Where To Stay In Yellowstone: 6 Excellent Areas For A First Visit

We were so overwhelmed trying to figure out where to stay the first time we visited Yellowstone in October 2019. We were driving across from South Dakota’s Black Hills, our budget was tight, and we were winging it with last minute bookings to keep our road trip fluid. We’d already decided to move hotels each night (rather than booking one hotel for our whole stay) because we wanted to limit wasted driving time. But we were struggling to plan an efficient Yellowstone itinerary because the park was enormous and we didn’t know if we should stay inside the park or in Yellowstone’s five gateway towns.

It took us a good few attempts at plotting a solid route through the park where hotel availability and prices lined up with the Yellowstone attractions we wanted to see. In the end we spent two nights in Cody (after being unexpectedly snowed in), one night in a Mammoth Cabin, two nights in Canyon Lodge, and three nights in Jackson which we used a base for exploring Grand Teton after Yellowstone. It actually worked really well in the end, but in hindsight we shouldn’t have left it until the last minute, despite being the end of the season in October.

Then in April 2021 we moved from NYC to Seattle, and on the way we did a similar road trip from South Dakota’s Black Hills to Yellowstone. So we stayed in Cody again (we liked it from the first time) and planned to enter the park through Cooke City to do Lamar Valley at dawn and hopefully see active wildlife. But snow scuppered us again, so we ended up driving all the way around to Gardiner and spending one night there, before exploring more of the park with stays at two different hotels in West Yellowstone.

For us, the constant check-in’s and check-out’s were worth it to avoid driving long distances each morning and evening to reach the major basins, wildlife areas and natural features. In this guide we cut right to the chase and show you the 6 areas we’d consider staying next time we visit Yellowstone based on what we learned during our two trips, with pros and cons for each area, and a helpful map at the end. Let’s dive in!

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Our Favorite Hotels

If you’re in a hurry or don’t want to read this full guide, here are our top hotel recommendations for first time visitors to Yellowstone based on a perfect blend of location, quality, value for money, previous guest reviews and our own experiences. We’d happily book these hotels ourselves next time:

🏨 Canyon Lodge: For in-park accommodation, we’d say Canyon is our top pick because it had a central location near Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and Hayden Valley, as well as a huge amount of traditional hotel room options, cabins and suites. The on-site food wasn’t great but it was manageable for a night or two.

🏨 Kelly Inn: West Yellowstone is the park’s most popular gateway town hub and Kelly Inn gave us the ideal mid-range “all inclusive” stay with a free hot breakfast, indoor pool and hot tub, and great location. We think it’s perfect for families with younger kids, or couples who want a comfortable hotel that doesn’t break the bank.

🏨 Explorer Cabins: We loved our stay at Explorer Cabins in West Yellowstone. It cost us more than Kelly Inn, but our detached cabin was great – we slept so well without joining neighbors, and it felt a bit more like a national park experience. It has excellent ratings and options for one or two bedrooms to suit couples or families.

🏨 Yellowstone Gateway Inn: We really like the look of Yellowstone Gateway Inn in Gardiner, near Mammoth and the park’s north entrance. The detached cottage-style lodging has one or two bedroom options, a solid location, and seriously amazing reviews. We actually stayed at Yellowstone Riverside Cottages in Gardiner and loved it, but next time we’d pick Gateway Inn.

🏨 Cowboy Village Resort: For a combined Yellowstone and Grand Teton trip, Jackson is our favorite place to stay for accessing the Tetons. But hotel prices are eye-watering compared to the park’s other gateway towns. Luckily, we found reasonable rates at Cowboy Village Resort and our log cabin was superb. It’s great for families or couples, and if the prices were decent, we’d happily book it again.

Our favorite hotels around Yellowstone are all excellent options with sky-high guest ratings, but we hope you love to research and learn about a place before you visit like we do. Keep reading to see what makes each of Yellowstone’s surrounding areas a good or bad area to stay for your trip. Within each area we’ll show you the top rated cheap, mid-range and luxury hotels.

