After three days in Yellowstone, its time to head back from Yellowstone National Park to Salt Lake City. Comfort Inn & Suites Salt Lake City Airport, Hampton Inn & Suites Salt Lake City Airport, 8 Best Airports and Flights to Yellowstone, Why Salt Lake City is the best place to start a Yellowstone road trip, Tips on where to stay, what to pack, and the best time to visit, The best route and recommended road trip itinerary. Notable stops are Salt Lake City, Jackson, Moab, Idaho Falls, Dixie National Forest, Zion National Park, Geyser Park as well as Canyonlands Arches National Parks. Was This Guide Helpful? Hi! Follow Your Trail in Park City Nestled among majestic mountain peaks, and surrounded by natural scenic wonders, the town is rich in history and activities. Basecamp in Idaho Falls, two hours from Yellowstone and Grand Teton, with direct flights from across the country. The drive from Salt Lake City to Jackson Hole is beautiful. What is the closest entrance to Yellowstone from Salt Lake City? Heres how we might plan an 8 day itinerary: Day 1 Spend the day in Salt Lake City. After you are done at Bear Lake, take Merkley Lake road to US-30 W and get back on US-89 N. Follow US-89 as far as Afton, which is the largest town in Star Valley. There are no rail routes or train services to Yellowstone National Park and the closest Amtrak station is in Salt Lake City. would love to hear feedback. Instead, Id recommend flying into West Yellowstone or Jackson Hole Airport. Then have a full day to explore SLC before moving on again towards Bryce Canyon. The Teton Range is distinct and recognizable with its sharp, arrowhead-like peaks. Dont Forget to Save This Post on Pinterest, 7 Day Grand Teton and Yellowstone Itinerary, Yellowstone Itinerary: How to Spend 1 to 5 Days, When is the Best Time to Visit Yellowstone. Floating the Portneuf River through the city of Lava Hot Springs. Want to know more about Yellowstone? If you cant get a room in Old Faithful or they are too expensive, book a night at a hotel in West Yellowstone such as Kelly Inn or Explorer Cabins. At its most direct to Yellowstone it will take you 332 miles and over 6 hours. In this national parks road trip itinerary we'll take you from Salt Lake City up to a few of the most iconic national parks, but not without passing through a myriad of smaller, more quaint, less-traveled towns that Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho have to offer. Places to see between Salt Lake City and Yellowstone Mesa Falls Scenic Byway The route from Salt Lake City to West Yellowstone traverses northern Utah and eastern Idaho, only to eventually enter Montana, the state where our destination town is located. Scroll around, zoom in and out, look for clustering of colored icons representing each day on the road trip and see the corresponding day in the left column. Grand Teton National Park is a nature and landscape photographers ideal arena and it one of our personal favorite places to visit in the US. The third day is when your Salt Lake City to Yellowstone road trip bursts into life. The scenic drive cuts through jagged limestone rock formations along the Logan River as you pass through the Wasatch-Cache National Forest. Hi Matt, thanks for getting in touch and we're happy to hear you are following our itinerary. If you stayed near Moran, you might want to drive up Signal Mountain for sunrise or simply having a slower start at your rural lodging. If you cant find availability or prices are too high at cabins and lodges inside the park, you should consider staying at a hotel in either Gardiner or West Yellowstone. In April, May, September and October the mornings and evenings will be cold so you need heavy layers, gloves, wooly hats and a winter coat in addition to your basic hiking or exploring gear. This particular Salt Lake City to Yellowstone road trip is such a great loop to do if you're looking for an epic USA road trip that features a LOT of variety: think epic landscapes through plenty of National Parks, paired with city adventures and off-the-beaten path spots as well. The closest Yellowstone entrance to Salt Lake City is the West Entrance, located in West Yellowstone, Montana. Drive back to Jackson. Making this a great destination to stop on your road trip to Yellowstone. Cover Photo:12019 on pixabay.com . There are a couple of options for starting your Yellowstone road trip, depending