Our Yellowstone and Grand Teton trip was one of our favorite family vacations yet. Here’s our full day-by-day itinerary, including where we stayed, what we did, and what we thought was worth it.
This trip had been on our bucket list for years, so I was really excited when we finally made it happen. Yellowstone and Grand Teton are two of those places that feel almost too iconic to live up to the hype, but somehow they just do. Between the wildlife, the majestic mountain views, the gushing geysers, and all the little surprises along the way, this ended up being one of our favorite family trips.
So here are all the details from our trip, day by day, including where we stayed, what we did, what was worth it, and a few things I’d do differently if I planned this trip again. If you’re planning a Yellowstone and Grand Teton vacation and want a realistic look at how it all came together, this is the place to be!
Day One – Arrival in Jackson & First Look at Yellowstone
First order of business is getting there, and it can be a bit of a journey as Yellowstone is one of the more remote national parks in the US. There are several common ways to fly to Yellowstone National Park:
- Fly into Jackson Hole and drive in through the Grand Tetons and the south park entrance.
- Fly into West Yellowstone and drive in through the West entrance.
- Fly into Bozeman and drive in through the North entrance.
We opted to fly in and out of Jackson Hole airport, as we planned to end our trip with a couple nights in Grand Teton National Park as well. This gave us a nice circular loop for our itinerary.
Jackson Hole Airport was a fun experience on its own. It’s a very tiny airport, and we deplaned right on the runway. As soon as you step outside, you’re greeted with a jaw-dropping view of the mountains.
While at the airport, we picked up some bear spray from the rental kiosk by baggage claim. Bear spray is a must in Yellowstone if you plan to do any hiking at all. Renting makes a lot of sense, since you can’t take bear spray on an airplane (even in checked luggage). I reserved two canisters in advance from Bear Aware and picked them up from the rental kiosk when we landed. Then we grabbed our bags and our rental car, and hit the road.
Alternatively, you can rent bear spray at one of the rental stations within the park itself. Or you can purchase it at some of the park gift shops, but note that you will need to leave it behind before flying back home. You can always pass it on to another traveller or ask your hotel to do so.
Then we started on the first leg of our road trip. When entering the park from the south, you actually drive through Grand Teton National Park to get to Yellowstone. The driving time from Jackson Hole Airport to our first hotel, Canyon Lodge, was about three hours. But of course, we planned to make some stops along the way.
We were starving, so we first stopped at Dornan’s Pizza, which you’ll find just before the south entrance to Grand Teton National Park. It’s a very popular local spot – so expect it to be crowded. But it was pretty quick and the pizza was good.
The same complex also has a food truck outside and a small grocery shop and liquor store. So we picked up some supplies for lunches and snacks for the coming days. I definitely recommend packing in food that you can eat on-the-go while sightseeing in the park. We got sandwich stuff, cheese and crackers, and drinks.
Then we continued on through Grand Teton. You’ll pay your park entry fees at the gate. But another option is to purchase an annual national park pass. If you plan to see more than one park this year, the park pass is a good deal!
The views are stunning from the scenic drive and there are many photo spots that are worthy of a stop. We eventually reached the southern entrance of Yellowstone National Park, and made our first stop at the West Thumb Geyser Basin.
West Thumb is a really neat area filled with steaming and bubbling geysers right along the banks of Lake Yellowstone. We took a walk on the boardwalk among the geysers. It was an awesome intro to the geothermal area – but paled in comparison to what was to come!
Our next stop was at the charming Lake Yellowstone Hotel. This isn’t where we chose to stay the first night, but after seeing it, I kind of wish it was. The hotel has a fun, throwback, 1920’s vibe with piano music in the foyer and a beautiful view of the lake. We enjoyed a glass of wine and took a walk down by the lake before moving on.
There’s a great little viewpoint and a path to the water’s edge, if you’re willing to do a bit of climbing. Luckily, climbing is my son’s favorite activity. ;)
We finally finished up our drive and arrived at Canyon Lodge just shortly before sunset. Note that there are many buildings that make up the huge Canyon Village complex, including several different hotel buildings. So you need to follow the signs for the check-in area, run in to get your room key, and then go park near the correct building.
Here is a map of the Canyon Lodge area (below) to help you find your way. The check-in desk is in Moran Lodge.
