We are looking to go to Yellowstone around early September. There will be a total of 8 adults and 5 kids (all 6 and under). Any suggestions as to where we can all stay? Some sort of condo/cabin we can all share would be ideal.
I’m from Jackson, WY (aka - Jackson Hole -the town just south of Yellowstone & Grand Teton) - pm me with specifics of whether you’re looking to stay in Yellowstone itself or in one of the towns just outside the entrances and what specifically you’d be looking to do. I can get you a bunch of specifics, at least from the south entrance side of things.
First off, you are going to have a blast!
There are a number of areas that have cabins inside the park. We stayed at the Yellowstone Lake Lodge Cabins last year and had a great time. They weren’t anything special on the outside (nat’l park cabins never are) but the ones we were in were newly renovated inside. There are probably better options/locations but because we booked late, the Lake Cabins were all that was available. I’m not sure any of them looked big enough to accomodate a group that size though. You may have to try for a couple adjacent cabins somewhere or look outside the park.
For lodging inside the park, check Xanterra’s site (they run the lodging inside the park): http://www.travelyellowstone.com/
There are many options just outside the park entrances as well but I am not familiar with them. Looks like this site may have some good info: http://www.yellowstonepark.com/
Flagg Ranch at the south end of Yellowstone is well situated.
I would suggest checking out the Tetons as well. A lot of people just drive through the Tetons on their way to jellystone. There are great hikes in the park and some nice mellow float trips to be had on the snake river. You don’t have to go very far off the pavement to have the place to yourself.
I grew up just north of Yellowstone. Fall is a great time of year there but it can be pretty cold. The first snow usually comes in around Labor Day.
Like Peckerhead said, you’re gonna have a blast. I went a few years ago and stayed at the Old Faithful Inn and the Yellowstone Inn. I’m thinking of planning another trip. Old Faithful Inn was awesome.
it is a supervolcanoe, and it is due to erupt. don’t go!!
—I want the lifestyle that comes with owning a Nissan Xterra
There will be a total of 8 adults and 5 kids (all 6 and under).
Yellowstone is incredible. Playing tourist in Yellowstone can leave you feeling like you visited something that Disney would have done with a National Park, or perhaps someone who wanted to design “Wilderness for Yuppies.”
Okay, maybe all this info is for your second visit. It’s just helpful ahead of time to know that something as supposedly wild as Yellowstone has been pretty well neutered by a lot of rules, at least in the eyes of the more purist.
These rules are necessitated by people who act like idiots when it comes to wild animals and natural fauna. I can understand why the rangers seem to feel that the Park would be so much easier to manage—if it weren’t for all these people.
As a fellow Xterra owner, I’m gathering that you may want something more than your own snapshots of Old Faithful. Here are a few pointers. It all comes down to whats realistic so that everyone has a good time. With kids six and under, that likely means resorting to the lowest common denominator, and there’s nothing wrong with that, if that’s what you decide in advance.
But the best way, I’ve found, to experience Yellowstone is not to sleep within the park itself. There are beautiful campgrounds within a few minutes of the park (this is called “Greater Yellowstone.” (I can personally recommend Upper Coffee Pot campground, outside of West Yellowstone—got a camp site right on a gorgeous river where we watched a moose and her calf visit each evening. Canoed on class I water, and base camped into the park without any trouble at all.
And my son was very eager to get up early and get rolling. We were out of the park each morning by 6 am, and that’s a great time to enjoy the scenery on the roads. It was my wife who was the slowpoke, and this was a daddy trip. The Madison river, in June, at sunrise, will water your soul.
As for the daytime, getting 1 mile from pavement will ensure you loose 99 percent of the people. My son and I had a blast photographing plants and animals.
Okay, I hope I didn’t pop any bubbles. Any trip to Yellowstone, if properly planned, is a trip WELL worth taking. I think for $5 you can get an information packet (it’s a large envelope packed with brochures from vendors and the Park) that will help you get started. The Park has a program for kids that I haven’t participated in, but looks really good. Here’s a link to get you started.http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/index.htm