What a magical place. So fortunate that had the chance the visit and I can't wait to go back…read more I don't think I can add more to what's been said but I think these tips would help The first time visitor. 1. Yellowstone is a massive park and you'll need to be strategic before you visit as to what you want to experience 2. You will need Bear mace. Get it ahead of time. 3. Give yourself more time than you think. Distances are long, roads are slow, and wildlife jams are common. 4. Arrive early or stay late. Midday (10am-4pm) is busiest. Early mornings and evenings are quieter and best for wildlife You would think this is a no-brainer but I can't even put a number as to how many times international visitors ignored the placards and signs. This is why visitors fall into pools and don't come back. 5. Stay on boardwalks and trails. The ground can be dangerously thin and hot. 6. Never touch thermal features. Water can be near boiling and acidic. 7. Supervise kids closely. Injuries here are serious and often fatal. 8. Leave the animals alone. Keep a safe distance. The animals are not pets. The buffalos and deers let only bears can do serious damage to your vehicle. Imagine what they can do to you. Be respectful and leave them alone. General guidelines Bison, elk, deer: at least 25 yards (23 m) Bears & wolves: at least 100 yards (91 m) Bison are NOT docile. They injure more people than bears. Lastly, keep a plastic bag for your trash in your car and dump properly. Yellowstone has this rule about trash Pack it in, pack it out If you bring it, you take it with you. This includes food scraps, peels, wrappers, and tissues. I learned a lot and left my heart there. Can't wait to go back.

Day 1 (06/12/2025), drove from Hideaway Hostel in Island Park, ID to West Yellowstone entrance in…read moreMT. I'd suggest purchasing an annual pass for all fee free entry into the national parks and monuments. It can be bought at a visitor center (outside the park). There are four lines at the pay area, I was told that if you prepay for an annual pass that the right lane is the quickest. That's false, it is the longest and the others are faster to get through the gate. All accept the annual pass. You show the pass and your DL at the gate to get in free. Or you can purchase $35 Yellowstone pass good up to 7 days. If you plan on going early in the morning, expect long lines and wait time once inside the park. If you see multiple cars putting on their breaks, look to your left and right because I guarantee they have spotted wildlife. There's signs throughout the park that says not to stop in the middle of the road to take pictures, but people still do it. Be patient and enjoy the scenery. First stop: Old Faithful in the Upper Geyser Basin. If you go during the week, it is crowded. Parking can be limited. Old Faithful spouts every half hour, so if you miss it the first time don't panic. You can see it again. Inside the visitor center, there's a gift shop (pricey and small), an exhibit to learn about science of the geysers, an auditorium to watch a free historical educational movie. There's areas to find food and more gifts. The upper geyser basin has smaller geysers and Old Faithful can be seen from that area. 2nd stop: Grand Primastic Geyser, located in the midway geyser basin. Again, very crowded. Parking is limited in the designated parking area, so you may need to parallel park on the side of the road and 10 minutes walk in. The boardwalk is very accessible for wheelchairs, rollators, and disabled individuals. The path is easy to maneuver with a slight incline in one part. The views are stunning! If you plan on wearing a hat, hold tight to it because it will fly off. I spotted about 5 hats sitting on the bacteria mats. The overlook views are spectacular, but if you can get a closer look at the ground. The overlook of the grand p. Path Isn't accessible. Stairs in some parts. 3rd stop: Artists paintpots/mud pots, very cool. Less crowded, parking lot had open spots. Restroom on site. The walk in was about a 1 mile. To get to the top, there were wide stairs. View is beautiful overlook the park and some mountains. The mud spots reminds me too much of the Labyrinth scene. Coming down were more stairs. Saw some blood geysers (reddish in color). Day 2 (06/13/2025): 1st stop at Beryl Springs/Monument Geyser Basin, 2nd view at Obsidian cliff, 2nd stop at The Range, 3rd stop at Golden gate. 4th stop at Mammoth Hot springs, 5th stop at Petrified Tree (redwood; silicia). Lunch at Roosevelt Lodge (vegan options) 6th stop at Phantom Glacier. 7th stop at Lamar River and 8th stop at Lamar Valley Day 3 (06/14/2025): 1st stop at Gibbon Falls, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, upper and lower falls, Inspiration Point, Grand view, Artist Point, Trout Creek, Lake Yellowstone, Hayden Valley, and West Thumb Geyser Yellowstone National Park was a treat, absolutely beautiful seeing the mountain range, lots and lots of wildlife. Don't let the pictures fool you, it was extremely busy in mid-June. If you decide to come early in the morning, there's long lines entering through the park. The best time to come is in the afternoon. West Thumb Geyser basin was my favorite portion of the park because it was the least crowded and most versatile scenery. After seeing the bright oranges and yellow at the Grand Prismatic, I was happy to see deep blue geysers all while looking out into lakes with mountain backdrop. Overall, Yellowstone National Park is a must see in one's lifetime. There's no park like it. It was my goal to see bears and I saw exactly that towards dusk at 7:00 PM. Over here in WY, it's gets dark by 9:00 PM. I came with a person who was afraid of driving on the mountain curves since she's afraid of heights, so I'll have to come back to see the parts I didn't get to see. Thank you to President Ulysses Grant for establishing this discovery making it a national park. Thank you to Teddy Roosevelt for caring to conserve and protect this park!