Here’s a summary of what we’re going to show you:

Area	Price	Vibe	Why?
Inside the Park	$$ – $$$$	Rustic / disconnected	Less driving
West Yellowstone	$$ – $$$$	Bustling / efficient	Near geyser basins
Gardiner	$$ – $$$	Laid back / outdoorsy	Convenient, balance
Cooke City	$ – $$	Sleepy / no frills	Lamar Valley access
Cody	$ – $$$	Authentic / Wild West	Best value, going east
Jackson	$$$ – $$$$	Upscale / trendy	Grand Teton, luxury

Inside The Park (Ultimate Convenience)

Okay let’s start with the big one, staying inside Yellowstone. For our first trip, we desperately wanted to spend at least one night at a lodge or cabin inside Yellowstone because we thought it sounded so iconic and cool to be in a “lost world” among the geysers. We spent one night in a rustic semi-detached Frontier Cabin at Mammoth, and two nights in what felt like a more typical hotel room at Canyon Lodge.

On the plus side, we were able to experience that “isolated in the volcanic wilderness” vibe, but far more importantly for us – we had instant access to major attractions like Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Hayden Valley (for wildlife), and Mammoth’s travertine terraces. That meant we were able to do a few awesome sunrises and sunsets without worrying about long drives in the dark.

But we didn’t really think about what it actually meant to be so isolated within the vast park. Both places we stayed had no AC or WiFi (we didn’t need AC in October but in summer that would be brutal), and there were no microwaves or fridges which meant we were forced to eat at the on-site dining rooms which were expensive and limited (now that we have young kids this would be a bigger problem).

And the cons go deeper still. Lodging inside Yellowstone books up way in advance – rooms become available (and often sell out) 13 months in advance, so we’d have to book in August for a September trip the next year. Most lodges and cabins don’t have elevators for luggage. And a big one that most people don’t think about – getting stuck inside the park. During our October trip, Yellowstone’s loop road effectively closed due to a massive snow dump the day we were supposed to enter. That also meant nobody could check-out and leave park lodging.

Now, we don’t want to put you off, and we do think it is worth booking at least one park lodge for at least one night on a 3+ night trip. But notice how we didn’t stay inside the park on our second visit in April? And honestly, we’re not sure we’d book inside the park next time. The only reason we would is so we could have immediate access to Lamar Valley or Hayden Valley for wildlife at dawn or dusk. Dealing with the food was fine for a few nights, but we wouldn’t want to do that for 4+ nights in a row.

Yellowstone In-Park Lodging Explained

Because Yellowstone is so massive, we were confused at first about where to even begin looking for a lodge or cabin inside the park. But now that we’ve been twice, it’s definitely not as overwhelming as it seems.

If we decided to stay inside the park next time, we’d 100% compare prices between going direct through Xanterra (via Yellowstone National Park Lodges – the only official site) and booking through Hotels.com (which is also how we’d look at previous guest reviews) to make sure we got the best price. And because Hotels.com is an OTA, they might even have availability when going direct has sold out.

Here’s our breakdown of each park-run lodging option inside Yellowstone National Park:

Mammoth Hot Springs: We love exploring Mammoth’s unique travertine terraces and we’ve always seen bison walking right through the village. It’s the park’s major northern hub, and accommodation options include standard hotel rooms or cabins – we stayed in a Frontier Cabin. We paid $175 for one night which was reasonable, but the cabin was basic and the on-site dining room was expensive. Gardiner is only 15 minutes drive from Mammoth, and it has a far greater selection of hotels and restaurants. If we wanted to stay at Mammoth, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com.

Roosevelt: Yellowstone’s northeast lodging option is a lot more primitive and there are fewer rooms available, but it’s the closest to Lamar Valley so we’d consider it if we were prioritizing seeing wildlife at dawn and dusk, and we’d compare prices with staying in Cooke City or Gardiner. If we wanted to stay at Roosevelt, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com.

Canyon: With more than 500 rooms, Canyon is Yellowstone’s largest accommodation area inside the park. It’s so close to Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone that we were easily able to watch sunrise at Artist Point, and it also has the best access to wildlife spotting in Hayden Valley and hiking the popular Mt Washburn Trail. But for us, the major benefit to staying in Canyon is having a central location between the park’s two loop roads. If we wanted to stay at Canyon, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com.

