Going to explore Wyoming and you want to go through Grand Teton National Park before reaching Yellowstone? Come on to see my tips in order to focus on the essentials.
Grand Teton National Park is kind of the southern entrance to Yellowstone National Park. So if you’re planning on visiting Yellowstone, I highly recommend making a stop at Grand Teton first. Grand Teton is mainly mountain landscapes and wildlife viewing.
The best way to reach the park is by landing at Jackson Hole Regional Airport which is located inside the park. The airport being regional, you must necessarily make a stopover in a city located in the U.S. in order to be able to reach it. So you won’t find direct flights from your country. That said, plane tickets are not necessarily more expensive whether you’re only going to Salt Lake City or directly to Jackson Hole via Salt Lake City. Moreover you can easily rent a car from the airport in order to visit the park.
Tip: as the airport is located right inside Grand Teton National Park, taking a flight that arrives directly at Jackson Hole will save you a lot of time, especially since a 5-hour drive separates Salt Lake City from Grand Teton.
With that being said, let’s go to see the details of the schedule:
Entrance fee to the park is $35 per vehicle (valid for 7 days) but it’s free with the « America the Beautiful » pass.
The Teton Park Road runs through the park and leads to Yellowstone south entrance. It also provides access to various points of interest. Another road runs along the park but from the outside, it’s the US 89 / US 191.
Tip: the « America the Beautiful » pass gives access to all national parks in the United States for 1 year (for 1 car or 4 people where per-person fees are charged). It costs $80 but you can put 2 names on it, so if you know someone who is also planning a trip among America’s national parks, you can share the fee.
The pass can be issued at the entrance to almost any national park in the U.S.
To know: the pass is a good option only if you’re visiting at least three national parks in the same year.
Day 1: arriving to Wyoming
Tip: you can also click on the link down below from your smartphone, to open the itinerary to follow on google maps: « US 89 / US 191 » tour
If like me, you arrive at Jackson Hole regional airport in the afternoon, I recommend starting by driving the US 89 / US 191 road that runs along Grand Teton National Park but on the outside, in order to stop at some viewpoints.
The first stop will be Moulton Barn which is an old barn located at the bottom of the Teton Range. Since it’s the most photographed spot in the park, while there feel free to take your own shots!
And the two next stops will successively be, Schwabacher Landing and Snake River Overlook.
After these few stops, it’ll be time to go to the city of Jackson to spend the night. The next day will be dedicated to explore Grand Teton National Park.
Tip: in Jackson, I recommend going grocery shopping in order to make sandwiches for the lunch of the next day bacause it’s what’s most convenient.
Day 2: Grand Teton National Park
Tip: you can also click on the link down below from your smartphone, to open the itinerary to follow on google maps: « Teton Park Road » tour
This second day will be dedicated to explore the park.
To begin, make a stop at the Visitor Center. Then, in front of it you could have a look at the Chapel of the Transfiguration. It’s nothing too special, just a little chapel in the middle of the mountains.
From there, drive Teton Park Road in order to reach the trail that leads to Taggart Lake. The hike isn’t that hard, but because the path isn’t flat the entire way, it’s pretty exhausting. The trail is basically walking along a mountainous landscape with a lake at the end.
When back from the hike, keep driving Teton Park Road and stop at Jenny Lake. Again it’ll be a hiking trail but this time you’ll walk by the lake. On the way, you can even access the hidden falls, it’s a kind of little waterfall. Back then, I didn’t complete the entire trail as it was quite long and the same thing all along the way. The trail just goes around the lake.
And to finish with this area, a bit further on Teton Park Road, make a left turn in order to take Jenny Lake Road. It’s a one-way road and almost at the end of it, you can stop at Jenny Lake Overlook.
Then it’ll be lunch time. If you’ve prepared some sandwiches, you can either stop at a picnic area (there’s one on Jenny Lake Road, just a bit before getting to the overlook) or eat in your car. But if not, you’ll have to go to one of the park restaurants.
Afterwards, you could go climbing Signal Mountain via Summit Road. Up there, you’ll have a panoramic view over the park.
Coming down from Signal Mountain, keep driving Teton Park Road, and on the left, you could stop at the Chapel of the Sacred Heart. The chapel itself is nothing special, but on the side of it, you’ll spot a small path that leads to the edge of Jackson Lake.
Then keep driving Teton Park Road and you’ll come across Jackson Lake Dam.
Finally, at the end of Teton Park Road, you’ll come across a crossroads. From there, you’ll be able to reach back the US 89 / US 191 route you took the day before. Taking a right turn onto the road will allow you to stop at Oxbow Bend.
This stop will be the last one into the park. From there, it’ll be time to drive towards Yellowstone National Park.
For the night, you’ll have 2 options, or you find a hotel in the Jackson Lake area, or like me, you drive until arriving in the small town of West Yellowstone. This second option allows you to stay in a city rather than a national park. So you’ll be able to go grocery shopping.