on where you are coming from. Take the ferry across Jenny Lake to cut out a long walk around the lake to Cascade Canyon trailhead. Hi Ashley, yep you'll definitely be too late for Yellowstone and Grand Teton end of November, we would recommend heading south from Salt Lake City instead. Jackson is Wyomings incredibly popular and wealthy ski resort town located just 12 miles from Grand Teton National Park loop road. What is the most scenic route from Salt Lake City to Jackson Hole? If you're planning a road trip to Salt Lake City, you can research locations to stop along the way. This is the perfect spot for extraordinary views of Lower Falls. Next, drive north and park at Fairy Falls Trail lot to hike 0.8 miles so you can enjoy Grand Prismatic Spring Overlook. June, July and August are warm enough for light layers but you will need sunscreen, sunglasses and sun hats. Its great for national park trips because it works on GPS, not cell phone signals. This entrance is located 320 miles and 5 hours from Salt Lake City, Utah. Pull over at the scenic route overlooks to admire the valley views. The route to here from Bear Lake weaves along the Idaho/Wyoming border through Jackson, Wyoming, and passes west of another popular local destination, Grand Teton National Park, before ending in West Yellowstone, Montana. Some may want to enjoy more of the Tetons but others will want to get right into Yellowstone. This map is a great way to see the itinerary in action! Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center is a popular attraction and the area's natural beauty can be seen at Yellowstone Park West Entrance and Gallatin National Forest. Its the reason for your entire trip! Highway 89/191 winds through northern Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming. But Yellowstone has so much more to offer! This is where your accommodation challenges begin and why it really pays to be organized before you visit Yellowstone. Its almost like you planned it! The good news is it has a wide range of places to grab dinner. Distance From Salt Lake City to Yellowstone: approximately 320 miles. From Idaho Falls, you finally get to experience a scenic route as you turn slightly . Action packed day, sleep in Canyon Village. Then, book a flight out for the following day. If not, you will have to drive another 31 miles back to your West Yellowstone hotel. Add them to walking, waterfalls and wildlife in Yellowstone and you have the perfect focal point on your Salt Lake City to Wyoming road trip. For all accommodation outside of the parks, we recommend using Booking.com and then comparing against Hotels.com to find the best deals available. Overcast Clouds. Travel Tip: If you have flexibility over your travel dates, we recommend planning your Salt Lake City to Yellowstone road trip itinerary around booking night 5 in a Canyon Village hotel or lodge. Stay in a cabin, hotel room or your RV on the shores of sparkling Bear Lake with Sun Outdoors Garden City. Or you can fly into the much more expensive, yet scenic Jackson Hole airport. Outside the park, look for hotels in West Yellowstone, Montana. We have visited Yellowstone on separate occasions and we have helped thousands of first time visitors plan trips to this region through our various Wyoming travel guides. Check into a hotel and then spend the afternoon exploring Grand Teton. Soak in hot springs and float down a river in this charming town in Idaho. Bison on Antelope Island in Great Salt Lake. Dont forget deicer and a scraper for your windshield if you do plan your trip for when snow and ice is possible. You could head back to Jackson, stay in the same hotel as the night before so its one less check out and check in process, grab a nice dinner and spend another sunrise in southern Grand Teton the next morning before driving to Yellowstone later in the day. These two places have the better locations for accessing other parts of the park, and they have plenty of places to eat. But if you are in a hurry and dont have time for the scenic route, you can take I-15 and US-20 to the resort village of West Yellowstone, which also serves as the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Consider driving from Salt Lake City to Jackson, Wyoming via Highway 89 instead for a more scenic route. Enter the chapel to take the iconic mountains through the church window photograph. Right out of Firehole