The lady at the check-in gave us the unfortunate news that the Wi-Fi was out for the whole complex. A bummer since there’s also no cell service in the park. And then she told us to keep an eye out for the resident bison, Carl, who likes to hang out near our room. I honestly thought she was joking with us.
We located our room, which was in a nice location at Hayden Lodge with a walking path and wooded area behind it. And as soon as we walked outside to the patio, we met Carl. No joke – Carl was huge and happily munching on some grass right outside our room. He paid us no mind, but we took a few pictures of him from the safety of our patio.
Now, the room itself was… less than amazing. We chose a Deluxe Room with Porch, which has an extra outdoor patio space. And we did enjoy that extra seating area outside. If you’re staying here for a few nights, it would be especially nice to have that extra space.
But the interior was very dated and kind of ratty looking. We unfortunately found that there was no hot water when we went to shower as well – but it was nearly 10pm and way too late at night to try changing rooms at that point. We’ve stayed at other park lodges run by Xanterra so our expectations were low. We know that the park lodges are never going to be luxury experiences. But Canyon Lodge was still kind of a disappointing hotel.
The lodge area is home to a lot of services though, including a visitor center and a cafeteria. Unfortunately, the cafeteria food was absolutely abysmal – by far the worst food we ate in the park. So overall Canyon Lodge was a let down – but Carl was awesome and I’m willing to take one cold shower in exchange for meeting him.
Day Two – Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
The next morning, we got an early start and kicked off the day with a hike on the South Rim Trail, along the south side of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. We hiked all the way to Artist Point, which is about 2.7 miles round trip.
It was an easy hike, with several really scenic viewpoints along the way. You can see the waterfall from many different angles. The trail is about 2.7 miles roundtrip with just under 300 feet of elevation. The majority is a blacktop trail, like what you see in the image above. So this is a very good hike to do with kids!
And we even saw a little bit of wildlife. Mostly birds. But my personal favorite was this little Yellow-bellied Marmot (picture below)! Luckily, we didn’t encounter any bears. But make sure to bring your bear spray!
At the end of the trail you’ll find Artist Point, which has several lovely lookout areas. There’s also a parking area at Artist Point, which means this pretty spot can get very crowded, so it’s best to do this as early in the morning as possible. (You’ll find getting up early to beat the crowds is essential for most days in Yellowstone!)
After the hike, we took a drive through the scenic points along the North Rim. Note that the scenic drive is one way, so you need to enter from the south and drive north along the canyon rim. This is a very popular drive, much busier than the South Rim, with very small parking areas at each lookout point. So pack your patience.
I think the best stop was the Brink of the Upper Falls, where you can take just a short walk down to get a very close up view of the top of a waterfall. It was neat to feel the water rushing by!
My least favorite stop was probably the Red Rock viewpoint. The hike down and back up was very steep and very hot – and the view wasn’t nearly as good as the view of the same waterfall from the south rim. So if you need to cut down on time, you can give that one a skip.
Overall, this is a really pretty area of the park and worth making time for. But I much preferred the south rim hike over the north rim scenic drive! If you have to choose just one, and you’re up for a little activity, do the hike.
Afterwards, we made our way toward the Tower Falls General Store for lunch. This is a good spot for break. My husband and son had bison brats and hot dogs, and we all tried the famous Huckleberry ice cream. Yum!
You can also take the short hike to see Tower Falls from here if you’re interested. It’s about one mile round-trip to see the waterfall. It’s neat if you have plenty of time. But frankly, the waterfalls over in the Grand Canyon area are much more impressive!
Then we started making our way towards the Mammoth Hotel, our home base for the next two nights. We made a quick stop at the Forces of the Northern Range Trail along the way, which was a nice stroll on a boardwalk with some informational signs. We were hoping to spot some wildlife here, but none cooperated.
We arrived at the Mammoth Hotel at about 12:30pm, and the room was not ready yet. So we left our bags with the check-in desk and went to explore the Mammoth Visitor’s Center. It’s a really great facility with some interesting exhibits and very helpful rangers. We even got a chance to see some of the resident elk wandering their way through the village.
We tried to grab a drink at the famous Map Room inside the hotel, but found it was insanely hot inside (no air conditioning) and they weren’t serving drinks. Only coffee. That was unfortunately the case nearly the whole time we were there. So that was a let down – we thought that would be a cool spot to hang out in the evenings.
