Fly to Salt Lake City or Spokane in late July to see nature and chill?

[AbbA]

Hi,

We like spending time in nature though I wouldn't claim being extremely avid hikers as in the past after kiddos turned to teens but it's still wonderful to get out of the city noise.
We have BA Avios to burn so l looked for direct flights for our summer vacation.

We've finally settled that we'll fly to Maine and visit Acadia NP in June. We hope to eat a few lobster sandwiches while there and perhaps visit a few quaint towns and taste local cuisine. We'll fly to Portland, ME and then fly home from Boston. So, in case you have any suggestions about parks or towns to visit in ME, VT or NH, I would welcome them because I've just started formulating our plans.

But my bigger question is about WY and MT. We visited Glacier NP, Yellowstone NP, and other parks 20+ years ago and we would like to show them to our teens finally. However, I'm also apprehensive that NP's might be too crowded these days and distances we will need to drive each day.

So one option is to fly to Spokane and another is to fly to SLC. Both are for 10 days. I checked flying to Spokane and then flying out of SLC, but then rental car costs more than double vs. returning it to the same airport.

I like the idea of flying to Spokane because it's a smaller city and it will not be hot there like in SLC and will not need to drive very long distances, but then we would need to skip Yellowstone NP (it's so out of the way). OTOH, I'm not sure my family would be thrilled to spend a week in Glacier NP only. Temperature wise late July and beginning of August would be awesome (70's).

If we fly to SLC, we could visit Yellowstone NP on the way to Glacier NP, but it takes 6 hrs to drive to Yellowstone and then another ~8hrs to Glacier NP. Thinking of driving 14 hrs back to SLC airport doesn't thrill me. I would like to chill too . Google says that SLC can be in the 90's in July/Aug but since we wouldn't staying in it, it's not a big problem.

I haven't priced out accommodations yet, but money isn't the deciding factor for choosing between these two cities/states if we stay within our budget.

We haven't searched for cute little towns/villages yet, so in case you have suggestions please share.
So, if you have any thoughts that would help me decide, I would appreciate it.

Also, what's the best way to check current fire conditions over there? Since we're coming from the East Coast, we are not well versed in such preparations, but it's always scary to hear news about fires.

Thanks

 

[MTB4me]

Late July will put you in the heart of fire season here in the inland northwest. Some years it’s particularly bad, with air that is unhealthy to be outside in. And over very large swaths of the area. This can last for a day or two or multiple weeks. Last year I drove from Spokane to Eugene in late summer and never left the smoke. You may want to have alternate plans or ensure that any reservations are refundable.

On the plus side, Spokane is just 4 1/2 hours to Glacier or 7 1/2 hrs to Yellowstone. I’ve not driven to Yellowstone from here in Spokane, but the drive to Glacier is nice. We do hear a lot of stories about how busy both parks are now, with long lines or lottery systems to get in during peak tourist season.

Some other ideas out this way:

• Crater Lake. It’s simply stunning.
• The Oregon coast, from Astoria on down.
• The Olympic Peninsula
• The San Juan islands

Best of luck with your trip planning.

 

[audreyh1]

I looked at flying to Glacier and Yellowstone and concluded that using 2 different Montana airports for arrival/departure made the most sense otherwise it’s a long drive back to return the car.

I don’t remember which airport for Glacier - I might have been looking at Missoula but for Yellowstone the Bozeman-Yellowstone airport seemed to make sense. There is also a Glacier International airport.

Regardless for accommodations you need to plan way in advance especially for accommodations inside the park. For our September return to Grand Teton NP I booked lodging in February and it was already very tight.

From Spokane there are lots of terrific things to see. I have yet to see the Grand Coulee/Dry Falls from the great ice age floods even though we’ve visited WA many times. A lot of Eastern WA is pretty darn hot in the summer. You do generally want to be West of the Cascades or higher altitude to cool off.

 

[ivinsfan]

I agree with Audrey for a trip like this you need to start planning 6 to 12 months in advance. Too many people and too many variables. There are lots of things to see but too many people trying to see them.

 

[mh]

I flew into jackson hole for my grand teton/ yellowstone trip. I flew there from burbank CA on delta i think with a stop in SLC. it was pretty painless. going in the early fall is better if you can do that. jackson hole airport has decent rental car facilities , etc.

 

[audreyh1]

We also flew into Jackson Hole our first trip to Yellowstone and it was great.

We’re flying there again this September for our fifth trip to Grand Teton NP.

The airport is actually inside Grand Teton NP.

 

[Gumby]

If you are going to Grand Teton and Yellowstone, I'd suggest the first or second week after Labor Day, because the crowds will be smaller but the weather will still be nice. If the teens have to miss a couple days of school, let them.

 

[skyking1]

We have been in the last week of September and it has a different vibe for sure. We had a cabin at Mammoth and the elk rut was in full swing. We learned to look around a bit before stepping from the cabin. Our friend stepped out for a smoke and almost got run over by a couple of cows in a hurry to switch harems.
One bull set up on the front lawn of the lodge and another was down the road a mile or two.

 

[audreyh1]

Mid to late September in Grand Teton NP or Yellowstone is magical. Elk are in full rut. You hear the bugling which carries a long way though the mountains. The aspen have turned yellow. Just beautiful!