The two male employees were very friendly and helpful. They greeted us when we walked in and asked…read moreif they could find items for us. I ended up buying three pairs of outdoor pants, a down vest and jacket that were all on sale plus a pair of pants that were regular price. They had a good inventory of clothes in my size. The only negative was the dark, small changing room. I wish it had better lighting and more room so I could really see how the clothes looked.

If you're looking for a Fly Fishing trip in the Yellowstone area I highly recommend Madison River…read moreOutfitters! Competitively priced and our guide Jake was WONDERFUL! Enthusiastic, helpful and we caught lots of fish!! Highlight of our vacation! (July 2022)

We recently took a guided kayak tour down the Madison River and into Hebgen Lake. Debbie was our…read moreguide and she made our first experience fun. She was very knowledgeable and personable. Lava Creek was very helpful and flexible with our vacation schedule. If we make it back to West Yellowstone we will definitely be contacting Lava Creek again.

Lava Creek is the place to go if you need to rent kayaks for Yellowstone National Park. They got…read moreus outfitted with boats and all the gear we needed -- paddles, PFDs, dry bags, bilge pump -- to have a fantastic paddling trip in Yellowstone's Lewis and Shoshone lakes. The owners were extremely friendly and knowledgeable, and they are located right outside the park in West Yellowstone (there are no kayak/canoe rental agencies inside the park).

I was referred to Big Sky Anglers by the Worldmark West Yellowstone Resort to get information about…read morelocal fishing spots and get a fishing license. Though they only sold fishing licenses for in the park, they were so helpful showing me on the map of local, out of the park, rivers and lakes, I could try. Also they were so helpful to tell me where I could get a Montana fishing licenses and bait to use. They informed me of a lot of rules I needed to know too. They were busy and I was impressed they took the time to help me out when they knew I wasn't going to buy anything there. I really appreciated their time and great customer service. Thank you. I wish I remembered the young man helping me. He was great!

My husband and grandson booked a fly fishing learning adventure while vacationing in West…read moreYellowstone. Their guide, Andy, was very patient, kind and funny. Andy installed a love of fly fishing in both of them and they can't wait to get on our river at home and use their new skills! Both my husband and grandson highly recommend Big Sky Anglers and Andy!

The crew at BRF are helpful, knowledgeable, & courteous. They know the local waters well, & make…read moreevery effort to make it a pleasant day when out on the water. The guides make every attempt to help you catch fish, Cam, the owner, born & raised in West Yellowstone...Is one of the best guides I have fished with over the many years I have been fly fishing, & you will not find a more patient & hard working individual in sport we all love!!