Our room was ready at 3 – not a moment before. In fact, there was a big lineup to get keys at exactly 3:00. And overall, the room was totally fine. It was a pretty standard hotel room with double beds, a microwave, and mini fridge. And there was both working Wi-Fi and hot water, so it definitely beat Canyon Lodge. The room was super hot though – these lodges are just very hot in the summer with no air conditioning. And we’re from Florida, so we are accustomed to hot weather.
We grabbed some dinner at the Mammoth Dining Room, and found the food to be surprisingly good. They had a nice menu with several vegetarian choices. And the servers were very friendly and helpful! After some more ice cream, we headed up to bed for an early night as we had to wake up super early for our wildlife tour in the morning!
Day Three – Wildlife Tour and Mammoth Hot Springs
The next morning, we headed out for a wildlife tour! I’ll tell you right upfront that this was by far the coolest part of the trip for me. We met our tour guide, Aleksa from Yellowstone Wild, in our hotel lobby at 5:00am to head out. Yes, I said 5:00. If you want to see the wildlife in Yellowstone, you need to get out there when they are most active, which means early mornings.
Aleksa took us out towards Lamar Valley, stopping at so many spots that we would have never found on our own. She was amazing at spotting the wildlife for us. She also brought along scopes and binoculars – enough for each of us to have our own. (This is important, as some group tours will only bring a few scopes to share among all the guests.) The scopes were so good, it felt like you were right up close with the animals.
And man, did we see animals! Over the course of the morning, we observed two grizzly bears, an entire pack of wolves feasting on a bison carcass, several coyotes, a red fox, bald eagles, and pronghorns. And I’m sure I’m forgetting something. It was a “three dog day” – which is what the guides call it when they see coyotes, wolves, and foxes all in one day!
Oh, and the guide also brought along hot coffee and some breakfast pastries for us to munch on when we had a break. The tour was pricey, but it was honestly worth every penny. In my opinion, you absolutely have to go out with a guide if spotting wildlife is important to you. Without her, we would have driven by most of these animals without even knowing they were there.
If you just want to see bison, you will see plenty along the roadside. But if you really want to see wolves and bears, hire a guide.
After the tour, we spent a little time checking out Mammoth Hot Springs, which is right next to the Mammoth Hotel. The area closest to the hotel is really the most interesting and there is no hike or drive needed to see it. Just walk over!
We also did the scenic drive, which was just ok, but it only took a few minutes to reach it, so you might as well cover it while you’re out and about. Overall, Mammoth Hot Springs was the least interesting part of the park for me, so I say this area is skippable if you have limited days in the park. But I would make time for the wildlife in Lamar Valley no matter what!
Day Four – So Many Geysers!
The next day, we started our drive towards Old Faithful, stopping to see the many sights along the way. Our first stop was a small area called Clearwater Spring. You likely won’t find it in the guide books, but I suggest stopping here for a quick walk and a beautiful picture.
Next up was Roaring Mountain, a rock formation that supposedly emits a sound that sounds like roaring. You can literally just park next to the mountain and get out to look (and hear), so definitely make the quick stop here as well.
Norris Geyser Basin was the next major attraction for the day. And it was absolutely one of my favorites of the trip! Now a word of warning – you need to go to Norris early or you will not be able to park! I recommend being there no later than 8:30AM if you want to avoid the parking chaos.
Within Norris Geyser Basin, there are two main areas – Porcelain Basin and Back Basin. If you need to prioritize your time, Porcelain Basin was the more interesting area. In fact, it was nothing short of amazing. Otherworldly. It’s like an alien landscape filled with active geysers gurgling up water and steam everywhere. It’s just really so cool. This was my favorite geothermal area in the park.
Then we continued our trek towards Old Faithful! There are a few more sites along the way if you have additional time. Both Fountain Paint Pots and Artists Paint Pots are worth a stop for more colorful pools and bubbling geysers. But they are very similar, and less impressive than Norris, so it’s okay if you can’t get to them both.
Biscuit Basin is also on the way, and is a very cool spot to explore, but it’s currently closed due to an explosion there in 2024. Actually, this explosion happened while we were at the park! We just narrowly missed being there – I’m not sure if I should be disappointed or relieved about that. ;) There’s not currently a reopening timeline, as the park service needs to evaluate the safety of the area, as well as make repairs to the boardwalks.
