ohmommy2

We are planning a 2 week trip from Ohio out to Yellowstone and back this summer (late June). Out kids will be 1 & 3, but are good travelers. We've never been here and need help in our planning. Right now we are looking at 3-4 days at Yellowstone Nat'l Park with 1 additional day at Grand Teton Nat'l Park.

Our current itinerary looks like this so far (but we don't mind making any changes at this point) While we're open to all suggestions, what we are really looking for is a suggested itinerary for those days at Yellowstone and Grand Teton. Because we are unfamiliar with the park and its layout, we are unsure where to begin.

Day 1: Drive
Day 2: Drive
Day 3: Badlands Nat'l Park (driving loop)
Day 4: Mt. Rushmore & Devil's Tower
Day 5: Drive to MT to visit Little Bighorn Nat'l Park
Day 6: Drive back to WY to Cody
Day 7-9: Yellowstone
Day 10: Grand Teton Nat'l Park
Day 11: Drive (stop at Chimney Rock)
Day 12: Drive
Day 13: Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, NE
Day 14: Drive
Day 15: Drive

Thanks for your help!

gail

Go to mapquest or a bookstore and look at a map of Wyoming and Montana - it will explain visually what I will try to do explaing GTNP and YNP.

Jackson, WY is at the southern end of GTNP, which is a rather long and thin Park. You drive north/south thru the Park, with a few loops and a few designated stops - but it mainly has trail heads, pulloffs, hiking trails.

Continue north and it is continguous with YNP, which has roadways in a figure 8 arrangement. While some people overnight at only one place in the Park, others (including me) think the travel times are too great to do that and prefer staying at 2 or more places.

While in-Park accomodations give a special atmosphere, with kids that young specific creature comforts such as refrigerator, m/w, suite make it worth considering staying outside Park. Both Gardiner (north) and West Yellowstone (west) have multiple inexpensive hotels.

Mileage distances within the Park are deceptive - animal jams slow the trip and there are so many things to see that travel is slow. There are multiple points of interest, described in guidebooks, where there are incredible sites only about 1/4 mile walk in off road.

Now that I have answered your question, I will offer unsolicited advice. My kids (now 16 and 20) have always been excellent travelers as well. But the amount of time in the car you are planning sounds very difficult. You have not only the driving time to/from Ohio but will be doing drive tours of things when you eventually get there. That amount of time in the car would make ME insane, and I am far older than your kids.

In addition, while GTNP and YNP do not require hiking to appreciate (we went 2 summers ago and do not hike, but we walk), many places are only somewhat stroller-friendly. There are also dangers at hot springs, mud flats, cliffs, geysers that would require extremely close control of your kids for safety.

I would reconsider your plans - can you wait a few years or perhaps fly from Ohio if Wyoming and Montana are calling so loudly you want to go now?

Whatever you decide, enjoy this summer and future travels with your kids - we certainly have.

RetiredVermonter

I echo gail's advice: Think about FLYING to the area, renting a car, and then driving around the areas you want to see. That drive from Ohio sounds to me like a LOT of driving -- and, with the cost of gas, motels, meals, and wear and tear on the car (and on you and the kids), a flight to somewhere like Billings, Montana or some other destination and then a car rental might be wiser, and even cheaper.

For whatever it's worth, my wife and I flew from Connecticut to Billings, Montana this past May and June, rented a car, and drove around for two weeks, seeing YNP (3 days there - worth every minute); the Tetons; Jackson, Wyoming; Cody, Wyoming (the museum of the west there is terrific); the Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse, in South Dakota (we felt that the Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse memorials were overrated, but that's just us); Devil's Tower, Wyoming; and other places in between. We then returned the car and flew home.

I do note that you plan a stop for a special place in Nebraska, so maybe this idea is poor, in that case.

However, I also agree that children that young may suffer a bit, so a delay for a few years might be a good idea! Just my two cents.

By the way, when our three kids were 13, 11 and 7, we took a 2-1/2 week driving trip of some 4,500 miles all over the eastern part of the USA. It was fine, the kids got along (I am told that is very unusual!), and we had a ball -- but they were older, so they could enjoy the sights.

Good luck whichever way you choose!

