What to do in Yellowstone with kids? Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park are in our top 10 favorite and most beautiful national parks in the USA. It is a paradise for wildlife and the geysers make this park really unique. Also the area around Yellowstone is great (like Cody)! Fun fact: Yellowstone was the very first national park in the USA. In this blog we will give you all the information you need for visiting Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park with kids.
Best travel time Yellowstone with kids
The best travel time to visit Yellowstone National Park with kids is from April to mid-June. This is when the bears reappear and also have hatchlings (cubs). All other animals also reappear more and have little ones around this time. If you would like to see wildlife, we recommend this time.
For Memorial day (late May), some roads are still closed. So the very best time is actually specifically the first week of June. July and August are the busiest months in these national parks due to summer break in America. After July and August, there are somewhat fewer bears to see, but you still have a very good chance of seeing wildlife.
Can’t make it between April and June? Then we recommend September as the best month. After that, there will be too much snow again and then this period is less suitable to see the parks well with kids.
Transportation in and to Yellowstone NP
Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park do not operate with a shuttle bus like many other major national parks have. The distances between the sights are quite long so you really do need a car as almost anywhere really in America. Almost all the stops are also easily accessible by RV.
Most families with kids who tour western America arrive at Los Angeles or San Francisco airports. You can rent a car in these two major cities at the airport through Sunny Cars. Sunny Cars has an all inclusive principle where most car insurance and often the deductible are included in the price. To rent a car in Los Angeles look here and to rent a car in San Francisco look here.
You can choose to pay for each national park in America separately, but often the national America the Beautiful Pass is cheaper if you are already going to visit a number of parks. This pass costs $80 and then you get to enter all the national parks in America “for free.
This pass is valid for one year for all persons in your car or RV. So you can easily get that out of it if you visit more than 2 national parks. For more information on this national pass, take a look here.
Please note that throughout Yellowstone NP, you will barely have phone and/or internet reception. So download in advance on Google Maps the map of Yellowstone so you can navigate your way around the park just fine.
How many days needed for Yellowstone NP and Grand Teton NP
We recommend at least 4 days for these two parks. If you have less time to spend, it is wise to plan your trip well, because driving from Grand Teton to the Old Faithfull, for example, (the most famous geyser in Yellowstone) also takes a lot of time and we think that 1 or 2 days is way too short to enjoy it. Besides, there is so much fun to choose from that you soon don’t know what to choose.
Route Yellowstone NP and Grand Teton NP
The route we ended up driving the RV is.
Day 1 visiting Grand Teton and staying overnight at Gros Ventre campground.
Day 2, visited the rest of the sights of Grand Teton National Park, Old faitfull, all the boardwalks on the way to Madison, drove back to West Thumb Geyser (this was not convenient and we recommend doing it between Grand Teton and Old Faithfull), drove to our campsite Bridge Bay and around 5pm drove a bit of Hayden Valley to see bears.
Day 3 hiking a little past Fisher Bridge, then Hayden Valley, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, road up to Tower Roosevelt, overnight at Mammoth campground.
Day 4, hike at Mammoth Hot springs, drive to Norris, Norris Geyser Basin, past Canyon Village towards Roosevelt and through the Lamar Valley towards Cody (over the Bear tooth highway).
This way you see almost everything of the 2 national parks. There are of course more ways, but for us this was a nice balance to get to the campsite on time each night and also give the kids room to play this way.
Children’s activities Yellowstone National Park
#1 Grand Teton National Park
Enjoy the viewpoints in Grand Teton National Park with kids and take the ferry at Jenny Lake in Grand Teton for the most stunning views. The ferry leaves from the pier near the visitor center. Prices are significantly higher in these two parks than in other national parks and you will notice this with this ferry crossing.
Prefer to travel more low-budget? You can also hike around Jenny Lake with kids. We didn’t find this entirely suitable with small kids so we didn’t do this. When we were there it was snowing (yes, really in early June!). So we viewed Grand Teton mostly driving. We saw our first black bears on the Teton Park Road there. And a little further on our first bison.
Even though Yellowstone is much better known, we really don’t recommend skipping Grand Teton on your way here or from here. Grand Teton is beautiful in its own way. Of course, our kids here again participated in the ranger program at the visitor center and got their badges.
So we visited the visitor centers of Grand Teton National Park extensively because of the cold weather. So prepare for snow in June as well. According to the park rangers, this was very normal weather at this time in the park. The following days we had sunshine and it was 18-19 degrees. So the weather can also change very quickly.
