commutes.

Oakland would also be OK if they can miss the commute mess . . . . .

Sacramento works because you can take 99 south, not 49. 49 is scenic and slow, but 99 will move. If there is time, you might consider flying into OAK and booking through Amtrak as they offer packages to Yosemite (if lodging becomes a problem).

TrvlMaven - of course 99 is faster - but not much in the scenery department.

I meant that IF they arrive in the a.m. they could make a day of it and see another very scenic part of California enroute. If they are in a hurry - then 99 will get them there faster.

If I had my choice and a spare few hours - I'd take 49 south every time. If I was on a tight schedule - then 99 is better.

I can't comment on the flights.
As for lodging: When we went last June we stayed several nights at Tenaya Lodge which was very family friendly and it has a pool. I would stay there again.

I'm not sure what the typical rates are that you're finding from Austin to Fresno, but you might want to consider Express Jet. While there isn't a direct connection between the two airports, your brother could purchase a roundtrip from Austin to Ontario (LA on their site) and then another roundtrip from Ontario to Fresno. If you travel on certain days, the flights tend to be fairly reasonable.

Thanks everybody, for this very helpful information. Before my brother even considers purchasing air tickets, it's obvious now that he had better secure lodging. I'm going to check POlson's suggestion right now.

We stayed at Tenaya Lodge several years ago and liked it. The down side is the location. It is a few miles from the south entrance to the park, so convinient to Mariposa Grove and the Wawona area, but about a 45 minute drive into Yosemite valley without traffic. When we stayed there, it was November, so the park wasn't particularly crowded. In June, the drive will take longer. So when making plans, take that into consideration.

If they can luck out and get lodging in the valley, that would be my choice. That would eliminate the driving in and out with all the other day trippers, parking hassles, and all that. Plus, they would have the early mornings and evenings to enjoy the valley when there aren't as many people.

Another option, I think has been mentioned is Yosemite West, which is outside the park, but you access it through the park - these are privately owned condos. I haven't stayed there, but know others who have and liked it. The access is in between the valley and the south entrance, I believe.

Then there are options along Hwy 140 - these are the most convinient to the valley if you aren't staying in the valley directly. El Portal and Mariposa (the town, not the grove near the south entrance) have lodging.

I would also look at flying into Stockton. It is less than an hour to the park. Allegiant Airlines flies into to Stockton from Mesa and Las Vegas. Allegiant is fairly cheap. We can get one-way to LV for $39 on some dates.

My next pick would also be Reno or even Las Vegas depending on the fare from Austin.

As for places to stay outside the park you might look around Mariposa, Bass Lake, or Oakhurst.

The Pines resort and conference center at Bass Lake is a great place and not that far from the park.

We've stayed at the Best Western in Oakhurst and Tenaya Lodge when our children were small and were pleased with both. The drive from Reno would be the prettiest, but Tioga pass is often late opening. Oakhurst is an upscale town with lots of conveniences.

I would definately fly into Sacramento. I live here and it is a very easy airport to fly into and easy to get onto 99 where you stay until you turn off for the park. I would also try and stay in the park...but not sure you will get it at this late date. We have stayed in the tent cabins and enjoyed it. They are not fancy, but there is a pool and this really gives you the feel of the park. Bears are wandering around late at night....so if that bothers you, you might not like it. Hurry and make your reservations.

Thanks all!

Doing a quick search on Orbitz, JetBlue flies direct Austin to SF with decent fares (less than $200 for the beginning of June). USAirways goes from Austin to Sacramento via Las Vegas for under $200 too. American goes Austin to Sacramento via Dalles for under $200 too.

I would suggest maybe looking at renting a cottage or home at Pine Mountain Lake/Groveland (http://www.pinemountainlake.com/). There is a beautiful lake to swim in and it is 45 minutes from the Valley. The drive is very nice to and from Yosemite with lots to do on the way.

I check the fares daily on websites such as orbitz as well as on the airline webpages and with taxes, the $198 fare comes to $244 to SMF (cheapest of the cities under consideration). That's the same fare for the last two weeks. I've told my brother that's probably the best he's going to do. He really needs to try to find lodging before proceeding further.