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As with Yellowstone, the Grand Teton summer 2020 season is still a work in progress, as concessionaire Grand Teton Lodging Company has announced opening days for its facilities, but there’s no firm park opening date.
Grand Teton National Park announced an indefinite shutdown the same time Yellowstone National Park announced an indefinite shutdown of park facilities. Like Yellowstone, state highways and roads through the park are open. And, like Yellowstone, there’s no firm date on opening for the Grand Teton summer 2020 season.
Here is the current plan from the Grand Teton Lodging Company regarding 2020 facility openings:
Headwaters at Flagg Ranch Cabins and RV Park: Monday, June 1
Jackson Lake Lodge: Friday, June 5
Colter Bay Village Cabins and RV Park: Monday, June 8
Jenny Lake Lodge: Monday, June 15
Reservations for these facilities are being taken at the gtlc.com website.
Other facility openings:
Signal Mountain Lodge: Friday, June 5
Dining facilities are expected to open when lodges open, but no official announcement has been made, and the Grand Teton Lodging Company has dining facilities opening May 15. But, as with the Yellowstone situation, nothing is written in stone. There are plenty of factors in play, and there are logistical issues in terms of scheduling the opening of the Grand Teton summer 2020 season. Yellowstone and Xanterra are making do with a smaller staff, with precautions taken to minimize the spread of the coronavirus. Can social distancing work in Jackson Lake Lodge and Jenny Lake Lodge rooms? Will tourists and workers return? We live in largely improvised times, and predicting what will happen in June is a tough call. Right now there’s no firm date on either national park opening, with the three states surrounding the parks featuring a 14-day quarantine for out-of-state visitors. (Montana’s prohibition on interstate travel will not end until the state enters Phase Three in the reopening progression; the state just entered Phase One this weekend.) And, once Grand Teton National Park and its facilities open, you can expect increased housekeeping and daily maintenance, such as the frequent wiping down of public areas.
So the advice: stay flexible. Any travel this summer should be seen as tentative surrounding Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park in the summer of the coronavirus pandemic.
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