Colter Bay is the most fun visitor center for kids. Here there are also animal skins, horns and antlers that kids are allowed to touch extensively. In addition, Jenny Lake Visitors Center does not have a movie and extensive store unlike Colter Bay’s. Our kids also really always love to browse extensively in the store. Looking for a nice souvenir or card for friends.
Tip; give your kid some pocket money at the beginning of the trip and then with us the rule is run out is run out. They can then decide for themselves what they buy on the trip and you avoid the constant question of whether they can buy something. In addition, it is also a lot of fun to see how your kid handles this money. This works for kids as young as 4 years old. Also, like all other centers, you can get a booklet for the Junior Ranger Program at this visitors center.
#2 Yellowstone viewpoints and wildlife
You can see a huge number of viewpoints in Yellowstone NP with kids. Be sure to take 3 days to see Yellowstone that way with your kids!
Around Hayden Valley and the Lamar Valley is where most of the park’s wildlife is. When in Yellowstone, it’s best to get a map of Yellowstone from the visitor center first so you understand what points we mean here. We spent our first night in Yellowstone at the Bridge Bay campground.
We did not recommend this campground. The spots are super small, the fire pits dug in so they completely fill up when it rains or snows, and the check-in is clearly geared towards the hotel industry (check-in took 20 minutes, really not necessary at a campground!).
But… between this campground and Fishing Bridge we did see our first coyotes in this park. Nearby there is also a wonderful hiking trail where you can see various animals. See under heading 3 for this hike.
If you would like to see bears, drive a little further north past Mud Volcano. Grizzly bears hang out there regularly with their hatchlings (go in the morning or around 5 p.m. to have the best chance of seeing these bears), but even in the middle of the day you have a good chance of seeing them. We also spotted several bears in the middle of the day on this road.
Not successful in spotting bears? Then continue north past Tower Roosevelt and turn left into Lamar Valley. Note that from Mud Volcano to Lamar Valley is really more than an hour’s drive. So you may want to plan this for another day. Between these two points is the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
Definitely don’t forget to stop here. You have less chance of wildlife here, but you do have beautiful hikes that you can do and wonderful views! Under point 3, we share the most beautiful hikes here.
Driving into Yellowstone from Grand Teton National Park, you have to choose whether to head toward Bridge Bay or the Old Faithfull. Because it was still a bit cold the day we arrived, we decided to drive to the geysers and mud pots and the visitor center first. So that from there we had a good overview of what we could do on the other days with the family.
#3 The most beautiful hikes in Yellowstone NP
You can do some wonderful hikes in Yellowstone with kids. We list some of these wonderful hikes in Yellowstone National Park below.
West Thumb Geyser Basin: before the turnoff to Old Faithfull (at the junction between Old Faithfull and towards Bridge Bay, that is) you will pass West Thumb Geyser Basin. This is definitely a very cool stop to make. You can choose whether to do the big boardwalk or a smaller tour. Here in front of us was an Elk (wapiti in Dutch) lying nicely in the grass. With antlers! What a beautiful animal. Well, it’s still wild, so not guaranteed to be there when you get there. But keep your eyes open!
So the board walk is also fine to do with a stroller or baby carriage (this is with many walks in this park by the way). From this walk you have a beautiful view of the lake and between the board walk and the lake are several geysers and mud pools. It is a beautiful sight how the blue lake stretches out with the mountains in the background and you feel the steam and it is a wonderful picture with the deep blue of the geysers combined with various magical colors (orange, blue, brown).
Fishing Bridge: if you come from Fishing Bridge Visitors Center (where they have a fun exhibit on aquatic animals for kids) you can drive to “Storm Point. This one is not on the big map, but it is a great opportunity to see more wildlife on this hike. We saw the Bald Eagle here, yellow marmot, a snow rabbit and also the bison walked close by here and of course you have a chance to see bears.
We fortunately did not see these bears on this hike while hiking. Make enough noise and bring bear spray to avoid getting into trouble while hiking with kids. That won’t happen very soon because bears don’t seek out people.
However in this season they do have little ones so you better be careful. The hike goes along a beautiful stream and ends at a beautiful lake. In all, the hike is about 4 kilometers.
Hiking at Old Faithfull: at the visitor center (Old faithfull) you can see the predicted times for the spitting of the geysers in this area. That way you can better plan your hike. Don’t forget to walk around Old Faithfull to Morning Glory.
Tip; also get an explorer backpack at this visitors center. This is free and your kids can use it to do experiments such as measuring the heat of the geysers.
