What is the best loop to drive in Yellowstone?

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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Driving Yellowstone's lower loop allows you to get the most out of your short visit. So if you have 1 day in Yellowstone and you want to see the 'musts', this is the area you should focus on.

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YELLOWSTONE SCENIC DRIVES
  • Beartooth Highway. “My favorite is driving over the Beartooths,” says Holly Williams, program volunteer with Yellowstone Forever. ...
  • Chief Joseph Scenic Byway. ...
  • Grand Teton National Park and the John D Rockefeller, Jr Memorial Parkway. ...
  • Paradise Valley.


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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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A breathtaking river chasm, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is one of the most spectacular places to visit in Yellowstone National Park. This is the park's second-busiest area, after Old Faithful, and it's not hard to see why.

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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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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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You could easily take two weeks to explore Yellowstone (and you might want to after you spend a day here). To truly experience the best aspects of the park, you'll want to plan at least three days. But if you only have one day to spend in the park, you want to get the most out of your time here.

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Without doubt, Lamar Valley is the best place in Yellowstone to see wildlife. Carved by glaciers and fed by the Lamar River, the grasslands that cover this valley are easily accessible on Highway 212 and attract the biggest land species in the park—bison, elk, moose, and bears. Wolves are also found here.

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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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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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Next to Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Springs is arguably the top thing to see during your first-time visiting Yellowstone. A vibrant showcase of reds and blues bubble in this magnificent thermal pool from the bacteria residing in the area.

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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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The best entrances to stay if you will not be staying within Yellowstone National Park are the West and North Entrances. This is because these entrances are close to the Grand Loop within Yellowstone, as well as their gateway towns enabling visitors to get to the heart of Yellowstone with the least amount of driving.

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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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Flights to the nearest major airport — that of Jackson Hole, Wyoming — are typically cheapest between November and March, which is the park's low season. Prices for lodging begin to drop after Labor Day, once the summer crowds have diminished and children are back in school.

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The reservation booking window accepts reservations for stays up to 13 months in advance*. Specifically, on the 5th of each month, we'll begin accepting reservations for the same entire month of the following year.

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The mornings (dawn until 11 a.m.) and evenings (6 p.m. until dusk) are perfect window times for beating the tour groups and family wagons and securing a spot with an uninterrupted view. If you prefer the morning, all you need is a trusty alarm clock, maybe a strong cup of coffee and an early start to the day.

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