Very informative great knowledge of the rivers in the park. Fairly priced for a tourist town.read more

Took the family out for a day trip, caught fish, had a good lunch, amazing views. Good times had by…read moreall! Montana is amazing. CGA Outfitters rocks.

From the owner: CGA Outfitters offers fly fishing beautiful Montana for all species of fish that Western Montana…read morehas to offer on rivers, lake, and reservoirs in rafts, drift boats and motor boats.

Had a great tour with Cara as our guide. She was knowledgeable about the wildlife and seemed to be…read moreable to see bears with her naked eyes that we were barely able to see with her spotting scopes. The tour started with hot coffee and we got a mid-morning snack as well as lunch. We saw so many animals and birds. It was really one of the best trips we'd been on!!

Five of us spent 5 nights and 4 days with Cara McGary, the owner/guide of In-Our-Nature. She was…read moreknowledgeable, fun, adventurous, and made our trip an amazing memory. We saw wildlife, explored geothermal features, were overwhelmed with the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, and were so impressed with her passion for the park and its inhabitants. She tailored each day to our needs and desires. You must use a guide (preferably Cara) to experience all of Yellowstone.

BEST TOUR EVER!…read more First, we are not "tour" people. We like to travel on our own and rarely find a tour company that does what they say they will do. That said, we loved our tour with Teton Floats! We took the two day Yellowstone tour out of Jackson Wy. The company was fabulous to work with. Kilmeny Hall, one of the company owners and tour coordinator, handled everything from our reservations to lunch orders. She is a true professional gem and is so accommodating. She answered all of our questions, and made the whole booking process so easy. Our tour guide, John Putrino, was absolutely the best tour guide we have ever had anywhere! He is organized and efficient in everything we did for two days. He knows all there is to know about Yellowstone and surrounding areas. He has a great spotting scope which allowed us to see even those far away animals in the park. We were able to see many bison, bears, and even a wolf pack (eating a baby bison). We also saw elk, prong horns, and a moose! We were also able to see many birds, including Trumpeter Swans, Sandhill Cranes, various hawks, and ravens. John knows all the best places to look for and see animals, as well as terrific spots to have lunch. Lunch was provided both days and the sandwiches were delish (along with the chips, cookies and fruit). The tour includes waters, binoculars, and granola bars. The van is very comfortable and easy to get in and out of. We had bathroom breaks and rest stops whenever needed. The two day tour was amazing. Day one we saw all the geothermal features, including Old Faithful, and the Grand Prismatic Spring. John told us where to stand for the best views and led us around all the features with lots of interesting information. We spent the night in Pray Montana at the Chico Hot Springs Resort, which we would highly recommend. Great cabins and a nice restaurant with a more casual Saloon if you don't want a huge meal. Day two was focused on wildlife and waterfalls. We went to the Lamar Valley and other areas including Yellowstone Lake and the upper and lower Falls. We cannot say enough great things about Teton Floats two day Yellowstone Tour. John is the best and is so knowledgeable and thoughtful. A joy to spend two days with! We are definitely going to return and take this tour again! Don't miss it.

Great float down the Snake River with Zack. Very family…read morefriendly with a few faster areas with light splashing. Beautiful views of the mountains with plenty of wild life. Highly recommend

These men run a great business. The front office is honest. The men (Thomas was my contact) are…read moreintelligent with problem-solving and SKILLED. They are worthy of your business.

From the owner: Stephens Marine is a boat dealer, located in Bozeman, Montana. We serve customers throughout the…read moreregion with a full line of high quality aluminum fishing boats for lake or river. At Stephens Marine you will find a variety of power fishing and river boats. You will love our fair prices and excellent service. We have a small town atmosphere and there is no pressure in our sales approach. We offer Custom Weld & Wooldridge Boats. Ask about custom orders. Call or stop in today! How to find us: From I-90 take the Belgrade Exit (Jackrabbit Lane) south. We are located approximately 1.5 miles south of the Interstate on the southeast corner of Jackrabbit Lane & East Cameron Bridge Road.