Can you drive the Yellowstone Loop in one day?

You must have a car to see Yellowstone; there aren't any shuttles. Yellowstone's Grand Loop Road can be looked at as a figure 8, or an Upper Loop and a Lower Loop. Each loop takes about 2.5 hours to drive without stopping. It's feasible to spend a day on each loop and skim the highlights of the park.



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The Grand Loop takes between 4 to 7 hours to drive in full. During the summer season, cars are the best option for taking a trip around Yellowstone unless you are riding with a bus tour or concessionaire that provides transportation.

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With thousands of acres of land, five entrances, numerous canyons and geyser basins to visit, plus a drive through valleys filled with bison and elk, there's no way you will get to everything with just one day. However, with one day in Yellowstone, you have just enough time to see the highlights.

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The Park's Grand Loop Drive is shaped like a figure 8, divided into the Upper Loop and Lower Loop. We recommend driving the Lower Loop on Day 2, since it features Yellowstone's most famous attraction – Old Faithful, that way you are building up to a grand finale.

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The ultimate Yellowstone road trip Driving the Grand Loop will bring you to many of the park's most popular geothermal areas, including Old Faithful, Midway Geyser Basin, Norris Geyser Basin, Mammoth Hot Springs, and West Thumb Geyser Basin.

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However, the northern loop was our favorite. We started in West Yellowstone and headed North to Mammoth Springs then around to Canyon Village and back to West Yellowstone. We stopped many times for Elk, Bison and a Black Bear. Combine the animals stops with all of the scenic stops, our round trip took 11 hours.

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Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone The two most popular attractions here are the Upper Falls and the Lower Falls. The impressive Lower Falls drops approximately 300 feet, while the Upper Falls drops slightly over 100 feet. This picturesque area of Yellowstone is filled with alpine trees, hot springs, and steam vents.

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West Yellowstone Entrance The West Entrance is the park's busiest and most popular entrance, and it's also the second-closest to Bozeman International Airport, taking roughly two hours to drive to the West Entrance.

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Jackson, WY is the ideal base camp for a trip to Yellowstone. Here are 5 reasons why you should stay in Jackson Hole while visiting Yellowstone National Park.

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From Moose, drive up the inner park road to Jackson Lake Junction and follow the outer park road through Moran Junction back down to Moose. The loop is 42 miles long, and depending on how many points of interest you chose to explore, plan for at least a one to two hour drive.

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The upper loop of the figure 8 circles Mammoth Hot Springs, Tower-Roosevelt and Canyon Junction and Norris Junction then back to Mammoth. It is roughly 70 miles in circumference. The communities of Mammoth and Gardiner, MT, at the Northeast gate, Silver Gate and Cooke City, MT, from the Northeast gate.

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Our Locations. Yellowstone Park Service Stations has seven locations in the Park with over 80 seasonal employees. Yellowstone Park Service Stations, Inc. (YPSS) operates seven convenience store/fuel facilities, four automotive repair shops and a central office/warehouse in Yellowstone National Park.

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Yellowstone is open 365 days per year, 24 hours per day. However, only the road from the North Entrance (Gardiner, MT) to the Northeast Entrance (Cooke City, MT) stays open year-round. If the roads are open, you can enter and exit the park as you please, even if the entrance stations aren't open and collecting fees.

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The Upper Loop is the northern 142 mile/229 km long circular track and it's all about waterfalls, hot springs, and great viewpoints. The Lower Loop is slightly shorter at 96 miles/155 km and is home to the National Park system's most famous attraction, Old Faithful.

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In 1915 Yellowstone's Grand Loop Road was opened. The 142 mile figure 8-shaped paved road connects the park's main attractions, and gives visitors up close and personal accounts of some of the world's most striking natural features.

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Rockefeller Jr. Highway up to Yellowstone. Plus, if you are staying in Jackson, Wyo., the South Entrance is the easiest entrance to access Yellowstone. Jackson itself is an incredible mountain town that attracts skiers to its steep slopes in the winter and throngs of tourists in the summer.

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The West Entrance is an excellent jumping-off point for seeing some of the best geysers in the park! From here, you're close to Norris, Old Faithful, and Grand Prismatic just to name a few. Because of its location, this entrance is usually my preferred place to stay near the park.

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Staying in Jackson Hole is another great option when visiting the parks, as it gives you access to a wider variety of hotels, restaurants, and attractions. We would love to help you plan your visit to Yellowstone and/or Grand Teton National Park. Please contact us to learn more.

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The Jackson Hole region is filled with resorts, guest ranches, and hotels, just 45 minutes from Grand Teton National Park and two hours from the south entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

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Yellowstone National Park can get very crowded during peak season (June, July, and August). The best months to visit Yellowstone are April, September, and October. These “off season” months provide more chances to catch a glimpse of the local wildlife and enjoy thinner crowds.

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Protect yourself and the sights you plan to enjoy by following a few simple rules:
  • Never approach wildlife. The animals in Yellowstone are wild and unpredictable, no matter how calm they appear to be. ...
  • Stay on boardwalks and trails in thermal areas. ...
  • Never feed wildlife. ...
  • Never park in the road or block traffic.


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