Lake: During our trips we never even considered staying in Lake because it’s not “next door” to any major attraction. But it’s actually got decent access to West Thumb, Hayden Valley, Mud Volcano and Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Plus, we expect it would be quieter than the likes of Canyon and especially Old Faithful. Lake has a hotel and a lodge with cabins, but they’re different sites. If we wanted to stay at Lake Hotel, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com. Or if we wanted to stay at Lake Lodge, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com.

Grant Village: Despite being soulless and looking like a 1970’s corporate business park, we’d say Grant Village is among the most underrated in-park lodging areas in Yellowstone logistically because it hosts 300 rooms, it’s close to West Thumb Geyser Basin, Old Faithful isn’t far, and it’s on the road leading down to Grand Teton (which is only one hour away, so it’s easily doable as a day trip). If we wanted to stay at Grant Village, we’d compare prices between going direct and Hotels.com.

Old Faithful: We tried to book a room at one of the three Old Faithful lodges in October 2019 but they were all sold out. It’s the most iconic place to stay, so we’d book this one 13 months in advance. Staying here would be great for instant access to Old Faithful Geyser, but also for upper and midway geyser basins which is where most of the park’s famous geothermal features are located, including Grand Prismatic Spring. But West Yellowstone is only 50 minutes drive from Old Faithful, so it’s not the end of the world if the park lodging is booked up. We’d compare prices at Old Faithful Inn going direct and with Hotels.com, Old Faithful Lodge and Cabins going direct and with Hotels.com, and Old Faithful Snow Lodge going direct and with Hotels.com.

When researching we discovered that pricing varied wildly based on seasonality and type of accommodations. The cheapest options were roughrider or basic cabins at Roosevelt, Mammoth and Old Faithful which had shared bathrooms and cost around $120 per night. Most mid-range rooms cost around $200 per night in spring and fall, but they can get up to $400 per night in July and August. Finally, there weren’t many premium tier options but a few suites at the Lake Yellowstone Hotel or Old Faithful Inn had $1,000 per night rates in summer. We imagine families who want multi-room suites would also get close to that number.

Mark’s top planning tip: If we wanted to stay exclusively inside the park, we wouldn’t book anything until we found availability for each consecutive night. For example, we’d only book Old Faithful on the Monday night once we were sure there was room at Canyon on the Tuesday night and Mammoth on the Wednesday night. Once we knew they were all available, we’d book them.

West Yellowstone (West Entrance)

Now let’s take a closer look at accommodation options outside Yellowstone’s boundaries. Why even consider booking a hotel that isn’t inside the park? Well, for us it was a case of wanting more control over which hotel we booked based on price, location, amenities and reviews. Having a fridge in the room also meant we could keep food and drinks fresh, and we had reliable WiFi for last minute planning and map reading. Plus, we had a far greater selection of restaurants, and they got a lot more lively in the evenings.

West Yellowstone is by far the most popular place to stay at Yellowstone that isn’t inside the park boundaries. Why? Well, firstly it’s located a stone’s throw from the west entrance gate, just 25 minutes drive from the main loop road at Madison. But also because it has a huge range of hotels and restaurants, and West Yellowstone airport is just a 4-minute drive from the resort town. Talk about convenience.

We spent one night at two different hotels in West Yellowstone in April 2021, and they were both excellent. The first was Kelly Inn, a popular mid-range hotel with traditional hotel rooms, a buffet breakfast and an indoor pool. And the second was Explorer Cabins, at which we stayed in a detached cabin with a small kitchenette. It cost more but we’re both light sleepers so it was great having no neighbors.

The downsides to staying in West Yellowstone were that it felt commercialized and it lacked soul. And we know the entrance gate can become outrageously busy in the mornings in summer – we didn’t have to deal with that in October, but it would be annoying so we’d get super early starts each morning if we visited in July or August.

💰 Cheap: If we wanted to stay in West Yellowstone on a tight budget, we’d start by looking at Golden Stone Inn and The Evergreen Motel. If neither of them were cheap enough (probably because it’s July or August), our backup would be City Center Motel.

💰💰 Mid-range: With a mid-range budget, Kelly Inn would be our top pick because we had a good experience there. But Crosswinds Inn and Clubhouse Inn are very similar properties in terms of amenities and typical prices, so we’d check all three to see which had the best deals on for our dates.

