Yellowstone, Any one do this with DVC?

[funhouse8]

Hi, We are thinking of going to Yellowstone in 2009. Does anyone know if there is a resort close to Yellowstone that I can book though an exchange? Have you stayed here. Please share your info with me. Thanks

 

[Simba's Mom]

I'd really like to know about this also. We're planning to go to Yellowstone (went to Grand Tetons this year) in 2008.

 

[SB in KY]

My personal advice would be to stay in Yellowstone...there used to be a ranch outside the park (West Yellowstone I think), not sure if it is still on the Concierge list or not...but it was still a drive from most of the sites....The Old Faithful Inn is just the greatest ever...I would highly reccommend a junior suite. It was an amazing place. Did not think much about the lodge at Lake Yellowstone.

 

[flechette]

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1478921

The above thread was for Grand Canyon, not Yellowstone but I think alot of the advice carries over.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Make reservations with Xanterra for Yellowstone and stay inside the park. You'll need to have a pretty good lead time for this, so do it as soon as you can. If you wait until Spring for the summer, you probably will have slim pickings.

I like the Lake Yellowstone Hotel, but the last time we stayed there was '94. We stayed at Canyon area in the newer lodge building there two years ago and it was pretty nice. You won't have a tv in the room, but it will be comfortable. We've stayed at Mammoth Hot Springs in the winter quarters which is used in the summer for staff, also Old Faithful Snow Lodge cabins (that was in '92). At Old Faithful, you can get tiny rooms with bunk beds in them with no bathroom facilities in the room - your bathroom is down the hall. We stayed in the newer area, but it was still rather antique.

 

[JimMIA]

One of the things you have to get used to when visiting western parks is the driving distances. And sometimes -- especially at Yellowstone -- the driving distance to the park is only half the battle. Once you reach the park boundary, you may still have an hour's drive to where you want to be.

For that reason, staying within in a park is usually an excellent idea. Each major park usually offers a wide range of accommodations from primitive camping to luxury hotels. In most of the major western parks, there are budget options, and there are very nice hotels. Even some of the luxury hotels may have been built in the early 1900's, so don't expect the Ritz.

At Yellowstone specifically, the park website is www.nps.gov/yell and the website for lodging is the Xanterra site: www.travelyellowstone.com . I'm not current on Yellowstone, but at many parks you can reserve rooms one year and a day from your arrival date. The website will tell you.

Yellowstone is such a large park, and has such diverse habitats and geology, that you may want to stay a couple of days in one part of the park and then move to another lodge. Commuting within the park during the summer months is not unlike commuting in Atlanta or Washington DC...awful.

 

[funhouse8]

Thanks for the great advice. I knew I could count on you guys. I have alot of time to plan this so off I go.

 

[Deb & Bill]

A few more quick tips. There still is snow in the park at Memorial Day with some parts of the park possibly still closed if the roads can't be cleared right away. Lake Yellowstone may just be starting to break up, too. So if you go then, plan on having warm clothing. By Labor Day, its starting to be winter again. You can almost have snow just about anytime in the park, so be prepared. Tent sites go as quickly is not more quickly as the lodgind locations. Yellowstone has a very short season, not as short as Glacier, but still very short if you are expecting to go anytime other than summer. Winter reservations (from about Christmas to the end of Jan) book up very quickly and are really limited. But winter in Yellowstone is breathtaking.

 

[JimMIA]

The cause of much of the cold weather at Yellowstone is the altitude. The LOW altitudes at Yellowstone range are 6200 feet, many of the most popular areas (Lake Yellowstone and Old Faithful) are almost 8000 feet, and the mountains rise above 10,000. For that reason, anywhere at Yellowstone can turn quite cold even during the peak of summer.

 

[Donald's#1Fan]

A couple of years ago, woke up on July 28th to a bison right outside of our cabin door (Lake Yellowstone wilderness cabins) and it was snowing! So yes, it literally can be a variety of weather whenever you go.

 

[funhouse8]

A couple of years ago, woke up on July 28th to a bison right outside of our cabin door (Lake Yellowstone wilderness cabins) and it was snowing! So yes, it literally can be a variety of weather whenever you go.

You sure you weren't dreaming! No really, that is crazy! Thanks for sharing.