Tips
Beware
Bears
Whether in Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Park, be bear aware at all times. Bears are madly attracted to human food and can even tear off car doors in order to reach some food. So you have to be very careful. However, they can also attack hikers, so carrying a bear bomb is highly recommended. On my trip, I bought one and luckily I didn’t have to use it. So I don’t really know if it’s really necessary or not.
Money
American dollars
To get American dollars, there are to me, 2 excellent ways:
- Global Alliance: if your bank is a member of this alliance, then you can withdraw cash at any of the cash withdrawal machines of the Bank of America or Bank of the West with your credit card. They don’t take commission and have one of the best rates. But note that close to Grand Teton National Park, there’s only one Bank of the West cash withdrawal machine that is located in the city of Jackson.
Tip: for example, the Global Alliance members are:
- Scotiabank in Canada
- Barclays in the UK
- Westpac in Australia and New Zealand
- BNP Paribas or Hello Bank in France
- Currency exchange offices: if you choose this method, I recommend changing money in your country before going, because it won’t be that easy to find a currency exchange office over there.
Taxes
Purchases
In the U.S., all stores display prices without tax. The tax is approximately 5% in Wyoming. So you just need to know that prices will be higher at checkout. However there is an exception on all unprocessed food because the tax doesn’t apply.
Restaurants
If you are planning on going to the restaurant, be aware that the bill can quickly become very expensive because on top of the price of the meal is added the 5% tax and you also have to add 15% tip.
Hotels
To spend your first night in Wyoming, you can either choose a hotel located inside Grand Teton National Park or in the neighborhood town of Jackson. Hotels located inside Grand Teton are pretty expensive whereas in Jackson there’re pretty affordable. Moreover, Jackson is located quite close to the park, at only a 15-minute drive from the entrance. Hotels are also cheaper there and you’ll even find some grocery stores in order to buy some food for dinner and to prepare sandwiches for the next day. And try to book a hotel that offers free breakfast, that way you’ll be able to start the day full of energy and will be ready to go exploring the park.
Tip: be aware that hotels in Wyoming and especially those located in the area of Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks are all pretty expensive.
During my trip, I stayed at Super 8 by Wyndham Jackson Hole. It’s pretty comfortable and considering the price and location, it’s good value for money.
Description: comfortable and decent sized rooms. The bathroom is provided with a bathtub. Breakfast is included into the price of the room. It’s a kind of buffet with corn flakes, oatmeal, toast, cakes, yogurt, milk, coffee, juices, a pancake maker, fruit … In addition, during the day, instead of breakfast, there are cookies and popcorn that you can take. The popcorn machine is pretty nice!
Price: about €110 per night for 2 people, in October. But the price is the same whether you are 2 or 4 people.
Location: the hotel is pretty well located, at a 25-minute drive from the entrance to Grand Teton National Park.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| comfortable and decent sized rooms | - |
| good value for money | - |
| breakfast included | - |
| convenient location | - |
For the night before the visit to Yellowstone National Park, back then I chose not to sleep in Grand Teton National Park, but to drive until reaching the city of West Yellowstone. It’s a pretty long drive but it’s worth it, because being in a city rather than in a park offers a lot more possibilities, especially when it comes to grocery stores. And hotels are also cheaper.
For this second night in Wyoming, I stayed at Gray Wolf Inn & Suites.
Description: comfortable and decent sized rooms. The bathroom is provided with a bathtub. Breakfast is included into the price of the room. Again, it’s a kind of buffet with corn flakes, oatmeal, toast, milk, coffee, juices, fruit … In addition, you can get some chocolate, banana or cinnamon flavored oatmeal bars at the reception!
Price: about €160 per night for 2 people, in October.
Location: the hotel is very well located, at a 5-minute drive from the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| comfortable and decent sized rooms | - |
| good value for money | - |
| breakfast included | - |
| convenient location | - |
Transportation
Car
Renting a car to visit the United States is kind of mandatory, and especially when it comes to visiting national parks! Moreover, you won’t need an international drivers licence for a trip up to 3 months. Just remember to take out CDW (included into Gold Mastercards and Visa Premier cards) and LIS insurance when renting a car.
GPS
To be able to find your way when driving the car, there are several options available:
- Google MAPS: it works even without any connection, it’s just that there won’t be traffic information. All you have to do is to save the maps before going or even once there, as long as you have an internet connection. To do so, on your smartphone, in the application, click on your profile picture at the top right of the screen, then click on « offline maps ». And then click on « select your own map » and zoom out the map until you see the area you want to save. You have to repeat the operation several times if the area to be saved is too large.
- GPS rental from the rental car company: you can rent an optional GPS from the rental car company, but it’s pretty expensive and you won’t have traffic information either. In my opinion, this is not an option to consider. However, if you are renting a high-end car, there is frequently a GPS already available in the car, so without extra charge. But you won’t know it until you get on board, because no one will tell you, either at booking or when getting the keys.
Thanks for reading :)
