I'm looking for advice on travel to Yosemite next summer. We are two adults and two kids 12 & 14. We are most concerned about finding lodging that meets our needs. We would love a down-to-earth cabin, with beds, shower and simple kitchen, but don't need and can't afford fancy! We are coming from Massachusetts by plane, and renting a car in San Francisco, so would rather not have to carry camping gear. We want to be able to cook to eat inexpensively, but want to be as close as possible to the Valley because that is, after all, why we're there. Has anyone found the perfect place either inside or outside the park?

ttt

Check out Yosemite West - this is an area of privately-owned cabins and houses for rent very close to Yosemite Valley. You actually get to Yosemite West through the park.

We stayed in Yosemite West during a visit last week. It is about 20 minutes from the Valley along the road to Wawona. Good location and you don't have to exit the park every day (and fight that traffic) to get back to your lodging.

We went with a private home, which was probably a little pricier than you want, but there are also some basic condos as well. I would definitely check that out. Several agencies rent in that area.

Haven't ever stayed in the valley so I am no help with that, but make sure to allow time in your stay to visit the high country meadow area...Tuolumne? (blanking on the name right now)...just beautiful and not nearly as crowded as the valley.

We have been to Yosemite a number of times with children like yours. We have camped up in the Tioga campgrounds which is one of my fondest memories. This is not hard core camping- pull up your car to the site, there are bathrooms, etc.

It will be significantly cooler up on Tioga -the valley in July will be hot.

There are tent cabins in the valley which are relatively inexpensive if you want more shelter.

We have also stayed in the Stoneman Lodge in Curry Village which is nice but I am not sure how they are priced.

Your family will love Yosemite !

Yes, Tuolumne Meadows on Tioga road is a great campground. Cooler, access to many hikes-appropriate for children, they have ranger programs as they do in the valley. It might be fun to stay a few nights in both the valley and Tuolumne.

The campgrounds have basic outdoor cooking grills. Cooking is not allowed in the tented cabins. There are bear issues in that region, so all your food must be stored in bear boxes provided at the parking lots.

There are actually 2 sets of tent cabins in the valley - Curry Village and Housekeeping Camp. The difference is important.

At Curry Village, you have more comfortable accomodations that come with bedding, but it is a bigger area with the cabins set closer together. Bathrooms and shower facilities are shared and no cooking or camp fires are allowed. Cooked food is available in Curry Village itself - pizza and other things - or for more choice, you can go to Yosemite Village.

At Housekeeping Camp, the accomodations are pretty spartan - basically a step above camping. You still need to bring gear - bedding, etc. The camp is not as large as Curry and has a bit more room - each cabin comes with a picnic table, cooking area, and fire pit. They also come with decent-sized bear boxes attached to each cabin. Facilities are shared. There is a small store, but no restaurant or anything at Housekeeping Camp.

These are great ideas - thanks! Has anyone had an especially good experience with a small home or condo in Yosemite West they would recommend?

I remember Tuolomme Meadows from my trip as a kid at age 12! The glacial polish and our 5-day backpacking trip into the back country - and the bears...don't know how my parents did it with a 12 and 7 year old. But I'll never forget it. We need something a little less down to earth I'm afraid.

We just got back last night.

I had three different people recommend "The Redwoods" to us. Here is their website with all of their cabins listed with price included and photos. They have some cabins called "economy" that look clean and appear to offer what you have described. I think that for four you would pay $235/night (maybe tax of 10% also) during your "peak season" stay.

http://www.redwoodsinyosemite.com/book/query-list.pl

We stayed in an area called "Foresta". It was a cabin for two. Immaculate, seemingly brand new but seven years old. We paid $275 plus 11% tax. We found it on vrbo.com.

Yosemite West is an area that I would definitely look into. It's equidistant between Wawona where there are good trails and the Valley Village.

You and your family will always remember this vacation!

Pilates, how did you like staying in Foresta?

Here's another Yosemite lodging option. Evergreen Lodge is located in the Hetch Hetchy area.

http://www.evergreenlodge.com/index.html

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...,0,59957.story

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/tr...,6604544.story

I liked it very much. The cabins are REALLY spread out. You certainly don't feel like you're living in a fishbowl. I will tell you that it'd obvious that Foresta suffered a burn in 1990. I did a google search and found this page. It should give you a better feel for the area:

http://tinyurl.com/cq6w8n

Here's another:

http://www.yosemitefun.com/foresta.htm

They have some old pictures and some old information on the above link. (For instance the road we traveled on was paved) If you read the comments on the link, you'll see that Foresta has her defenders.

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask.