Grand Teton and Yellowstone – the ultimate itinerary

Mid-West USA has always been high on my bucket list. I imagined this land of ranches, cowboys and amazing National Parks. In 2014, the dream came true when my husband and I decided to travel to Wyoming for our honeymoon. We put together a three weeks road trip around the Cowboy State, including the ultimate itinerary of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.

These two iconic parks are situated right next to each other and most visitors therefore combine them in one trip. The best way to get around is most definitely a rental car. We opted for a standard Sedan model and that was perfect for this trip. Keep reading to see our nine days ultimate itinerary for Yellowstone and Grand Teton as well as accommodation choices and activities.

Tip: book your own rental car for the USA here!

DAY 1: JACKSON HOLE

We drove from Salt Lake City (UT), where we had spent a couple of days to acclimatise, to Jackson Hole (WY). This is the gateway to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. It took us the entire day, including a number of scenic stops and short walks along the way. Worth noting are the stops we made at Logan Canyon, with the pretty Bear Lake, the small cowboy town of Afton (which houses the world’s largest arch made out of elk antlers) and the Grand Canyon of the Snake River.

The total distance we drove was only 450km, so if you want to crack on, you can arrive in Jackson Hole early to visit the town and possibly travel onward. If you have more time to spend, it is definitely worth spending an extra day or two on the Utah – Wyoming border for hiking and perhaps joining a white-water rafting trip on the Snake River.

Upon arrival in Jackson Hole, we checked into the Wort Hotel. I enjoyed staying in this charming boutique hotel, attentively decorated in mountain lodge style, with lots of wood. Jackson Hole is a popular mountain resort in all seasons, with lots of accommodation options in and around town. The centre is not very large and a couple of hours sufficed to go around the main square and shops and strike a pose under the local elk antlers arch.

DAY 2: GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK

From Jackson Hole, it was only an hour’s drive to the entrance of Grand Teton National Park and the Moose Visitor Centre. As soon as we had collected a map and taken trail information from the rangers on duty, we put on our walking boots and set off for a 13km steep hike to Death Canyon. We got fantastic views over the lakes and almost immediately sighted our first bear! I was a little bit nervous when I first spotted the animal, but luckily it minded its own business and didn’t seem to mind being watched.

The remainder of the day was mostly spent in the car. We made a small detour to Kelly to see the “Shane Cabins”: the remains of a authentic homestead that turned famous following their appearance in the Western movie. The next stop was the Chapel of the Transfiguration. This small log chapel against the backdrop of the mountains is a must-see. Our final stop was one for practical reasons. At Menor’s Ferry, we visited the small supermarket and filled up the car. We were too late to actually ride the replica ferry across the Snake River, but we did get our second wildlife sighting: a moose bathing its legs in the river just next to the parking lot. 

Our accommodation for the night (and the nights to come) was Jenny Lake Lodge. We slept in a lovely wooden cabin, which was super comfortable and we got by far the best hotel service I’ve ever had in the USA. I have to add, it was also by far the most expensive accommodation of our trip and if it weren’t our honeymoon, we would probably have stayed somewhere else. There are many options for accommodation near Grand Teton National Park. If you want to stay in the park however, you are limited to the National Park Service accommodation (bookable via US Park Lodging) and a small number of private lodges like Jenny.

After the heat of Salt Lake City, I had not appreciated that we had really entered the mountains, until the night fell and temperatures dropped close to freezing level. Thankfully, the cabin had good heating!

DAY 3 & 4: HIKING AND DRIVING IN GRAND TETON

The next day we woke up to rain. We weren’t put off and wrapped up in our raincoats, we drove to the nearby Jenny Lake and jumped onto the free shuttle boat to the trailhead at the other side of the lake. The plan was to do a 24km hike to Lake Solitude. Based on the name, I had high expectations of finding myself alone on a remote mountain path, but the first few kilometres we trailed behind lots of other tourists along the easy path to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. After that, the crowd thinned. The rain however, intensified and we decided to cut the walk short at Cascade Canyon. I was truly appreciative of our warm wooden cabin when we finally returned!

The next day started dry! We gladly made use of that window to join a ride on horseback from the lodge’s stables. By the time we got back, the sky had gone overcast again, so we got into our car and drove the Jenny Lake Scenic Drive, a one-way loop road with good viewpoints. We then drove to the observation point on Signal Mountain and then back to the lodge.

DAY 5 – 6: YELLOWSTONE GEYSER BASINS

We could have spent an entire week in Grand Teton National Park alone, but our time was limited, so we drover onwards to neighbouring Yellowstone National Park (120km from the lodge to the Old Faithful Visitor Centre). We had booked two nights in the Old Faithfull Inn, part of US Park Lodging. Lodging within the boundaries of the park is limited and popular, so do book well ahead (we booked six months ahead). In case the park lodge is booked up, there are many options for accommodation in the vicinity of Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone’s main attraction are its waterfalls, hot springs and geysers (Old Faithful being the largest and most famous). Several of the significant geysers erupt in a more or less exact cyclical manner. You can check estimated eruption times in the visitor centre and plan your day around them. On our first day in the park, we focused on exploring West Thumb Geyser Basin. We joined a ranger led tour around Upper Geyser Basin from the visitor centre. We also walked around Biscuit Geyser Basin and made a short hike to Mystic Falls.

Tip: the ranger led walks are a great way to learn about the history of the park as well as wildlife, geology and conservation. All the tours are free and you don’t need to book – just check the times and show up!

On the second day, we took our car for a short drive to Midway Geyser Basin and Fairy Falls followed by another short drive to Lower Geyser Basin with a stop at Gibbon Falls along the road. By that time, I had lost count of the number of geysers, hot springs, mud pools and other volcanic features I had seen, but nonetheless we drove onwards to Norris Geyser Basin (50 km from Old Faithfull).

DAY 7 – 8: YELLOWSTONE’S HOT SPRINGS & WATERFALLS

We started the next day with a two hours’ drive to Mammoth Hot Springs. This is a collection of hot springs that looks very different from those we had seen in other areas of the park. The fact that they are located on a soft, limestone hillside that easily erodes creates a terraces shape. Combine this with the variety of colours created by the hot gases rising from underneath and you get a magnificent view.

Our next stop was Petrified Tree for a short walk to the main sight: a petrified tree trunk about one km off the parking lot. There a more petrified trees tucked away in the forest, but we didn’t walk that far. The highlight from the stop at Petrified Tree was the sighting of several bison along the road, including one sleeping specimen that we admired for several minutes (a ranger kept visitors at a safe distance).

Our last stop of the day was Upper & Lower Falls in the Canyon Village section of the park. We made a 8 km hike along the river to take in the views of the falls (from Inspiration Point tot Artist Point and back). The hike was steep and consisted mostly of wooden stairways and narrow paths. This is a very popular section of the park and the path was super busy.

Our accommodation for the next two nights was Canyon Lodge, another US Park Lodging accommodation. Once again, we had our own cabin, tucked away in the woods at a short walk from the Canyon Village Visitor Centre and all facilities.

The following day, we had another big hike on our place. We did the 18 km Seven Mile Hole hike in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, which took us the best part of the day. It’s a beautiful hike and surprisingly not very popular: we literally did not meet any other people throughout the entire day. It was nice to be away from the crowds, but I also felt somewhat worried since we were in the heart of “bear country”.

DAY 9: TOWER FALLS & ONWARD TO CODY

On our last day in Yellowstone, we made a stop in the Tower Roosevelt section of Yellowstone to see Tower Falls. The section is named after late US President Roosevelt after he camped in the area. You can watch the falls from an overlook close to the parking lot, but unfortunately you cannot hike to them (erosion has made the trails unsafe to access).

After Yellowstone, we travelled onward around Wyoming, in the footsteps of the Pioneers. We followed the Beartooth Scenic Byway to our next stop, Cody, a 4-hour drive from Tower Falls, where we had planned to watch the rodeo and visit the Buffalo Bill Historic Centre. I have a separate post about our road trip in Wyoming! However, if you are only visiting Grand Teton and Yellowstone, it is possible to drive back to Salt Lake City in a day (8 hours) to access the nearest sizeable airport.  

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