💰💰💰 Luxury: We wouldn’t say Explorer Cabins was luxurious in the classic sense, but it cost us more because the cabins were detached and had kitchenettes. We’d happily book it again, but we’d also love to book 1872 Inn for a premium adults only experience on the quieter western edge of town, or Faithful Street Inn for a multi-room townhome-style splurge if we visited with extended family.

Our verdict: If we wanted to book one hotel for a 4+ night stay and not move, we’d book it in West Yellowstone because it’s just so convenient and tourist-friendly. But it also works well as a place to spend one or two nights as part of an efficient itinerary with stays in other parts of the park. We think West Yellowstone has the best balance for most first timers, but especially families.

Gardiner (North Entrance)

After West Yellowstone, we think Gardiner is next best place to stay outside Yellowstone’s park boundaries. We thought Gardiner felt smaller, less commercialized, and way less chaotic than West Yellowstone – but it still had plenty of quality budget-to-mid-range hotels and enough decent places to eat out to last a few nights. And most importantly, it was less than a mile from the park’s north entrance gate.

We spent a night at Yellowstone Riverside Cottages in Gardiner and loved it. The communal balcony basically hung over the Yellowstone River with views over mountains with rugged scenery, and everything was easily walkable right from the hotel. But it was April so Gardiner and our cottage were very quiet. We’re sure it would be a different place entirely in July and August.

Our major downside for Gardiner? Despite being very close to Yellowstone, the north entrance only led to Mammoth and from there it was a 40-minute drive to get to the next “big” attraction in any direction – which was Lamar Valley heading east or Norris Geyser Basin heading south. It also had no soul whatsoever, as in, it felt like the place only existed for tourism (which isn’t the same in Cody or Jackson). But all we needed was a bed and a shower on the north side of the park, and it delivered exactly that.

💰 Cheap: If we needed to stay in Gardiner on the cheap, we’d hope for low rates at either Absaroka Lodge with balconies overlooking the river, Yellowstone Village Inn and Suites with excellent ratings, or Rhodopa Lodge which is set back on a hillside away from the main street noise.

💰💰 Mid-range: We think Gardiner’s mid-range hotels are its strongest category. And for us, it’s a two-way toss up between the top rated Yellowstone Gateway Inn which has one or two bedroom suites with full kitchens (we’d pick this one if we visited with extended family), or Yellowstone Riverside Cottages which we loved from our 2021 trip. It had a fantastic communal balcony overhanging the river.

💰💰💰 Luxury: For a luxury splurge, the only real option we’d consider is a few miles north of Gardiner called Dreamcatcher Tipi Hotel. It looks like a fantastic way to connect with nature and it has sky-high ratings, but it’s not cheap. This would be more of an experience stay than a place to crash.

Our verdict: Overall, we think Gardiner can be a superb place to stay for first timers heading to Yellowstone because it solves a lot of pain points. First, it’s an easy and nearby alternative to staying inside the park at Mammoth with more control over hotels and restaurants. Second, it works perfectly for a first or last night if using Bozeman airport or heading to Glacier. And finally, it’s a logical second or third night stay for anyone who moves hotels each night as they explore the park after beginning in the east, south or west.

Cooke City (Northeast Entrance)

There’s not a whole lot for us to say about Cooke City at Yellowstone’s northeast entrance. It’s tiny, there’s really not much going on at all, and there’s only 3 or 4 places to eat out, so for us it’s not the place to set up base for 3+ nights. But from what we can tell, the lodging options in Cooke City lean rustic, cheap, and low-key – and it would work well as a place to crash for a night at the beginning or end of a Yellowstone trip because it’s the closest place to Lamar Valley, which is ideal for dawn and dusk animal spotting.

We drove through Cooke City in October 2019 to enter Lamar Valley and it was like a ghost town. We’re not sure we saw a single person, so it certainly didn’t jump out as a place we we’d be desperate to book for our next trip. That said, Cooke City isn’t just handy for Lamar Valley (which effectively rivals Roosevelt Lodge inside the park), it’s also on the northeast entrance road which is the most direct for Billings airport.