 

[riggins]

We just returned from a fantastic trip to Yellowstone - June 14th-20th. (We had snow one day too - so its apparently not that unusual for June!)

Thanks to DVC, we had a terrible time finding accomodations . . . I wanted my 1-bedroom villa! We spent three nights in West Yellowstone, MT at the Holiday Inn Sunspree. While it certainly didn't compare to our DVC rooms, we were able to get a "suite" that had more space. It was really a large standard hotel room with 2 queen beds, and an additional separate bedroom with a king bed. It was as close as you could get to the park without being in the park and it was a pretty convenient location. We would stay there again. We also spent 2 nights in the park in a Fronteir cabin at the Canyon Lodge and Cabins. While the location was convenient, it was really sparse and I was longing to be back at the Holiday Inn!

Good luck planning your trip!
Leslie

 

[skylynx]

Have to second the good advice about considering moving from area to area when visiting Yellowstone/Grand Teton. Even in the fall when traffic is light, you are going to, no matter what, end up behind a sixty foot RV going around 20 mph for MILES and MILES and MILES with no chance to pass safely. While I admire those with such magnificent rigs, they can make what would logically seem a half hour drive (22 miles?) into a less than magical adventure.

In reality, the scenery on the roads is part of the park experience, they aren't just paved conveyances to jet from one point to another as fast as possible, and, well, if your view is blocked because you are in a parade it isn't as magnificent. The parks are for all to enjoy, so those monoliths have every right to be there, but you can really set yourself up for disappointment if you think in one day you can start out at Jackson Lake Lodge (which I highly recommend...we had a moose and his mother lying next to our patio upon arrival) then visit Old Faithful, then Mammoth, and stop and see a few bubbly pots en route, and then try to return where you started from!

We stayed one night at Jackson Lake Lodge, then Snow Lodge, then a motel in West Yellowstone, then back to a rugged western style motel in Jackson Hole. And it still wasn't enough time to drink it all in. But at least we didn't spend hours retracing our paths...we got to see many fabulous places that made you so grateful no one could put up a strip mall with a nail salon and a mattress store for a thirty mile + radius.

 

[wintergreen]

If you are flying into Missoula or Bozeman, MT and driving down to Yellowstone, I highly recommed Chico Hot Springs. This is a fantastic hotel about 45 minutes (if I remember correctly, which I may not) from the entrance to the Park. Lots of accommodation options, wonderful hot springs-fed pools (one hot, one hotter) and the best steak that I have ever had (if I remember correctly, which I think I do). Have never actually stayed in the park, but that is on my List of Things To Do In my Lifetime.

 

[mathed101]

Skylynx aka Denise,

We are heading up to Jackson Lake to do some camping the weekend after next. I will also be meeting a friend and her husband sometime near the end of July as they are going to Wilson. I noticed that you stayed at various places around the area and are wondering which one you suggest for just one night?

Thanks!

 

[skylynx]

Hi, Mathed101

We stayed at the Wagon Wheel Ranch just north of the main drag in Jackson which had some nostalgic little log cabins, log motel, and some lovely newer condominium units at the back along the Snake River. I think in summer some of the places around Jackson Hole require a two night minimum stay around a weekend, so check first. Wagon Wheel Village is in walking distance of downtown, and is attached to a trading post. I kid you not.

If you are on the other side of Jackson (near Driggs) you can stay at Grand Targhee ski resort pretty inexpensively off season. We stayed there one September in a Sioux Lodge room with neat adobe fireplace overlooking an incredible high meadow for $79 which included a steak dinner and breakfast for the two of us. You can't beat that with a stick.

If you really, really want to sample a bit of ecstatic luxury, I'd recommend a night at Spring Creek Ranch...just a few miles from downtown. The rooms were exquisite and had great roaring fireplaces and balconies with breathtaking views of the valley. It was quite high up. We took advantage of the lower fall rates, but there might be some midweek or summer specials. Here's a picture of us on a trail below our room.

 

[mathed101]

Thanks for the information! I saw the Wagon Wheel on a Jackson Hole website and I totally agree on that steak deal! Wow!!

Thanks for posting your picture - you look like you had a fabuous time and the area is just beautiful.