Going to Yellowstone for 5 nights in mid-september. Never been before. Want to see as many different areas as possible and are then leaving park to go to Mt. Rushmore area so will be leaving via Cody. Now have reservation for 1st night at Old Faithful Inn, 2nd & 3rd at Mammoth in cabin and 5th & 6th at Lake Yellowstone. I don't mind changing rooms often. Does this sound like a good idea? It is still early enough to make changes to reservation. Any advise would be appreciated. Gail

I think its fine to see different areas of the park. Are you going to the Tetons? I love the Tetons

Yes, I think you would enjoy spending at least one night in The Tetons, which is a short drive south of Yellowstone. Jackson Hole is a hoot, too.

Five days/nights in Yellowstone is wonderful and will generally give you an excellent tour of the park.

But honestly, I can't imagine going to Yellowstone without seeing the Grand Tetons and Jackson Hole. It's also really wonderful and, for us, turned out to be a major part of a great trip.

You don't say which entrance you'll be coming in by - we entered via Cody and exited south and into the Tetons. I am so happy that we included that into our circle tour through 5 states.

Great time to be at Mammoth. It is rutting season for Elk and they gather there. So interesting. Read up on the subject before you go.

Sorry for the lack of info. Can tell I'm new to vacation forums. We plan to stay first at Grand Teton for 2 nights. We will be flying into Jackson airport, that I believe is right in the park. We have reservations right now at Flat Creek Inn because it sounds close to entrance and reasonably priced with good reviews from trip advisor. Plan to do first morning on a sunrise float on snake river and then rest of time just exploring park. Thank you so much for your advice. Gail

you'll love it! Take time in Cody to walk down main street/eat lunch. It was one of our favorite stops -- there's a store called Wyoming Buffalo Co that is all Western foods/salsa/jam etc and you can taste them all. There were teen boys working in the store when we visited and it was really fun to talk to the locals.

Your plans sound great! Changing lodgings will really give you a nice overview of the different areas of the park -- more so than just driving through, in my opinion. The only part I might reconsider is only having one night at Old Faithful Inn. It's just a great place and there is so much to see right there. I would consider switching the reservations around to allow two nights there.

The trip out via Cody is fun, too. A stop at Devil's Tower would be really nice, as well.

Changing is a great ide. We stayed at all three places as well, although Mammoth comes in at a distant third in terms of being memorable.
Just a suggestion - Fairy Falls hike. Unreal! An easy hike to a secluded waterfall, maybe the most beautiful falls I've ever seen. If you go early, you'll have it to yourself and can almost get under it!

Thank you all again. Jayne, I decided to take your advise and changed reservation to 2 nights at Old Faithful Lodge and 1 night @ Mammoth. John, fairy falls sounds great and have put it on my list of things I just have to do. I just love travel forums. Thanks so much. Gail

Gail,

I just realized my website from our road trip to Yellowstone is still up. Check out page three, all pictures on that page are taken on the Fairy Falls trail:

http://members.aol.com/john127pics/index2.html

Just to clarify, are you at the Old Faithful Lodge or Inn? There a difference.

John, your pictures are beautiful! What kind of camera did you use? Where is Fairy Falls trail? We are planning to visit Yellowstone in June and those pictures make me anxious to go.

Believe it or not, those pics were taken with my old Olympus 1.5 megapixel digital. It takes great pictures.

It's just sooooo beautiful there. 5 minutes into any trail and you have solitude, away from the crowds, even in high season. There are a few great hiking guides for Yellowstone, and Fairy Falls should be mentioned in all of them. Another "don't miss" place is Lone Star Geyser - a couple of miles off the road, you have to bike or walk. Puts on quite a show every three hours or so, if I recall.

Just realized I posted the link to page 2, not page 1 (which has the pictures of Lone Star Geyser. Here it is:

http://members.aol.com/john127pics/

I, too, am plainng a Yellowstone/Teton trip in September. Really appreciate all the great info on this thread!

John, I just love your pictures. Can't wait until my husband gets home tonight so I can show him your beautiful pictures. Jayne, we are staying at Old Faithful lodge in a lodge room (only thing available), in Mammoth we stay in a mid-range room (had choice of this or Frontier Cabin with bath but guy on phone recommended room over cabin) and at Lake Yellowstone we stay 2 nights in a Frontier Cabin. Getting more and more excited and it is 7 months away. Gail

Thanks Gail. I have so many pics from that trip, everything was just begging to be photographed.

Too bad rooms weren't available in the OF Inn and at the Lake hotel, although you should definitely plan on spending evenings in both. Nice dining rooms and amazing atmosphere, especially Old Faithful Inn. I posted some some suggestions on other stuff we really enjoyed on another thread (I think it's a ling subject about a big trip out west). If you want more info on anything specific, feel free to email me - [email protected].

Gail
I would keep calling for cancellations at Old Faithful Inn and Lake Hotel. There will definately be cancellations. I called once a week until I got what we wanted. You can even ask them what time of day is best to call for cancellations.

Yes, I'd keep trying for the Old Faithful Inn, too. It's really something special. I could go there once a year just to soak up the wonderful feeling of the place. Yellowstone is truly magnificent -- you are going to have such a wonderful time!