Now, Cooke City is the only Yellowstone gateway town we haven’t stayed yet, so we’re not able to give it the same level of analysis as the others. But from driving through, what we know about the lack of lodging and food options, and the fact we wouldn’t need to enter through the northeast, it wouldn’t be our first choice. We prefer at least some semblance of an atmosphere in the evenings, and other than easy access to Lamar Valley – the next “big” attraction is Mammoth or Canyon, both of which are 1 hour 30 minutes drive from Cooke City.

💰 Cheap: No-frills lodging is Cooke City’s speciality. For a low budget bed and shower near Lamar Valley, we’d book whichever was cheapest between High Country Motel, Alpine Motel, and Antlers Lodge for our dates. They all offer similar quality.

💰💰 Mid-range: But the upgrade we’d actually pick in Cooke City is Elk Horn Lodge. It’s got the best ratings and we’d try to book a detached cabin (chalet) for a better night sleep.

💰💰💰 Luxury: The only true luxury option we can find in Cooke City is MTNLUX vacation rental. It’s a collection of upscale detached cabins that look perfect for families or groups of friends. With reasonable prices, this is the only place that would make us consider staying in Cooke City for 3+ nights, we’d just take food and entertainment with us, and use it as a secluded base for the park.

Our verdict: Honestly, we’d only consider staying in Cooke City if we desperately wanted the quickest access into Lamar Valley for wildlife spotting at sunrise and sunset, or if we were using Billings airport. But that’s just us. We know others might prefer the solitude and escapism – Cooke City certainly wouldn’t feel overwhelmingly touristy like West Yellowstone or Gardiner in the summer.

Cody (East Entrance)

We really liked Cody. It had a local, authentic, Wild West vibe – and it was very quiet both times we passed through in October and April. But we know it would be a totally different place in June, July and August when it hits peak “Yellowstone pitstop” levels. In those summer months Cody puts on a nightly rodeo and live music, and the small town gets swamped with tourists.

For us, we just enjoyed hanging out with locals at coffee shops, being able to walk straight into restaurants, and exploring the unmissable Buffalo Bill Center of the West (which included a Firearms Museum with the most comprehensive collection of American firearms in the world). We visited all five museums and genuinely thought it was excellent.

We found Cody’s food options to be better than West Yellowstone and Gardiner, and we also thought the hotel selection was fantastic. In 2019 we stayed at A Western Rose and woke up to a major snow dump which closed down the east entrance. We needed to stay another night in Cody while the northeast entrance road was cleared, so we booked the historic Irma Hotel and sampled several local beers in front of a blazing fire.

Then in 2021, we spent a night at Cody Legacy Inn, before waking up to hear the northeast entrance was closed due to snow (it’s supposed to be open year-round), and that we had to drive all the way around to Gardiner. Cody was even quieter this time, but we still enjoyed breakfast at Rawhide Coffee on the main street before leaving.

💰 Cheap: We thought A Western Rose was great, and we’d highly recommend it as a solid low budget accommodation. The owners were super friendly and helped us out when we got snowed in. But next time, just for something different, we’d book The Scout Inn which looks more modern.

💰💰 Mid-range: We stayed at the historic Irma Hotel in 2019 because of its iconic past, but it was old and a bit creaky. Next time, we’d really like to book Cody Cowboy Village which has a proper Wyoming vibe with detached log cabins near the rodeo grounds. Or our backup mid-range stay would be Best Western Premier Ivy Inn if it was significantly cheaper.

💰💰💰 Luxury: For us, Cody’s luxury category consists of just two excellent options and we’d happily stay at either one. The Cody is like a typical motel or hotel but looks way more elevated, and it’s near Old Trail Town and the rodeo grounds. Chamberlin Inn is the complete opposite – it’s right on Sheridan Street (walkable to restaurants and cafes), and it has a boutique European theme.

Our verdict: Cody is probably our favorite Yellowstone gateway town. It’s got a nice balance between hotels with genuinely good value, a decent food selection, a subtle Wild West theme without being too gimmicky, and it’s not just a pure resort town for the park like West Yellowstone and Gardiner. We like Jackson too, but Cody is way less stuffy and expensive. But all that said, we’d only ever use Cody as a first or last night stop. At 1 hour 40 minutes to the park loop road at Lake, Cody is too far for day tripping into Yellowstone.

