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How Long Does It Take to See Yellowstone?

Of course, most visitors have limited time. It’s really a fair question, especially for first-timers, to ask, “How long does it take to see Yellowstone?” The standard answer is two days. That’s because there are two loops in the figure eight, with the park’s main attractions almost evenly distributed between them. Two days (and two nights) is a reasonable minimum time to visit the park. It takes longer than two days to really experience the Yellowstone area: three days will be less hectic for sight-seeing, four days means you can take a day off from touring, five or more days leaves room to pursue favorite activities (like fishing or hiking) as well as see some sights off the beaten track.

Can you see Yellowstone in one day? Yes. Will you remember much of it? More likely you’ll remember the burning eyes, one geyser that looked like another, and crowds of irritating people with their cars. But yes, Yellowstone can be toured in one (long) day.

Touring in Transit

The truth is, statistically, most people see a portion of the park in one or two day visits while they are in transit – that is, coming and going to some other destination, for example coming from Grand Teton National Park on the way to Glacier National Park, or coming from Denver on the way to Seattle. For most of these people the goal is not to see the whole park, but to plot a route that hits some highlights along the way. This works okay from North/South; by going across the northern loop of the Grand Loop Road to Canyon, then crossing over the middle of the park to Norris and then going south to Old Faithful, West Thumb, and the South Entrance (or reverse order). It’s even easier East/West, just follow the entire south loop of the Grand Loop Road, and come or go through the West and East Entrances.

The greatest difficulty with transit visits is finding accommodations. Unless some planning has gone into where to stay, and probably making reservations, the long day (or two) through the park may end up someplace where lodging is chancy (especially in high summer). It’s no crisis; rooms and campsites are almost always available in the gateway communities (West Yellowstone, Cody, Gardiner, Cooke City, Jackson), but may require extra driving.

More Tour Planning

1 Day Tour — recommendations for seeing a lot of Yellowstone in one day.

2 Day Tour — recommendations for a very common length of visit.

3 Day Tour — recommendations for seeing most of the park in three days.

A Touring Table — a comprehensive listing (and ranking) of the sights and features of the Greater Yellowstone Region.

 

 

 

 

 

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