asuuthscsa

We are going to the Tetons and YSP this summer. I have a few questions with those experienced western travelers. We currently are booked for two nights at Old Faithful Inn, two nights at Canyon, and two nights at Mammoth. We have 4 kids from 20 y.o. to 7. My wife found lodging in Gardiner and is concerned about moving around the park with this many kids. Would anybody opt out of in the park lodging and stay in Gardiner? Second question, in the Tetons we have reservations at Signal Mountain, but I am wondering if we should change to Jackson Lake Lodge. Last question, any ideas on fishing opportunities or good rafting. Would like small group to raft/whit sater, not interested in being in a raft with 30 other people. Thanks for any response.

Dayle

Hi A,

No! What you have reserved is excellent. Don't change anything in Yellowstone or Tetons. Yellowstone is huge and moving is better than driving back and forth. Gardner is not centrally located for seeing Yellowstone.

boom_boom

Dayle's got it right. Stay in the Park. I might opt for 3 nights each at two of the spots. say Mammoth and Old Faithful, but your plan is Ok as well. There are several companies that offer raft/white water trip, with 8-10 people per raft. Just search on the web and I'm sure you can find them. Signal Mountain is great. Stayed there my last visit to the Tetons and loved it. Have fun!

dfr4848

Vote 3 for staying in the park. Would also agree that I'd opt for two places rather than three (but we also don't like the hassle of packing, repacking and moving much so you'll have to decide your preference). We stayed a week at Jackson Lake Lodge and a week at Jenny Lake Lodge - and loved both of them. We obviously made a lot of "day" trips, but we really didn't mind the driving because the scenery and wildlife was different every day. You'll find some rafting options at jacksonholenet.com

gail

Vote for staying possibly outside Parks, perhaps some nights in, some nights out.

Unlike other National Parks, outside the Park is a matter of less than a mile in many places. It also will give you some of the flavor of the local western communities - we went to a local, non-touristy rodeo in West Yellowstone and it was a highlight of our trip.

If price is a consideration, there are plenty of out of park accomodations, admittedly without character, that could accomodate a family of your size with much more space for much less money. Also, you can get a place with a partial kitchen - or at least a microwave and refrigerator - and possibly breakfast included.

We went with 2 kids (ages 15 and 19) 2 summers ago. We stayed 2 nights near Jackson at Teton Village Resort Lodging. These are ski condos rented out in summer as well. For less than cost of 2 hotel rooms we got full 2 bed, 2 bath condo with full kitchen, LR, balcony. Moose roaming grounds, tram to top of mountain. About 10-15 minutes outside Jackson and about 5 minutes from entrance to Grand Teton.

Then we spent 3 nights in West Yellowstone. For this segment we would have preferred to stay in Park, but we finalized our plans to late to get lodging in Park. Stayed at some non-descript chain hotel - disadvantage was no character, charm at all. Advantage - breakfast included, lots of restaurant choices nearby, supermarket in town to load cooler with lunch supplies, and hotel had business center to accept a faxed copy of our son's passport for ID since he lost his wallet and needed it to fly home (a really long story - will not bore you with details).

Then on to Gardiner for 2 nights. Spent some time in town talking to locals, easy access to Park and again had suite with partial kitchen (Absoroka Motel). Overlooking Gardner River, on which we did some rafting. Saw people fishing in this river, but no clue if they caught anything.

I would stay at several places, whether in or out of Park. Your kids are all ages to haul and pack their own luggage. If you stay in only one place then you are stuffing kids into car each day and back-tracking. I think relocating is better. We have visited several National Parks with our kids and all enjoy the rustic and authentic nature of them. However, we often mix these type lodging with more traditional hotels - it keeps the kids happy to be able to email their friends, watch a little TV, eat a real pizza for part of the trip and I think, at least for us, has increased their general level of family happiness.

Dayle

To me, the point is not whether you are officially "in" the park or "out". It is how conveniently located is your lodging to sightseeing and day trips? Lodging in the park is closer to what you want to see.

You are already fortunate to have the lodging that everyone else is trying to get. You can stay in a chain motel anywhere - stay in a national park lodge when you can!

asuuthscsa

thanks, you guys have been great. This forum is nice, as planning this trip has been more stressful than I thought. We also have 3 nights in Cody and one day trip from Cody to Little Bighorn. Beisdes the Museum and Rodeo any other must do's in Cody. We thought this might be a good place to trout fish for a day.

sharondi

Hearing the howling wolves through the night from our rustic Pioneer cabin in Canyon was unforgetable as was the nightly show in Mammoth watching the male elk prance around and listen to their bugling during their Fall rut. Another trip highlight was a pre-dawn walk through the geysers while staying at OF. We also stayed 2 nights each at OF, Mammoth and Canyon and it was perfect. You will also have opportunities for wildlife viewing at dawn and dusk that are much easier when staying in the park. Yes, the gateway towns are just outside the park entrances but it still takes awhile to reach the gates - lots of driving. Your plan sounds perfect. And Signal Mtn Lodge is great - I actually prefer its' setting over Jackson Lake Lodge. I hope you stick with your plan - you will just love this trip.