Jackson (South Entrance)

When planning our 2019 road trip route through Wyoming, Jackson was the only place we knew for definite we would book a hotel. We had lots of options between the gateway towns and in-park lodging for Yellowstone, but once we left West Thumb Geyser Basin and headed south to explore Grand Teton for 2 days, we only wanted to stay in Jackson (rather than any of the lodges or random tiny places near Moran).

Why Jackson? Because we knew it was a ritzy year-round resort with lots of great hotels and restaurants, and super easy access into the Tetons. And we wanted time in the evenings to actually experience what “wild west” Jackson was really like. If we’re being honest it didn’t really have the big cowboy culture thing we were expecting, but we’re sure that’s because it was October and we were super focused on the parks anyway.

We stayed in an excellent detached log cabin at Cowboy Village Resort. It was awesome but it cost us a small fortune, and this was in October – not July or August. We actually lucked out because it was one of the cheaper options available at the time (without going for something like a Super 8) and it had rave reviews. The only thing was a longer walk into town vs other hotels near Jackson Town Square.

Now, we absolutely don’t think Jackson is a good place to stay for taking consecutive day trips into Yellowstone. It was almost a 2 hour drive from West Thumb Geyser Basin to Jackson without stopping – and it was impossible not to stop in Grand Teton. But we do think Jackson works perfectly as a base for a multi-day Grand Teton trip, or for one night after leaving Yellowstone through the south entrance. It’s 4 hours 30 minutes drive to Salt Lake City, which might be where international travelers are flying through.

💰 Cheap: Jackson’s cheap hotels are about the same cost as every other Yellowstone gateway town’s mid-range or even luxury accommodations. We’d happily stay at Cowboy Village Resort again (in a detached cabin). But if it cost too much, our backups would be Alpine Motel and Antler Inn for a super cheap and basic stay, or Elk Country Inn and The Virginian Lodge for a more comfortable low-budget stay.

💰💰 Mid-range: If we had a bit more money to spend, we’d be more than happy to stay at any of Wyoming Inn, The Lodge at Jackson Hole, Rockwell Inn, or Rustic Inn Creekside. They all have excellent ratings and look great, but Rockwell Inn would be our top pick for its closer walking access into town.

💰💰💰 Luxury: If money was no object for our stay in Jackson, we’d choose between classic elevated traditional stays at Hotel Jackson, The Cloudveil and The Rusty Parrot Lodge and Spa, or for something a bit more unique we’d look at Huff House and Inn on the Creek. They’re all located within easy walking distance of downtown.

Our verdict: We liked Jackson a lot, and we will definitely stay there again next time we visit Yellowstone and Grand Teton. It had a lively and fun “outdoorsy crowd meets wild west” vibe in the evenings. But it was expensive (some hotel prices were outrageous) and a bit pretentious, which is why we preferred Cody’s down to earth atmosphere. It’s not Yellowstone day trip territory, but Jackson is perfect for the first or last night of any itinerary that includes Grand Teton.

Yellowstone Hotels Map

Map key:

• Black – In-park lodging
• Green – Cheap hotels
• Red – Mid range hotels
• Blue – Luxury hotels

How to use this map: Click the map above to activate, then tap any hotel icon to see more information. See a list of all hotels and areas by clicking the arrow icon in the top left, or see a full version of the map by clicking the “view larger map” icon in the top right.

How to save this map: Click the small star next to the map title – this will add the map to your Google account. Open your Google Maps app, tap “saved”, then tap “maps” and open this map.

Where To Avoid Staying

Bozeman: We wouldn’t book a hotel in Bozeman to use as a base for a multi-day Yellowstone trip. It works at the start or end around flights or visiting Glacier National Park, but not just for Yellowstone. Even if we were offered a free stay at the best hotel in town, we’d say no. It’s 1 hour 30 minutes from Bozeman to Mammoth, and far longer to reach the famous geyser basins.

Idaho Falls: We actually stayed in Idaho Falls after leaving Yellowstone in April 2021 on our way to Craters of the Moon and the Sawtooth Mountains, but similarly to Bozeman we wouldn’t let affordable rates at quality hotels in Idaho Falls tempt us for a Yellowstone-only trip. Idaho Falls to West Yellowstone is a 2-hour drive (and it’s the same to Grand Teton), so it’s not even close to being within day trip range of either park.