drive park up at Fountain Paint Pot Trail, this is Lower Geyser Basin. Input Salt Lake City and your travel dates to see your options. However, we will also explain how to drive this road trip route in less and more time later in the guide. Jackson, Wyo.s best-kept secret offers a ton of activities for all ages, plus bike and SUP rentals. Its truly a sight to see! Drive further south into Hayden Valley for the first of your major Yellowstone wildlife spotting experiences. Drive the winding road to Signal Mountain summit for amazing views, descend and continue until you reach Jenny Lake road. This is one of our favorite hidden gem areas of Yellowstone. This 28-page ebook includes the best things to do in all 63 national parks, plus exclusive trip planning tips. Elk Country Inn Read more in our disclosure policy.*. Day 7 Explore Mammoth Hot Springs. Day 4 Spend another full day enjoying the tranquility in Grand Teton. Want more Wyoming content? rodeo in cody. Craters of the Moon National Monument Look no further than Yellowstone and Grand Teton! At the end of the 7 days, we will assume you have a late flight booked on the 7th day or an early flight on the 8th day. This route is filled with beautiful gold, red, and yellow foliage in the fall. Then you have to drive all the way thru Grand Teton NP and Yellowstone which can take at least another 3 hours IF you make no stops whatsoever and don't get caught up in an animal jam. With mountain biking, hiking, climbing, OHV opportunities, climbing, and rafting, there's no shortage of things to do. Salt Lake City To Yellowstone Road Trip Planning Resources. Plan to drive this in one day. If theres a Utah Jazz basketball game on. This post may contain affiliate links, where I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. I agree with Pam. Walk around Lower Geyser Basin and then drive to a hotel in West Yellowstone. Crystal Inn Hotel & Suites Salt Lake City, Hilton Garden Inn Salt Lake City Downtown, Headwaters Lodge and Cabins at Flagg Ranch, 18 Best Hikes in Grand Teton National Park, short hike to the Grand Prismatic Overlook, 15 Best Hikes in Yellowstone National Park. Salt Lake City is less than 5 hours drive from Grand Teton National Park, 3. If so, you might benefit greatly from taking a look at this interactive Google Map we created to show show the potential stops you can make each day for 7 days on our Salt Lake City to Yellowstone example itinerary, which is featured right after the map. Then, dive into communities like Idaho Falls, St. Anthony and Ririe where youll discover that this state is so much more than just fields of spuds. The closest airport is in West Yellowstone (WYS), serviced by both United and Delta Airlines. Maybe you would prefer to drive straight to the northern areas of Yellowstone and work down through the park, before exploring Grand Teton on the way back to SLC? This is one of the most famous elevated views in the entire park and shouldnt be missed. What do you need to know about the drive from Salt Lake City to Yellowstone? Check for availability at a hotel such as Yellowstone Gateway Inn or Yellowstone Riverside Cottages if you want to stay in Gardiner. Youll arrive in Yellowstone National Park via the South Entrance along John D. Rockefeller Jr Memorial Parkway. On the way back, stop at Upper Falls View and Uncle Toms Trail if it is open. Barker Ewing rafting on the Snake River in Jackson Hole. The mountain drive to Bear Lake and the Snake River scenic views are worth it! Other than Mesa Falls, there isn't much of note between SLC and West Yellowstone. Mormon Row is incredibly beautiful at sunrise. Four days is the perfect amount of time to see the highlights in Yellowstone National Park at a relaxed but efficient pace. Surrounded by the Wasatch Mountains at over 4,000 ft high with incredible skiing opportunities and an array of national parks within a stones throw, Salt Lake City is an outdoor enthusiasts dream come true. both provide incredible commentary and detail about the history and geology of Yellowstone. Day 1 11:00 am start in Salt Lake City drive for about 37 minutes 11:37 am Ogden stay for about 1 hour and leave at 12:37 pm drive for about 1 hour 1:45 pm Malad City stay for about 1 hour and leave at 2:45 pm drive for about 54 minutes 3:39 pm Pocatello stay overnight and leave the next day around 11:00 am day 1 driving 2.5 hours find more stops