SuzieTrue

DH and I took a month when DS was 2 and 1/2 and drove from MI to WA and back. We made stops in Rapid City, Cody and Yellowstone before settling in in Tacoma for almost 2 weeks.

This was DS's first big trip but was used to driving from MI to Cleveland every few months [5-6 hour drive]. We started driving early each morning with DS still in PJ's. By 8, we would stop for breakfast. Every couple of hours we took a play break. We had a variety of toys that only came out during that time [balls, frisbees]. Usually we stopped each night by 4 for more play and pool time before dinner and early bed.

We managed fine at in-park accomodations. We had a cooler and picnic basket with us for lunches and snacks. This also worked well for quick breakfasts. Luckily once we hit Tacoma, we stayed with family and made a few day trips and 2-3 night jaunts during the 2 weeks in WA.

I also had a bag of special wrapped surprises, one for each travel day plus. This was great for the afternoon grumpies. This was also in the days before in car DVD's. On another trip west, having a small TV and VHS unit occupied a few hours of travel time every day.

Do take care at the the parks to keep the little ones close. We had a kidpack for times like this. DH would carry a kid on his back, kids loved it because they could see much more. DS loved pointing out animals and other things we didn't/couldn't see while on a hike at Mt. Rainier.

We have some great stories about this trip that we still tell to family and friends.

rm_mn

If you look closely at your itinerary, you will see that half of your vacation is taken up with mostly driving. If you enjoy the driving and seeing what this nation is and has going on as I do, I see no problem. If your primary interest is the national parks, you only get 4 1/2 days of the 2 week in the parks. I'd look closely at the costs in time and the cost of fuel/maintenance and lodging and compare it to airline tickets and rental car. You might find it competitive and give you much more precious time in the parks.

I'd also be tempted to skip the South Dakota portion of the trip. Not that the badlands aren't impressive nor that Rushmore isn't worth some time, but they are quite disconnected from Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. If you are a history buff, fly into Billings, MT and rent a car. Drive to Little Bighorn, then south into Wyoming to US hwy 14 and take that west through Cody and into Yellowstone's east entrance. When you complete your visit to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons, exit Yellowstone by the northeast entrance and go over Beartooth pass on your way through Red Lodge, MY back to Billings.

sfamylou

We did a similar trip as part of a larger road trip two summers ago when our kids were 7 and nearly 3. I'd taken my son to Yellowstone also at age 3. It sounds like a fantastic trip, but I really wish you could do it when your children were older, say in three years. I think they'll be bored and frankly, Yellowstone always frightened me with little kids. I was so nervous they'd get away from me on the pathways and plunge into a boiling smelly pool. (It happens). I did however adore Custer State Park. Have you looked into getting a cabin there and exploring?

odie1

GTNP is beautiful but based on your children's ages and unless you are going to get out and hike you can pretty much catch the beauty of it by driving through it.

YNP should be done in the figure eight that the road is designed in, staying in 2 or three different places. Yes, that means repacking every night but the driving can be brutally slow which would be very difficult for going out and returning. We took our daughter when she was 2 and 3 (she's now 4) and she loved seeing all the animals, geysers, etc. You and your husband are the only ones who can judge if the environment is a safe place for your children. Most animals are seen from the safety of your car. Only the foolish ones get out and up close to these wild animals. Some are located around public areas (especially Mammoth and the thermal regions) but again you don't get up close to them. There are lots of walkways around the thermal areas and if you can still get your three year old in a stroller that would be perfect. Obviously if your three year old won't ride in a stroller and tends to want to break free and roam, YNP will be a very dangerous place for him and make the trip most unenjoyable for the rest of the family. If you have no concern about that then go and have a wonderful time. The expression on your three year olds face when he sees a bison, moose or mud and water bubbling up from the ground will be priceless.

familytravelforum

I agree that you have an awful lot of driving on you itinerary, which I found difficult when my kids were those ages. We traveled constantly because I write guidebooks, but I found that until the kids were 4 and over, we needed to stop every couple of hours to get some exercise. I'd cut a couple of things out of your itinerary and focus more time in the places that you and your spouse are most interested in. Check out familytravelforum.com for some nuts and bolts info on various national parks with kids, travel tips, etc.