Cody: At the start or end of a road trip with any need to go east or southeast, Cody is a fantastic gateway hub. But honestly, Cody is a place most first-timers heading to Yellowstone through west, north or south entrances won’t see at all. It doesn’t look too far in terms of distance from Cody to Lake, but the road winds slowly over mountain passes.

Park cabins: We’d be very careful about the exact type of lodging we booked inside the park. “Roughrider” cabins often have shared outdoor bathrooms, which might not be a problem as a couple for a night, but if we took the kids we would rather pay an extra $100 per night to make sure we were all comfortable in a proper family room without needing to grab the bear spray for a 2:00 AM potty-call!

Our Top Tips

One vs many hotels: Yellowstone is huge, the park loop road takes ages to drive around, the congestion and traffic get really bad in summer, and there’s even bison jams to consider (we got caught in one for about 20 minutes in April). So staying in one hotel for 3+ nights will result in a considerable amount of time in the car. That’s why we moved hotels each night, and we’d do it again next time.

Booking in advance: We always advise booking hotels in advance these days to get more choice and better rates, but for Yellowstone this advice is amplified several times over. In-park lodges sell out as far as 13 months in advance, and the higher rated hotels in gateway towns are like gold dust. Next time we do Yellowstone, we’ll move hotels each night and book them all way in advance.

Operating dates: To be honest, we should have checked Yellowstone’s lodging operating dates before our spring and fall trips to see when accommodation opened and closed for the season. Summer trips have a full compliment of room availability, but knowing exactly when in-park lodging closes in shoulder seasons will help with planning a more efficient spring or fall itinerary.

Road closures: The one thing that scuppered both our trips was road closures due to snow in October and April. It’s crucial to keep an eye on Yellowstone roads opening and closing dates, but also to be aware those dates are subject to change after heavy snowfalls. Do not book a hotel in Cody if east entrance is closed!

Shorter trips: If we were planning a short 1-2 day Yellowstone trip, we’d book our hotel based on the closest gateway town, entrance or park lodge to the things we wanted to see most. Let’s say it was Grand Prismatic Spring and Old Faithful – we’d book Old Faithful Lodge or stay in West Yellowstone because they’re the closest lodging areas.

Wildlife: If the purpose of our trip was to prioritize wildlife spotting, we’d book a hotel in Cooke City, Gardiner, Mammoth, or Canyon. They’re closest to Lamar Valley and Hayden Valley.

Crowds: Remember, the most convenient places (Old Faithful, Canyon, West Yellowstone) are also the busiest places to stay in Yellowstone. In summer these areas can feel like a theme park, so we’d carefully consider the balance between convenience, cost and crowds.

No AC or WiFi: Most of Yellowstone’s in park lodging does not have AC, which can be a huge comfort factor in July and August. We’d seriously consider avoiding staying in the park with our kids in summer just in case it was too hot at night. Having limited WiFi at in-park lodging is great for having a proper escape from the outside world, but it also means no looking at maps or researching mid-trip.

Campgrounds: Camping is a solid alternative to in-park lodges or gateway town hotels. There are 12 campgrounds in Yellowstone, but they also book up almost as soon as they become available so being organized is essential. We haven’t looked into camping yet, but it would be a fun way to experience the park.

And finally, we travel the world for a living so take a look at our guide on the easy steps we take book cheaper hotels and grab yourself a cheaper stay in Yellowstone.

Next Steps

We hope our guide on where to stay in Yellowstone helps with planning your trip.

If you’d like more personalized help, we offer expert travel planning video calls where we answer any questions you have, show you where to stay, and plan out the perfect itinerary. See our packages and reviews.

Still researching for your trip?

• This is exactly what to do in Yellowstone
• Here’s our 4-day Yellowstone itinerary
• What to know about Yellowstone in April
• What to know about Yellowstone in October
• Use these airports near Yellowstone
• Follow our Mt Rushmore to Yellowstone itinerary
• Here’s our Salt Lake City to Yellowstone itinerary
• This is how to spend 2 days in Grand Teton
• Here are our favorite US national parks

Finally, if you’ll be visiting more places on the same trip, read our first-timers Wyoming travel guide for more helpful tips and advice.

Happy travels,

Mark and Kristen

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