janisj

BarbAnn: You need to go outside of the summer. In Mar, April, even May if you miss Memorial Day, and Sept/Oct, and in Winter there are no serious crowds to speak of. No problems parking, hiking, getting dinner res, etc.

BarbAnn

I've been in mid-October. Since too crowded for me.

Shanti

I was just there and thought the valley was still too crowded. We could park the car without a problem, but didn't want to stay due to the crowds. Tioga Road, however, was gorgeous and not at all crowded.

OTOH, Tioga Road is closed today due to snow.

I like the valley during the winter. Otherwise, while it's stunningly beautiful, there are just too many people. But the high country is, IMO, just as beautiful and a great choice whenever the road is open.

There's still no question in my mind that the OP should visit Yosemite instead of Muir Woods, if at all possible. But which part of Yosemite would vary depending on the time of year.

JohnSimsom

I agree with Yosemite as the better choice - more to do, lots of wildlife, and large enough to get away from crowds. Yes, it can get really crowded in the Valley but there is 3,080.74 km2 of Yosemite, so you have lots of room to get away from the crowds. If you visit from July to September, you could take a hike to high country of May Lake or Tuolumne Meadows. Enjoy!

utahtea

Well said spirobulldog!

To those who don't want crowds, go in early March during the middle of the week.

Utahtea

qwovadis

http://www.yosemitepark.com/Accommod...eAhwahnee.aspx

My fav for an overnite or Wawona Lodge if budget challenged

would not do a day trip too crammed just do Muir way closer

easily done for the day...

Yosemite more spectacular by far.. bigger trees too like

"Ole Griz" in the mariposa grove he is AMAZING!

qwovadis

The Grizzly Giant is a giant sequoia in Mariposa Grove, located in Yosemite National Park. The tree has been measured many times, most recently in 1990 by Wendell Flint.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grizzly_Giant

Born in 700 BCE amazing to think about

JohnSimsom

As to Lodging, I would suggest Yosemite West. It is located inside Yosemite park's gates. It has about 150 vacations homes, apartments, and condos - all for rent on a daily basis. There are also several B&Bs in the same area too. It is about 10 miles from Yosemite Valley. Here is a Wikipedia link to Yosemite West.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_West,_California

This will give you more information on its location inside the park and mileage charts to points of interest. The history of this area is also fascinating.

Here are some links that may help you find this kind of lodging.
http://rentalo.com/vacation-rentals/yosemite/
http://pinearbor.com
http://yosemite-pine-arbor.com
http://VRBO.com
http://www.yosemitewest.com
http://www.yosemitelodging.com
http://aboutyosemite.com

Or you can search for yosemite lodging or Yosemite West at
http://www.youtube.com

Tomsd

No Q - Yo. While I love Muir Woods, and a friend of mine had a house right on the edge - people come from all over the world to go to Yo. I too would suggest you get an early start - and then you can explore when you arrive (taking the park bus is an easy way - or even renting bikes) and spending at least one night in the magical area is highly suggested.

You might look at the Yo website ahead of tiome to gain more familiarity with the Valley Floor.

Tomsd

Check out: http://www.yosemitepark.com/Accommod...miteLodge.aspx

easytraveler

There are shorthand ways and there are shorthand ways, but I believe this is the first I've ever come across "Yosemite" being cut to "Yo".

Mother: "Hey, son, where are you?"

Son: "Yo!"

(Is he just answering or is he in Yosemite? Curious minds want to know. )

Barbara

et, just what I thought!

I'm still struggling to figure out how Yo(semite) can be overrated. Yes, the crowds are awful, but they are not part of the Park.

MonicaRichards

We have a cabin in the same general area of Yosemite and there are many areas near the cabin that are every bit as pretty, they just aren't in the park proper. So that's how someone can find Yosemite overrated, there are a lot of areas near there that aren't in the park boundaries that are also beautiful, and it's so much easier to go there. Now the falls, those are unique, true. But as someone who has sat in hours of traffic trying to get in or out of Yosemite, the other areas seem pretty nice to me.

spirobulldog

Yo Mamma=my mother in Yosemite. lol

easytraveler

spirobulldog:

Barbara: I got confused too. I thought I might help but most likely not, because I can't figure if "Yo" is all of "Yosemite" or just a small part of it called "Yo".

november_moon

Monica - My thoughts exactly.

spirobulldog

Yo Yo-- A spinning disk on a string or a larger part of Yosemite?

spirobulldog

A famous example of a fictional Philadelphian bringing notice to the expression is Rocky Balboa, where the word is used throughout all of the films, and is part of the iconic line, "Yo, Adrian, I did it!", which was ranked 80th in the AFI's list of 100 best movie quotes.

easytraveler

spirobulldog: Exactly!

Very confusing.

charnees

Yo? San Fran? Cali? These things drive me nuts! Call them by their names, please.

(I have lived in N. California for all but 12 years of my life, which is quite long at this point)