Grand Prismatic Spring is also enroute to Old Faithful, and it’s a must-see. But when we drove by at 10:00 AM, you couldn’t park anywhere near it. Cars were parked along the side of the road for at least a mile! You also couldn’t park at the nearby Fairy Falls Trailhead, which is the other popular way to view Grand Prismatic. So we resolved to come back for this one later.
We eventually landed at Old Faithful, where we planned to stay at the Old Faithful Inn for the next two nights. Now here’s what I’ll say about the Old Faithful area. It’s amazing, its cool, it’s iconic. It’s also a complete zoo. Tour companies bring tourists in by the literal busload. So the area is best enjoyed in the early morning or evening with thinner crowds. This also means it’s a good place to stay, as there are several hotels and you can enjoy the geysers 24 hours per day!
Now obviously, Old Faithful is the star of the show here. And it is very fun to watch it erupt and be part of the big crowd cheering and clapping. But – some of the other geysers were just as cool, some even more so. And those were also way less crowded. So take the time to explore and wander around the boardwalks in the geyser basin. There’s more here than Old Faithful!
Important Tip: Be sure to check out the geyser predictions on the park website. They will list the last eruption time and the expected window for the next eruption, for all the major geysers. This will help you plan your geyser viewing!
If you want some recommendations, here were my personal faves:
- Daisy Geyser – A very cool geyser set apart from the main boardwalk, so usually not crowded. It has a short eruption window, so it’s pretty easy to catch. We got lucky with a double eruption of Daisy with Grand in the background!
- Castle Geyser and Grotto – Very interesting and always steaming!
- Grand Geyser – The biggest geyser of them all! It has a three hour eruption window, but if you’re willing, it’s worth the wait.
Now, let’s get back to the Old Faithful Inn. I loved it. The building itself is historic with really interesting architecture, and it’s filled with cozy spots to hang out and enjoy the ambiance. The viewing deck is inarguably the coolest spot in the hotel – it’s a huge deck with a front row view to the geyser eruptions. It’s a great spot to grab a drink and hang out in the evening.
We stayed in a Geyser view room in the East Wing, and got lucky with a perfect view of Old Faithful. It was so neat to be able to see the eruptions right from our room and hear it throughout the night. I definitely think the geyser views room are worth the splurge.
There is, however, no Wi-Fi at the Inn. That’s a big inconvenience when traveling. And it’s important to note that the rooms in the historic part of the hotel share a communal bathroom. Yikes. So choose your room wisely.
Day Five – Grand Prismatic & More Geysers
We still had Grand Prismatic on our wish list, so we headed there first thing the next morning, hoping to beat the crowds. We opted to view Grand Prismatic from the overlook on the Fairy Falls Trail.
You need to go early – be to the Fairy Falls trailhead parking before 9am at the latest. If not, you should expect to wait 30-45 minutes to get into the lot, and still might not find a spot in there.
The hike is about 1.2 miles roundtrip and we found it to be pretty easy. The climb is a bit steep and we did see one lady fall, but my nine year old had no trouble. It is a very popular and crowded area and the overlook is crowded too. But Grand Prismatic is iconic and you really do need to see it at least once.
After our visit to Grand Prismatic, my son and I headed out on a photo safari tour. This is one of the tours offered by Xanterra and we booked it in advance of our trip. I was keen on seeing some great photo spots and my son was most interested in getting to ride in one of these old school convertible buses!
The tour was fun and I’m glad we did it. It was nice to spend a little time one-on-one with my kid and share my photography interest with him. He even did a great job shooting in manual!
But I will say that the tour is meant for non-photographers. I was hoping they would take us to some amazing locations that I wouldn’t have otherwise seen, but the spots weren’t especially interesting. There was a lot of time spent on framing and making interesting shots of things like trees, flowers, and creekbeds. But we didn’t hit any geothermal sites or any of the amazing vistas. So think of it more as a little photo workshop and not a tour. It was however, perfect for my nine year old.
In the afternoon, we rented bikes to ride around the geyser area. But you should note that the bike paths are somewhat limited. You used to be able to ride all the way to Norris Geyser Basin, but that option is out until the area opens up again. You can find the bike rental information here.
Day Six – Grand Teton National Park & Jackson Lake Lodge
The next day we headed out of Yellowstone and into Grand Teton National Park, where we planned to stay at Jackson Lake Lodge for two nights.
