My head is swimming a bit with all the great advice about Yellowstone and Grand Teton Natl Park.If it would be so wonderful for me if someone could give me a simplified guide if I post our Must do-s
1. Fly into Billings
2. Travel Bear Tooth--where should we stay the first night?
3.We want to stay in Yellowstone Park in a central location to day trip
4. We would like upscale accomodations as this is a special trip for us.
See Grand Teton and go home via Billings again.
We want to see animals,animals,animals.....Heard the Northern area is the best for this..Please help!We have about a week. Hope some kind soul can pare this down for us..thanks again!!

When are you going to Yellowstone/Tetons?

1 & 2. I would think you could easily drive the Beartooth on the way from Billings. You really should read the threads here about that area. Lots of great advice.

3 & 4. Our favorite lodging in Yellowstone last month was the Duraven Lodge at Canyon in Yellowstone for location and quality (We stayed at OFI, Dunraven, and Mammoth Hot Springs). Convenient to the best animal viewing IMO.

We had a cabin with a fireplace at Signal Mountain Lodge in GTNP. It was like our own private mountain retreat and we loved it. It snowed, so we had the fireplace going while sipping wine and watching the snow falling from our bed.

On your way back to Billings, I really liked our stop at Chico Hot Springs, MT:
http://www.chicohotsprings.com/
It has a good variety of lodging for different budgets.

The museum in Cody, Wy, is outstanding!!! If you can, work in a trip down the Beartooth, then take the Chief Joseph Hwy to Cody. You could enter Yellowstone via the east gate - another beautiful drive. The Chamberlin Inn is topnotch lodging in downtown Cody. Choice location and the upscale accommodations you would like.

Thanks! We hope to go right after Labor Day---around the 5-6 of September. How far is it between the two parks? Which one should we do first since we will be coming into and out of Billings...Thanks for the quick reply. Hear the lodging is tight.

I went at that time 10 years ago, with my mom and brother. I think it took about an hour between the two parks as I recall.

I would say there is no one central location in Yellowstone. I've always liked staying in two different locations.

What time does your flight arrive?
If it's early enough just go ahead and drive into Yellowstone via the Beartooth. If it's later, just stay in Billings. Plan to allow about a half day for the drive, longer if you stop alot.
I can't help you on the lodgings as I stayed in a luxurious tent.

I don't know if this will help but we have a lot of pictures on our family web site. It will show you what a lot of Yellowstone looks like.

www.alandsuejohnson.com
click on the bison picture.

We approached the trip differently than you. We flew into Jackson Hole and went to YNP from there. We only had 3 nights and spent them at the Old Faithful Inn. We spent our 30th anniversary there and thought it was great.

I wouldn't call it upscale though. I think you should go to YNP for the park itself more than the accomodations. Most of the places aren't that great but where they are located is amazing.

We're staying in Canyon and Roosevelt next June and excited about it.

For a central location, I'd pick the Old Faithful area or Canyon.

When are you going? You may have some snow concerns in some of the areas.

In my opinion, Hayden Valley was better for animals than Lamar Valley. It may have been the time of year or time of day. Hayden is easily accessible from Canyou or Lake.

Thanks for all the advice....we had originally wanted to fly into Billings and do the Beartooth as we have heard it is amazing...But if we do the Northern entrance a few days,go to the Old Faithful area and see that area and on to GTNP for a day ,then we have the day long drive back to Billings.I guess we will have to give up the Beartooth,to fly into jackson and stay in a more central location.If we want to go to the Hayden Valley for animals, is the Central location better also?Thanks so much!

Some comments - accomodations. Upscale and Yellowstone do not usually go together very well. Most in-Park accomodations are appropriately rustic - they have all the basics, but hardly upscale. Even out-of-park accomodations in Gardiner and West Yellowstone are of the basic chain hotel variety

We spent 2 days at GTNP and 5 at Yellowstone. GTNP was a distant second for animals animals animals. Saw a distant elk, lots of birds and squirrels, and one distant moose. Saw a moose close up at condo , though.

While moving hotel to hotel can be a pain, I also recommend stayhing in 2 different locations. That way you avoid back-tracking and have option of seeing animals in early AM or dusk in different locations.

MyBailey, look at arriving Billings, departing Jackson Hole, but include both car rental prices and flight costs in your research. Due to one way drop offs, it may be cost prohibitive.

We flew into Jackson Hole and straight to Yellowstone Canyon area. Then we went to Cody for an overnight, then drove Chief Joseph & Beartooth, back to Yellowstone for Mammoth & OFI, and ended with GTNP, flying out of Jackson.

Do you have a week, as in 7 days, or is it 9 days with weekends on front and back of your week vacation?

about a week altogether, I am afraid.In otherwords, you didn't do the Northern entrance area at all? heard that is where a great deal of the wildlife is...Thanks again for being so helpful.

Yes, MyBailey, we spent a lot of our time there and wished we'd have spent more. We LOVED Lamar and the Hayden areas. Also saw lots of black bear around Mt Washburn/Dunraven Pass area. Canyon is a convenient lodging location to those areas, and also fishing bridge where grizzlies are sometimes seen. We saw the alpa male white wolf along the highway north of fishing bridge, but just south of Hayden Valley.

Sorry, that was supposed to be alpha male. This was a rare sighting that close to the road, and thrilling to us.

To really see animals, get up before dawn, so you're on the road or in the area of Hayden or Lamar as the sun starts peaking out. You'll see lots of animals. Take your down time (we tooks naps) in the afternoon, then go again before dusk and plan to stay just after dusk. You'll see so much. When everyone else was eating dinner, we watched wildlife. We had the new moon, and were still able to watch wildlife just after dark. Hearing the elk bugle is a wonderful experience and unforgettable.

I would strongly encourage you to somehow work the Beartooth Highway in - believe me you will not be disappointed, it is beautiful alpine scenery - by far the most stunning place I have seen in America.
As far as wildlife, it is probably hit or miss, but I have seen alot both times I was there. One night we saw an entire herd of buffalo ford the Yellowstone river and stampede on both sides of the road we were on.

If you wanted an upscale place in Teton Nat'l Park, Jenny Lake Lodge is beautiful.

Just a quck note as i am running out but wanted to post. We just went in Sept. and one of the prettiest drives was going from Mammoth to Norris in the early morning around 7:00 am. Th steam coming up off the streams along the road was just incredible.

One of the favorite spots in the Tetons was Oxbow bend in the afternoon, the Mountains and fall colors were glistening off the water.

I do have to say the best thing was the ANIMALS!!!! just Incredible...

On the way to Lamar valley - go off the side road Slough Creek. We went there a few times on our drive to lamar and always saw some kind of wildlife.

I have been looking at my pictures putting them together for other people to see, and it is almost 3 weeks later and I am still amazed!!