 

[Teacher Terry]

When we went to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons we went the first week in June to beat the crowds. Bison were everywhere. We had to book a year in advance to get a campground site for our motorhome.

 

[Gumby]

The year in advance booking is no joke if you want to get a good room. I booked our rooms in Grant Teton and Yellowstone on the very first day they started booking for the next year. At the Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton, you want one of the rooms in the main lodge building directly over the dining room. I think they are called the Mountain View Rooms and, if I recall correctly, there are only ten of them. They are expensive, but worth every penny. This is the view from the window. We spent three nights there.

At Yellowstone, I suggest the Old Faithful Inn, in the East Wing on the geyser basin side. You can sit in bed and watch the geyser erupt. The other place to stay is the Yellowstone Lake Hotel . Get a Deluxe Lakeside Room. The food is better there than at the Old Faithful Inn. We spent two nights in each.

 

[audreyh1]

^^^ looks like a good way to see Moose!

 

[audreyh1]

I remember driving the motorhome from Missouri MT to Spokane WA crossing Idaho via I-90. The climbs and drops and views were spectacularly dramatic. Shortly before Spokane we passed a lovely lakeside city that looked very alpine and cool. I now realize that was Couer D’Alene ID.

 

[skyking1]

We stayed at Old Failthful on our first trip, which was an early trip in May with all the babies around.
Baby bufflalo just collapses on the warm pavement and we were *forced* to wait there until the battery was charged up, then off it ran. Good times.

 

[mh]

The year in advance booking is no joke if you want to get a good room. I booked our rooms in Grant Teton and Yellowstone on the very first day they started booking for the next year. At the Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton, you want one of the rooms in the main lodge building directly over the dining room. I think they are called the Mountain View Rooms and, if I recall correctly, there are only ten of them. They are expensive, but worth every penny. This is the view from the window. We spent three nights there.

At Yellowstone, I suggest the Old Faithful Inn, in the East Wing on the geyser basin side. You can sit in bed and watch the geyser erupt. The other place to stay is the Yellowstone Lake Hotel . Get a Deluxe Lakeside Room. The food is better there than at the Old Faithful Inn. We spent two nights in each.

I booked a condo in Jackson hole via Vrbo which worked great for grand Teton. It’s right near the southern entrance. In the fall before ski season it was reasonably priced

 

[Chuckanut]

If you are going to Grand Teton and Yellowstone, I'd suggest the first or second week after Labor Day, because the crowds will be smaller but the weather will still be nice. If the teens have to miss a couple days of school, let them.

If you can wait past Late July…

My guess is it would be at least a week of school given that many districts now start the school year before Labor Day. In fact that pre Labor Day start of the school year is becoming so popular that you might consider taking the trip in mid August IF their school district has not yet started

If you take them out of school for a week or two then be ready to hire a private tutor to get them back on track, if necessary.

July can be hot in Eastern WA. .

 

[audreyh1]

I thought that in Western Washington it was common for schools to start later in September. At least that’s what we encountered visiting the Olympic Peninsula last time.

 

[Chuckanut]

I thought that in Western Washington it was common for schools to start later in September. At least that’s what we encountered visiting the Olympic Peninsula last time.

But the OP is talking about places that draw visitors from all over the country. Not just locals.

As the OP has noted, driving distances west of the Rockies can be quite long. A few years ago I had to drive diagonally across Wyoming. I think it took 6 hours plus stops for resting. And that does not include slow downs for summer road work.

 

[Ronstar]

Are you planning for 2024? If so, I doubt you’ll find available accommodations in Glacier. Maybe a distance outside the park. And I think Glacier still requires daily entrance permits in the summer. I would concentrate research on accommodations first and flight destinations after you secure accommodations.

 

[Irishgirlyc58]

We are going to Yellowstone at the end of July beginning of August-dates determined by school and little league. Because when you are 11 and want to be a professional baseball player you really can't miss the all star season.

We are in Norther California-the Sacramento Valley. I booked rooms inside the park last July and activities in November on the day they opened up for bookings.

The transportation was a more difficult decision. Yellowstone is about 13.5 hours from where we live so driving is feasible but we have to take 2 cars. Flying-would be about $5,000 plus about another $3,000 or so for car rentals. Then we still have to drive another 2 hours. Seems like a lot of fuss to fly. Leaning more towards driving and splitting it into 2 days. Drive to Salt Lake City and stay the night. It's a little longer route but then the kids could go see the Great Salt Lake which is kind of cool.
Now looking at the route home and going through Grand Teton and staying somewhere close to there for a night if there is any lodging available.

The entire time I was looking at transportation and getting to Yellowstone I kept thinking that we could drive 3 hours and be in Yosemite! But we can always go there and I wanted the grandkids to have the experience. Along with me-I've never been to Yellowstone.

That booking ahead of time is no joke when you travel in the peak months of the summer. Just recently we have added 2 kids going on the trip (It's a long story). I have enough rooms but can't get them the activities. I'm just going to keep logging in several times a day to see if there are any openings. Reminds me of trying to get Grateful Dead tickets for New Year's Eve back in the day!

So-OP I have no advice for you but can commiserate with your predicament.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Irish girl, Yellowstone is very different than Yosemite so really nice that you are taking the grandkids. The grand Tetons are so close but much smaller so 2 nights there is plenty of time if you go there.