4 Days in Yellowstone National Park (WY)

We had a blast experiencing America’s first National Park’s diversity in late June/early July of 2024. Before really researching Yellowstone, we had no idea it’s geographic climate consisted of more than just geysers and hot pools. We were pleased to find an abundance of waterfalls and lakes as well. This was one of those parks you’ll definitely want to spend a few days exploring, so we’re glad we allocated two weekends here during our short time in eastern Idaho.

This was an extremely family friendly park, which was great for us. There were plenty of sights we could explore using our baby stroller and tons of amenities (gift shops, convenience stores, gas stations, lodges, and dining options). The park can be crowded at times, but we didn’t find it too difficult to navigate as long as we got to the most popular attractions early.

CAMPING

Note - among many great campgrounds, there are also plenty of other lodging options in and around the park such as cabins, lodges, and hotels.

⛺︎ Grant Village Campground - located along the West Thumb of Yellowstone Lake, this was the perfect centrally located spot. The campground was huge and accommodates both RVs and tents (no hookups), and had several services nearby (convenience store, gas, and a visitor center). Reservations are booked through a third party instead of Recreation.gov, and ran about $40/night for a tent site. Restrooms were available, and showers were included in nightly rate.

We spent one night here, and we had quite the surprise while sitting around our campfire before dark. Lone behold, two bison came running straight through the campground! Luckily, no people or property were affected, but it was definitely a crazy sight. Now we know why there are signs everywhere cautioning about wildlife.

The West Thumb Geyser Basin boardwalk and hike to Duck Lake were super accessible from the campground. Since we came in through the West Yellowstone entrance, we were also able to tackle Gibbon Falls, Grand Prismatic Overlook, Mystic Falls, Upper Geyser Basin, and Kepler Cascades on the way down to our site (check out the Wanderlog link below for a map of our itinerary).

⛺︎ Bridge Bay Marina Campground - On the heart of Yellowstone Lake, this is an ideal campground if you plan to utilize the marina or take a guided boat tour. We spent one night here the night before we did a boat cruise (more details below). This campground is also operated by a third party, and accommodates RV & tent, although there are no hookups. There were restrooms, but no showers. Paid showers are located at another campground (Fishing Bridge) about a 10 minute drive away.

Hikes & sights you can see on the way to this campsite are Point Sublime, Artist Point, Brink of the Lower Falls, Hayden Valley, and Mud Volcano.

⛺︎ Dispersed camping (west side)- we spent two Friday nights here so we could save some money and be on our way to the park early on Saturday morning. This dispersed spot is located in Island Park, ID and was only about 20 minutes outside of the West Yellowstone entrance station. This ended up being one of our favorite free campsite finds to date. We were tucked into the forest, but didn't have to go far down the road (maybe only 5-10 minutes). It was easy to navigate in our minivan and we had plenty of space for the night.

(I tried to snap a video of the bison, but it's hard to see. Look by the white tent).

HIKES

↟ Duck Lake (0.9 miles) - lake hikes are always my favorite; when I found out Yellowstone had one, I absolutely wanted to go. The forest trail was a short distance with low elevation gain. After about a half mile, the clearing lead to a small, sandy lake surrounded by beautiful trees.

↟ Grand Prismatic Spring Overlook (1.5 miles) - seeing one of the icons of the park was truly mesmerizing. The colors were just as vivid as any photo we'd ever seen. As opposed to the boardwalk, we thought the overlook trail gave a much better view of this hot spring. Getting a near bird's eye view allowed you to take in this beauty in its entirety. The boardwalk was crowded, windy, and also hot of course! We highly recommend taking this moderate path.

↟ Brink of the Lower Falls & Upper Falls - this steep trail lead to a rewarding views of the Yellowstone River falls. Seeing the water crash from the top was truly powerful. I don't think we followed an exact AllTrails route for this, so we can't remember how long the trail was; we just parked in the Brink of the Lower Falls parking lot and followed the trail sign to Upper Falls.

↟ Mystic Falls (2.4 miles) - located off the Biscuit Basin trailhead, we enjoyed an easy, quiet hike with limited crowds early in the morning. The trail follows a creek through the serene forest, and winds up at a view point a little over a mile in. We didn't get close to the falls, but we were totally fine with observing the 70-foot waterfall from a distance.

↟ Point Sublime (2.9 miles) - Via the Artist Point trailhead, you'll journey through the forest along the canyon edge. The elevated path allows you to see deep into the vibrant canyon and provides sweeping vies of the Yellowstone River. While we'll say the actual end point was underwhelming, the views along the way were beautiful. The trail was not crowded at all, but the parking lot fills up quickly due to Artist Point.

EASY WALKS (Paved or Boardwalk)

Yellowstone is one of the most accessible parks we have been to. We loved how baby friendly this was! Taking a break from the front carrier to use our stroller was nice.

↟ Old Faithful / Loop Trail (0.7 miles) - known as the tallest, most reliable geyser (but neither the tallest OR most reliable...just the biggest predictable one), Old Faithful is the pinnacle of Yellowstone National Park. Timing predictions are posted outside of the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center, and there are benches lined up for front-row seats to the action. This is one of the most populated attractions in the park, but we didn't have an issue snagging a spot. We walked around the paved/boardwalk loop after watching the eruption. The average time between eruptions is an hour and a half, and lasts for just a few minutes.

↟ Upper Geyser Basin (3.5 miles) - we didn’t do the full thing, but this area surrounds Old Faithful

↟ Artist Point (0.2 miles) - a paved & wheelchair accessible trail that leads you to the view point of an incredible waterfall. The best part is the walk only takes a few minutes. There is a parking lot nearby, but note that this area gets very crowded.

↟ Mud Volcano (0.8 miles) - a bubbling hydrothermal area

↟ West Thumb Geyser Basin (1 mile) - definitely our favorite hydrothermal area in Yellowstone. The pools were so big & vibrant

VIEW POINTS

↟ Kepler Cascades - down the road past Old Faithful, Kepler Cascades is a 150-foot waterfall that cascades over the Firehole River. No hiking is required.

↟ Gibbon Falls - Only requires about 400 feet of walking along a paved path to see a very pretty 84-foot waterfall

↟ Hayden Valley & Lamar Valley - both known for wildlife viewing. Other than bison, we didn't see much. We thought we maybe saw a glimpse of a bear, but it was hard to tell. While they both made for scenic drives, we would recommend going to Hayden Valley. Lamar is in the north eastern corner of the park, and far away from the popular trails and viewpoints.

↟ Yellowstone Lake (via boat tour) - The Yellowstone Scenicruise provided an inexpenisve, one hour tour on Yellowstone Lake. The lake is expansive, so this was the best way to take in all its glory and also get fun facts about America's first National Park along the way. We loved that the boat was enclosed so we wouldn't be affected by weather.

OVERALL THOUGHTS

Understandably, Yellowstone ranks pretty high on our list. The sights were amazing; an abundance of wildlife, geological wonders, and diverse ecosystems made for awe-inspiring views at every turn. But best of all, the accessibility & accommodations makes this an enjoyable trip for anyone. This truly was the most family-friendly park we've been to yet. The park really had everything you would need for a convenient and comfortable adventure.

Wanderlog Itinerary

AllTrails List

Highlight Reel