yellowstone/ tetons/ mount rushmore..... best way to see it all.

[funhouse8]

Ok we want to go out west summer 2013. I have to make reservations the beginning of m ay so i can get what i want inside the park. Here is what i have so far...... fly into? Visit yellowstone
Mammoth springs hotel ......1night
Canyon lodge........... 2nights
old faithful lodge...... 2nights
we also want see the
grand tetons ... i think 2 nights @ jackson lake lodge (real expensive so i am not sure of this hotel.
Mount rushmore
So i need advice on which order i should tour each. Fly into airport and drive west or otherway around. Also while in yellowstone which order should we go. Any advice is appreicated!!! Thanks.

 

[skiingfast]

Are you hiking a lot? 5 days is plenty in Yellowstone if you are not. If you are doing a 3 day 5 night combo that seems better. 3 hotels seems like a lot. The Canyon Lodge is centrally located and a good place to stay. The Old Faithful Lodge I wouldn't reccomend, but if you want or mean the historical Old Faithful Inn or the modern Old Faithful Snow Lodge

Jackson Lake Lodge is great but you may want to consider staying in the town of Jackson Wy. The town offers a lot of shopping, raft trips and other nearby activities. The central part of Grand Teton National Park is Jenny Lake, and it's only a little further from the town than it is to the Jackson Lake Lodge.

For Grand Teton National Park, 1 day is fine, but if you want to do things in Jackson Hole another day is good. If you want to do long hikes add a day for each.

For Mt. Rushmore remember this is about 10 hours away. When you go also see some od the historical mining towns, Custer State Park, the Crazy Horse Monument, a cavern, even consider driving out to the Bad Lands. You may want 3 nights here.


To fly you can use SLC a major airport. Jackson Hole with many flights per day from a few major cities. Bozeman and Billings, MT are smaller but possible alternatives.

Depending where you fly to you can make a big loop using I-80, in one direction if flying in or out of SLC. I-90 going in one directing. If not going to SLC then cutting across Wyoming.

If you have any questions about the Tetons or Yellowstone please feel free to send me a Pm.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

We went to Grand Teton and Yellowstone a couple of years ago (check out my trip report below). We spent 1 night at the Jackson Lake Lodge (can't beat the view), 2 nights at Canyon Lodge (western cabin), 2 nights at the Old Faithful Snow Lodge (western cabin) and then another night at Jackson Lake Lodge. It was a fantastic trip and we really enjoyed it. The road through Yellowstone is set up like a big figure 8. We used each lodge as a central hub to branch out to other parts of the park during the day.

Enjoy your planning and your trip!

 

[Annie Michelle]

We did a similar trip in September. We flew into Denver. We drove part way to the Badlands after arriving and spent the night in Nebraska. We then drove to South Dakota and did the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills while staying at Circle View Guest Ranch for 2 nights in Scenic South Dakota. Then we headed to Cody Wyoming for 2 nights staying at the Southfork Bed and Breakfast. We enjoyed the Buffalo Bill museum. We then headed to Yellowstone and stayed on night at Mammoth Hot Springs. They we headed to Old Faithfull Inn for 2 nights. After that we went to the Grand Tetons and rented a condo in Jackson Hole for 3 nights. Finally we went to the Rocky Mountain National Park and spent 4 nights in a rental home in Estes Park. The drive from the Tetons to Estes Park was the longest and it was 8 hours, but enjoyable scenery.

 

[azlaura]

I can't help with Rushmore but can with Yellowstone and Tetons. We've been twice and are going again this summer. Your lodging in Yellowstone looks good, you can see the areas and not have to drive forever, the park is huge. Our first trip we stayed in West Yellowstne for all 7 nights and there was a lot of driving, came from SLC.
Our second trip we flew into Idaho Falls(suppose to be Jackson Hole but they closed the airport to resurface the runway).We spent 3 nights there(arrived late)in a condo north of town(can't remember the name) it was beautiful. Then headed to Yellowstone for 4 nights. We stayed in a cabin in Cooke City(wanted to be closer to the north part of the park) Flew home from Bozeman.
This trip we are staying 2 night at Old Faithful(Okd House room with a bath) and 5 nights just outside Cooke City at a Bed and Breakfast. We are flying into and out of Bozeman.
So, there are lots of options, you could do 3 nights in Canyon and 2 at Old Faithful so you do not need to move your stuff around so much. There are also rustic cabins in Roosevelt that would put you in between. (these are cheap) I would suggest whatever you choose for lodging you do keep one in the northern part or central area and then one in the southern.
Lodging also depends on what you want to do and see I could spend weeks in YNP and not see and do everything
As far as GTNP, there are a lot of options and I feel two days is enough. We enjoyed YNP more but lots of people love GTNP.
Airports, SLC would probably be your cheapest, depending on where you are flying from. But that is at least a 5 hour drive to YNP, I would probably go to GTNP first and then to Yellowstone. Or fly into Bozeman or Billings and do YNP first. I do not think it matters which airport, just what flights are the cheapest and best. Then work you way around the area and back to the same airport or even a different one if you can get a good one way rental(I have in the past).
You are planning smart to book this far out, I do the same thing and park reservations can be changed if something doesn't work right.
Have fun,
Laura
PM me if you would like help, I love planning travel.