Yellowstone / Glacier / Tetons help
 

Hi... in prelim stages of planning a 2 week national park vacay with family in summer of 2011.... If I do Teton / YSNP / GNP, which airport destination would be best? Also, rather that going the hotel/lodge route, am considering booking my accomodations with VRBO or homeaway.com as I have had great luck in the past and would like to stay away from "touristy" if possible. With that having been said, what towns would be recommended as far as a little bit off the beaten path but close enough to park entrances? Thanks in advance.

Hans,

You really need to stay IN Yellostone. You have no idea how big it is and the worst "touristy" places IMO are the towns just outside the park boundries, where development goes unchecked!

For the Tetons and the town of Jackson, there are vrbo properties scattered all around. But Jackson is a resort/tourism town so you will have a lot of that regardless of where you stay.

The driving distances in the West are much greater than people from the Eastern US and Europe realize. You don't want to spend all your time driving ack and forth from a lodging choice too far away from the parks.

Also, 2 weeks would be quite rushed for all 3 parks unless you don't plan to do much in the way of outdoor activities.

I strongly agree with everything Dayle says, except her final comment about "2 weeks would be quite rushed for all 3 parks unless you don't plan to do much in the way of outdoor activities."
While I agree that ideally you never have enough time to fully experience all there is to offer in those 3 wonderful parks, 2 weeks will certainly afford you sufficient time to enjoy their splendor and magnificence without feeling "quite rushed."

Thank you Dayle..... if that's the case, which park would you suggest I leave out?

I assume that you will rent a car. If you have camped before, you might want to consider camping. For about $300 you can pick up all the equipment (tent, air mattress, sleeping bags, cooking supplies) you need at a Target, K-Mart or a big sporting goods store (REI would be too expensive). I would leave out the Tetons and plan on seeing some of Montana between Yellowstone and Glacier. At the end of your trip, donate the equipment to Goodwill.

Things to see in Montana:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...7623117942088/

Yellowstone and Grand Teton are right next to each other and are must-sees as far as I'm concerned. Glacier is supposed to be excellent as well, but it's a good distance away from the other two.

I spent two days each in Yellowstone (one day seeing Upper Basin, Biscuit Basin, Fountain Paint Pots, and Midway Basin, the second seeing the Grand Canyon area, parts of Yellowstone Lake, and Mud Volcano area) and Grand Teton (one day in the Jenny Lake/Hidden Falls/Inspiration Point, the second seeing the Coulter Bay area), and while I didn't see everything, I felt I saw a decent bit of the latter and got a solid taste of the former. I would have gladly spent at least two or 3 more days in Yellowstone if I had the chance.

I do agree with HowardR that you should be able to see a good bit of all three parks in two weeks.

hans,

If you think this will be your one and only trip to these parks, then yes, go for it and visit all 3.

It will help if you can fly open jaw - into one city and out another, closer to Glacier. Look into Kalispell or Boseman. Might be more expensive but will save you a day of backtracking.

The cost of an open jaw plane ticket might be considerable if the car rental includes a penalty for a one way rental.

I agree that staying in the parks is preferable. However, you may have trouble finding availability for next summer. Try to finalize your plans and book right away. You can keep checking back for cancellations.