We first hit Colter Bay Pizzeria on the way in for a bite to eat, and then stopped at the General Store there to refill on snacks and drinks. The General Store was very well stocked here, so this is a good place to plan on picking up any provisions you may need.
Then we made it to Jackson Lake Lodge, where our rooms was ready when we arrived at 12:30! And wow – this place is awesome. First, I should mention that the Grand Teton lodges are not run by Xanterra, they are run by the Grand Teton Lodge Company, which has a much better reputation for quality and service. And it shows.
We stayed in a Mountain View Cottage room. Our room was big and nicely appointed, and had a balcony with a fantastic view. We were able to watch wildlife, like a whole herd of elk, right from our room.
After getting settled in and enjoying the view for a while, we headed out for a Snake River Float Trip. They picked us up for our 3:15 trip right at the hotel lobby with a small group of guests, and drove us to the start of the river float.
Now I should clarify that this is a calm float trip – not a whitewater rafting trip. We were able to sit on the edges of the float and dangle our feet in the water, and enjoy the beautiful scenery. There were only two families in our raft – our family of three in one side and their family of five (two were little kids) in the other side. So it felt like a private excursion!
The view was lovely. But we didn’t encounter any wildlife besides birds. I am told that the best trip for spotting animals (like elk) is the first trip of the morning.
We headed back to the lodge afterwards and had dinner at the famous Mural Room. I highly recommend making reservations here well in advance of your trip, as it is extremely popular and often fills up. The food was pretty good, but the real highlight here is the view from the big picture windows!
Day Seven – Jenny Lake Hiking
The next day, we planned to spend some time hiking in the Jenny Lake area. Once again, you need to get an early start to beat the crowds. We arrived at the Jenny Lake Visitor Area at 8am and there was plenty of parking still available but there was already a long line for the boat shuttle.
The boat shuttle takes you across Jenny Lake so you can hike the trails there without having to hike the entire way around the lake (way more than my hiking quota). You can buy your tickets at the dock – no need to book ahead. And be sure to buy your return ticket too, as there’s no ticket sales on the other side. The line moved pretty fast and we took the quick ride across the lake.
Once there, we hiked the trail to Hidden Falls and then onwards to Inspiration Point. I would say the first part of the trail to Hidden Falls was very easy, but the hike to Inspiration Point was a little more challenging. All in all, it was about 400 feet of elevation gain with some switchbacks and rocky areas. But there were many families hiking it with kids.
The waterfall itself was pretty but kind of anticlimactic compared to the waterfalls at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. But the view from Inspiration Point is beautiful and worth the hike up. And we even saw a family of black bears from the trail! (Don’t forget your bear spray.)
We wrapped up our hiking and took the boat shuttle back around 11am. By then the parking lot was filled, with cars parking up to ½ mile away on the main road. So again – go early.
We enjoyed lunch at the hotel, and then took the short hike up Lunch Tree Hill. The trail begins right next to the lodge and is basically just a walking path straight up the hill. Very easy and family friendly!
You’ll get about 88ft of elevation, and some amazing views. It took us only a few minutes to walk up to the top – so this is a low effort activity with a great ROI on your time.
Then we enjoyed some downtime in our lovely room until the evening, when we enjoyed dinner again at the Mural Room. Afterwards, we had some wine on the balcony and took in the beautiful view of our last night in the park. In fact, the photo below was taken from our balcony and is one of my favorite images from the whole trip!
Day Eight – Fishing & Jackson Hole
On our final day in Grand Teton, my husband and son decided to squeeze in a morning fishing excursion. They were able to organize a private trip for the two of them, which left from nearby Signal Mountain Lodge. They had a ton of fun and caught a number of lake trout. Note that you do need to have a fishing license, but you can buy them right at Signal Mountain Lodge.
When they returned, we headed into the town of Jackson Hole, where we checked into The Wort hotel for the night. We wanted to be nice and close to the airport for our early morning flight the next day, and this also gave us a chance to see the famous ski town.
The town itself is very cute – maybe more like kitschy. We had lunch at a Mexican restaurant called Merry Piglets, which was cute and tasty. They even served Huckleberry Margaritas! We enjoyed walking around the shops and the central square. And later had a great dinner at The Kitchen. It was a great way to end our trip to Yellowstone and Grand Teton!