Influencer's Guide to Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is probably the most popular national park to visit in the United States. It was actually the world’s first national park which we think is so cool! Yellowstone is so big that it spans 3 U.S. states which means there is a lot to do and see inside the park. As travel bloggers and influencers, we tend to not only want to see as much as we possibly can, but we also scope out locations where we can take great photos. We spent a few days in Yellowstone and compiled a list of the places you need to see, and also the places you could probably skip inside the park.
Where to Stay to Visit Yellowstone
Since Yellowstone spans 3 U.S. states, you can either enter from Wyoming, Montana, or Idaho. We thought staying in Jackson Hole, Wyoming would be the best because the town looked cute and it had pretty easy access to both Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks. To read more about our stay in Jackson Hole make sure you read our Jackson Hole blog post.
How Much Does it Cost to Enter?
I believe the one day fee is around $30, but you plan on seeing any other National Parks within the year you are better off getting the Interagency Annual Pass for $80. It allows you into hundreds of National Parks across the Unites States for one year. We got that since we were also planning on visiting Badlands and Grand Teton on this trip. You can purchase this pass at the gate of any park or go online and get it mailed to you before you leave on your trip. Trust us, the Interagency Pass is 100% worth it.
What to See in Yellowstone National Park
West Thumb Geyser Basin
Midway Geyser Basin
West Thumb Geyser Basin - This was probably our favorite area of the park. The West Thumb Geyser Basin is filled with, — you guessed it — geysers, but it also has an amazing view of Yellowstone Lake and gorgeous, colorful pools. This area was a lot less crowded than some other areas of the park that we visited, and also had some great photo opportunities.
Grand Prismatic Spring Overlook - We preferred the overlook to the actual Grand Prismatic Spring. The spring itself was extremely crowded and it was hard to see all the wonderful colors up close. At the overlook you can see the entire spring, all the colors, and it’s even a better photo opportunity if there’s not a ton of people up there. To get to the overlook you’re going to want to hike the Fairy Falls Trail for about 30 minutes and you will see a sign leading up to the Grand Prismatic Spring Overlook. The hike itself is pretty flat until the end, almost anyone can do it!
Midway Geyser Basin - The Midway Geyser Basin is actually where the Grand Prismatic Spring is, but there are a lot of other geysers and beautiful sights in the area. We loved the Excelsior Geyser, and there is a great photo opportunity across the Firehole River. There are also a few pools in the area as well. Our tip: Take a quick look at the Grand Prismatic Spring up close and spend more time at the surrounding pools & geysers.
Upper Geyser Basin & Old Faithful - This is probably the most popular area in the park because of Old Faithful. If you don’t want crowds, we suggest getting there as early as you can. Honestly, we didn’t think Old Faithful was worth all the hype, but we still think it’s important for you to see and judge for yourself.
Lewis Lake & Lewis Falls - Lewis Falls was not the most impressive waterfall we’ve ever seen, but it’s still worth the stop. If you want to take a photo here, make sure you bring a zoom lens at the waterfall is far from the entrance area and we couldn’t find a way to hike closer to it!
Since Yellowstone is so massive, we didn’t get the chance to explore the Montana and Idaho areas of the park, but gotta save something for next time, right? If you want to see more of what we did in Yellowstone, make sure you watch our Wyoming vlogs where we show you everywhere we visited in the park!
Yellowstone National Park: Part 1
Yellowstone National Park: Part 2