Midway & Biscuit: after Old faithfull, we drove up towards Norris first and took almost all the short boardwalks along this road. Each geyser is unique, but if your kids get tired of it quickly we recommend taking in at least Midway and Biscuit. These geysers are, in our opinion, some of the most beautiful geysers in the park. If you’re lucky they spout while you’re walking there, but for these geysers you can’t make predictions about when they’ll spout.
Hike canyon of the Yellowstone: take the South Rim Trail Road and park at the last parking lot and walk to Artist Point first. Here you have a great view of the Lower Falls. You can then walk the South Rim Trail (about 5 kilometers around) or you can drive to the other side and stop at “Brink of the Upper Falls.
Here there is a small boardwalk and you have great views of the other waterfall (the Upper Falls). If you drive further up, Red Rock Point is also a wonderful short hike. All the hikes mentioned are under 2 kilometers (unless otherwise stated) and therefore great to hike with kids.
Norris Geyser Basin: these geysers are less frequently visited. But here you can choose between long and short hikes. As far as we are concerned, this is really a no-go to skip. Beautiful geysers, mudpools and views! The nice thing with kids here is that you can make the hiking as long as you want. Do you opt for a quick overview from the top or do you do the entire circular hike on the various boardwalks?
Our next night we did stay at a very nice campground ‘ Mammoth campground’. Unlike Bridge Bay, we can really recommend this one! In Grand Teton we stayed at Gros Ventre, we can also recommend this campground. At Mammoth you cannot empty your toilet from the camper. At Gros Ventre you can. Both have water, no showers (but then you can shower in your RV).
#4 Organized tours Yellowstone
You can also book organized tours with kids at the visitors center which allows you to see the best highlights of the park in 1 day. This is a great option to do if you have very little time and still want to see a lot of the national park. This way you do not have to find out everything yourself and you are with a small group. The tour leader tells all kinds of interesting facts about each viewpoint you visit.
For more information on these types of organized tours, take a look here.
#5 Lamar Valley
If you’re heading toward Cody (where many people go because this is where the next closest amenities are), don’t take the east exit from Yellowstone, but the north-east exit from the park. You will then leave Yellowstone through the Lamar Valley. Here you are sure to see wildlife! Wolves, Coyotes, Pronghorn (gaffelbok in Dutch), lots and lots of Bisons (so many that it is no longer Bisonder) with their young, Elk, deer and bears can all be encountered on this road.
Besides, this road is really the most beautiful route in the park! You drive along the Bear Tooth Highway (note only open from Memorial Day = late May to early October) into the valley. It was really magical around sunset. The road to Cody is about 2.5 hours and in Cody you will find large supermarkets, fine campgrounds and other amenities.
In addition, in Cody you have the largest Wild West Museum in America. We have been here and you can easily take a whole day for this museum with kids. Actually it is 5 museums in 1, but 3 departments we found the most fun. The Natural History Museum, the Indian Museum and the bird shows.
At the latter, they show animals from the area that are taken care of here after being hit and tell all kinds of interesting facts about the birds. Outside is a chuck wagon and a reenactment of how they used to live at the time of the first settlers. Appetizers and drinks like the old days are served with them, dressed up people finish it off.
Inside there is plenty for kids to explore in the Natural History Museum and the Indian Museum. If your kids are fed up after a day(s), there is another playground outside. There is also a cafe/restaurant with plenty of food and drink options. We definitely recommend this museum if you want to learn more about the past and present of the Wild West!
In addition, Cody also hosts a rodeo every week (Wyoming is the largest rodeo state). Not our favorite so we didn’t go, but nice to know if you like to go here.
Family-friendly restaurant Yellowstone NP
At Yellowstone Lodges you can eat out well with kids. In addition, there are several other establishments around the other Lodges in the park. There is also plenty of opportunity in the park for lunch or ice cream. In Grand Teton, the options are more limited. Going to Cody and are you a meat lover? Then try Buffalo meat at one of the restaurants.
Family-friendly hotel Yellowstone NP
You can stay overnight around Yellowstone with kids just fine if you don’t want to camp. There are plenty of family-friendly accommodations you can book. We list below the top rated accommodations around Yellowstone NP in the different price ranges. Click on the blue link for more information.
Budget accommodation:Yellowstone Valley Inn
Mid-range accommodations: Big Bear Motel
Luxury Accommodation: The Cody
For the entire list of family-friendly accommodations in Yellowstone, take a look here.
About the author: this blog is written for Ilse Stelma on IG to follow under traveling_stelmafamily. Ilse has been to 34 countries and she loves to travel with her family. In addition, they love nature, (wild) camping, occasional luxury and places not yet frequented by many tourists.
