Yellowstone National Park How Many Days?

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

Here are the details of the trip.

Fly into Denver 3 days, Boulder, Cheyenne, Casper, Sheridan-Little Big Horn, Cody, Yellowstone/Grand Tetons 3 days, Salt Lake 3 days, Provo 2 days, Grand Junction, Vail, Colorado Springs 4 days, fly home. Except as noted all locations are 1 day/overnight.

Believe it not it was cheaper to rent a car/van in Denver and drop off in Colorado Springs then to pick up and drop off in Denver, almost $450 cheaper! The airfare was cheaper to Denver then Salt Lake City, flying out of Colorado Springs only added $100 to 4 tickets vs flying from Denver. Going out Friday AM and coming home Monday AM, NOT on a weekend also saved $$. Continental was the cheapest, 4 tickets for $1147.

 

[BB_TX]

We did something similar to you but only had 8 days available. We flew into Salt Lake City, then Jackson Hole, Yellowstone, Sheridan, Custer Battlefield, Devils Tower, Deadwood, Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Cheyenne, Denver. We flew back out of Denver. The price for flying into Salt Lake and out of Denver was about the same as if we fly into and out of the same city. And since it was major cities, there was minimal (if any) drop off fee for the car. With the short amount of time we had, it saved us having to drive all the way back to Salt Lake.

 

[ronjhall]

Thanks for all the good info, much to think about. This will be part of a 3 week road trip starting off by flying into Denver, heading north to Yellowstone, then south to Salt Lake and finishing in Colorado Springs. Have the car and airline booked all I have to do now is find a place to stay for 24 nights. Anyone been in Salt Lake for the 4th of July?? I hope they have fireworks?

If you need a place to stay near Salt Lake City try Best Western High Country Inn in Ogden UT. Nice place with a great restaurant. Next time I talk to my brother. I will ask him about fireworks. Should be something close. It is home of Hill AFB.

 

[DocHeb]

We stayed in the Teddy Roosevelt cabins in the northern loop for a night - quite an experience, and there is a restaurant in the main lodge that is quite good. I think we made arrangements on-line to stay there.

 

[EddieWalker]

I'm not a city guy, so I'll never understand spending more than the minimum amount of time in one, but I'm sure you have your reasons for Denver and Salt Lake. There is nothing in Colorado Springs but flat open grasslands.

Steph and I were married in Boulder last year at Boulder Falls. It's a nice little college town that has lots of trendy shops and places to eat, but you can see it all in a few hours. Each little city around there is the same. All very pleasant to visit, lots of little shops and places to eat. When you've seen one, you've seen them all.

After our wedding, we left Boulder around noon and drove to Jackson Wyoming. It's not a very long drive. Look at the map and take the road that cuts across Colorado to Interstate 80 and by passes Cheyane. It's much more scenic and will save you a few hours.

From Denver, the Black Hills with Mt. Rushmore, Deadwood and everything there is to see there, is straight up and allot closer than Yellowstone. Stay there a couple days, then go across to Yellowstone. Plan on stoppig at Devils Tower and spending the night in Cody. See the museum and enter the Park at the East Entrance.

Then it's straight down to Salt Lake City. The lake is almost empty and takes five minutes to see. The Tabernacle is interesting, but just a few hours at the most. Not much else to do there unless you have friends or some other reason to be there. You could say hi to my brother. Just kidding. hahaha

From Provo, I'm thinking that's where you will be heading to Colorado Springs? Instead of all those days in Salt Lake and Colorado Springs, you might reconsider and explore some of the State and National Parks in Southern Utah. Arches National Park is just amazing!!! There are about a dozen Parks in Southern Utah, and each has something spectacular to see. You could easisly spend your entire trip there and have the best time ever.

Then when you go through Colorado, there are dozens and dozens of things to see and do. The Royal Gorge is very high on my list of places I want to see the next time I'm in the area.

Be sure to contact all those states and get there tourist packets. Look them over before you make any final decisions. You will be very close to some of the most amazing places in the world and it would be a shame to miss them.

On our trip, we just spent the night at any hotel we came across. Very rarely did we have to look for a second hotel because on was already booked up, and we usualy drove fairly late into the evening.

Here are a few pictures of our trip that you might be going to.

Eddie

 

[BB_TX]

There is nothing in Colorado Springs but flat open grasslands.


Eddie

Actually in Colorado Springs, the Air Force Academy, the Garden of the Gods, and Pikes Peak are all worth a visit.

 

[Egon]

Do it Proper. Fly to Calgary. Drive to Canmore and take the Helicopter to a private lodge by Mt. Assiniboine. Access by Helicopter, horse, hiking or skiing. No roads.

Miss the crowds and get quality high country time. Maybe spend a night at the Banff Springs Hotel.

Mount Assiniboine Lodge, British Columbia

 

[ronjhall]

In the Ogden UT. area there is a valley highway that takes you up into a mountain valley that is fabulous. Road wanders up into some of the ski areas for the Olympics. Some great views from over 8000'. Don't know the road name, but the motel I mentioned is on it.

 

[Tom_H]

It is possible to do a whirlwind tour in one day, but I'd recommend 2 to 3 full days unless you want to camp/fish, then more.

Old Faithful Lodge would be a nice place to stay IF you can miraculously get reservations and have the $$$. Plan on a meal there if nothing else.

I'd also highly recommend a couple of days in Jackson Hole. It would be a tragedy to be so close and not see the Tetons, Snake River, and Jackson. There is (or was) a Mexican restaurant in the middle of nowhere at Moose, WY that has some of the best Mexican food I've eaten. This restaurant didn't have them but those manly cowboys in those parts consider mountain oysters to be a delicacy. (No way on God's Earth I could do that.)

 

[MossRoad]

Actually in Colorado Springs, the Air Force Academy, the Garden of the Gods, and Pikes Peak are all worth a visit.

In 1992 we visited the Garden of the Gods and we took the cog railway up to Pike's Peak. It was 70 at the base and darn near zero at the top. My wife was 5 month's pregnant and we wobbled over to the gift shop at the top, but it was too icy and windy for her to go outside and look around. That cog railway is a very nice way to go to the top if you don't want to drive.