Yellowstone or Yosemite in August?
 

As part of our family roadtrip we are planning to include either Yellowstone or Yosemite.
2-3 nights stay at either. We have heard that Yosemite gets very crowded in August. Is it less crowded in Yellowstone? We have two kids, aged 10 and 13, and plan to do some hiking but not too long distances. Which park would be the most enjoyable for 2 kids ?

I vote for Yellowstone! Yosemite is beautiful, but the sights there are quite usual: beautiful mountains, amazing valleys and so on. But Yellowstone has really fantastic landscapes, weird geysers, colourful lakes and whimsical views. Sometimes you literally feel yourself on an other planet and only a bunch of local bisons wandering around convinces you that it is still the Earth.

I totally agree with john peter, go to Yellowstone, there is much more there for the kids and adults.

Now you need to get some lodging! If the in park places say they are full, make a reservation you can cancel nearby and call back and keep calling as people do reserve a year in advance and cancel when they find they can't make the trip.

One more vote for Yellowstone. August is the best time to visit this area *IF* you can ignore the crowds. Even June is too early (ground is still wet) and October can be too late (blizzards can come any time, so late fall is pretty iffy). The lakes are still full, the waterfalls are still flowing (Yosemite Falls dries up in summer), and the animals still come out. The geysers and hot springs, of course, are 24/365.

As noted above, August is also the time when Yellowstone is at its most crowded, so close lodging is not always easy to come by. If you can get a place to stay that meets your needs, take that first and THEN arrange your transportation.

I think Yellowstone and Grand Tetons next-door have more to offer that late in the Summer. Moose and Elk have their antlers, the weather is cooling off to produce more early-morning fog to highlight your pictures, and the paint pots have thickened from soupy into thick, blooping mud. The grass has all gone to golden yellow, but it looks good with some sagebrush accents.

Yosemite is better in Winter with a light snow covering, or in Spring with the extra runoff water.

Yellowstone is my vote too. Having been to both Yosemite and Yellowstone in August, I would say that Yosemite was busier than Yellowstone. Yellowstone has really neat volcanic features. My favorite was Mammoth Falls (I believe that was the name), water falling down travertine formations formed by the geysers. Really neat place!

Thank you for all your advice. Yellowstone seems to be the best option. Everybody mentions though that it gets crowded. How bad does it get? We don´t want the experience of the wildernes and the outdoors to be ruined by endless crowds and bumper to bumper traffic. How " crowded" is " crowded"? Will there be queues to Watch Old Faithful etc?

We would also welcome advice on lodging in the park. We are aware that it is normally fully booked by now but we will look for cancellations. Being a family, where would you recommend we stay. Preferably in the park.
And one last question. Is it less crowded in July? In case we alter our travel plans a bit, or is the whole summer period June-August as crowded?

July and August are the peak months. Last year, overall attendance numbers at most parks broke records, and it is anticipated that may rise this year, given it is the National Park "Centennial" and has been pretty heavily promoted. Here is a picture showing the typical crowd around Old Faithful at that time: http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/summer.htm

Yes, you will encounter bumper-to-bumper traffic at any point where there is wildlife visible from the road. These "animal jams" will stop traffic, and you will not move until the wildlife (typically bison) either get off the road or a ranger breaks things up.

Having said all that, it is a huge park. Once you get just a little ways onto a trail, most crowds drop away. But on the roadway (a huge figure 8), don't expect to make much time. Incidentally, 2-3 is not enough to see much. September is much better, if you can, since crowds will diminish quite a bit.

Please - I do not mean this to sound discouraging.

To add - plan to see Old Faithful early morning or late afternoon (avoid 10a - 3p). Likewise, wildlife viewing is best early morning or at dusk. During the peak daytime hours, that is when you might check out some of the hiking trails.

Carry bear spray on any trails that go away from the boardwalk/people-centric areas. It is available to rent by the day from the Canyon Visitor Education Center.

Hmm- August looks a bit to busy for our liking. t is just hard to be off at other times due to kids having to be in school. How long in to August does peak season last? All of August or mid-August?
Lodging in park seems very hard to get. Have managed to find 1 night at Lake Lodge Frontier Cabins. Very basic it seems. Anyone stayed there?

Peak season is all summer long in either of these parks. They are very far apart and I wonder how you were planning to get to either one or is it a direct trip that you would fly to a nearby airport for your trip.
Expecting national parks not to be busy while school is out is sort of impossible, IMO.

We stayed at Lake Lodge cabins once. They are basic, but clean and an easy walk to the hotel if you want to eat breakfast or dinner it was fine.

Part of what makes it busy is the bison who use the roads to get from place to place and make jams. I would just get up early and get to the sights I wanted to visit before the sleepyheads got going.

We visited Yellowstone in early June expecting it to be a lesser time for crowds and we were still absolutely shocked at the crowds we experienced in certain parts of the park. The Canyon overlooks, the area around Old Faithful, and the boardwalks at Mammoth Hot Springs were incredibly crowded and did detract from our enjoyment. However, at all these places, we only felt that way when visiting mid day. We returned VERY early the following mornings and were able to really enjoy the places without so many other people. While most of the park's visitors were in the dining rooms having breakfast or sleeping in still - we were seeing the busiest parts of the park. I would plan to see those three areas as early as possible or as late as possible before the sun goes down (plan for a late dinner after sunset). If you plan to do any hiking, crowds become far less of an issue - most visitors never walk more than a mile down any trail so you can literally leave the crowds behind you. You don't want to drive in the dark, so staying in the different sections of the park help immensely in seeing each area before and after the daytrippers leave. We spent 2 nights at Old Faithful, one at Canyon, and one at Roosevelt. I recommend splitting your lodging to at least two different parts of the huge park.

Also, while we certainly felt the crowd pressures in Yellowstone, we really didn't notice it in the Grand Tetons. Consider a night or two in the Tetons for less crowds and some of the most fantastic scenery on earth.

Yosemite is rural slum in August with hoards of people & bumper to bumper traffic.
Yellowstone hands down!

Both will have lots of people.

Yosemite is more compressed so that the traffic will be impossible. This is unrelated to my feelings about how they run the park.

Yellowstone is spread out. The bad is you have to drive more. The good is you seldom get stuck. Just check for road maintenance closures.

I definitely vote for Yellowstone.

Yosemite is beautiful

First of all, have a great trip! my family and I did both trips in August when I was young. You can't really go wrong with either but I have a little insight into both.

Yosemite gets packed in August as it is the last hurrah for the summer. Book early and be ready to wait for parking (crazy right??). The weather, however, should be very nice. I guess I would say go for it but you won't get the full "all-naturale" experience.

Yellowstone also gets its fair share of visitors in August but the park is so large you probably wont have an issue. There are so many places to go in the park. Be sure to check seasonal entrance closures, a friend of mine ended up driving to the wrong side and had to go over to get in the correct entrance. Whether should be nice and cool.

Just remember with the roadtrip dont be afraid to make lots of stops, and turn off all the devices, have an adventure!