Where to go?

[mackmama]

Wow that would be a lot of driving, but a tour of the NPs is always a treat. I also think 6 days in Yellowstone might be too much. Personally I'd do 2-3 in Yellowstone and 4-5 in Jackson.

[geochick]

What about early July? Does 4th July affect the area? Here is what we are thinking:

Glacier NP 2 days
Travel day glacier to Bozeman
Museum of Rockies 1 day
Yellowstone 6 days
Grand Teton 2 days
Travel back to airport 1 day

Any suggestions for which airport? We will be flying out of ATL.

My sister went to Glacier for 2 days last summer. She said for all the driving, 2 days wasn't enough. I'd either add days in Glacier, or cut it out completely. That's quite a drive.

[StantonHyde]

With kids, I would concentrate on Yellowstone. I just did a week there and wrote a trip report on www.fodors.com Go to the travel forums, you can even search for my user name--stantonhyde. I love the fodors site, I plan tons of trips there.

There is a lot of driving out west, no matter what. It's big! I would say you would be ok after July 4 as far as snowstorms etc (we are talking big mountains here) The big issue for you is that you have to make reservations inside Yellowstone NOW!! I was amazed at how everything had booked up and I made reservations in October for the summer. On the flip side, we didn't mind going to a different place every night because we were driving around anyway. See my trip report for lodging recommendations. Do not stay in the historic Old Faithful Inn unless you want to take your kids down the hall to use the bathroom (yep, just sinks in the rooms!).

As for places around Yellowstone--Grand Tetons are a MUST see. I would give yourself 2 days there easily and then another 2 in Jackson. We ended up going to Cody for the day due to a rainstorm and we absolutely loved the Buffalo Bill museum there. It was so fascinating!! Check out raft trips carefully. There is an age limit--for a good reason! Barker Ewing is one of the best companies. And float trips are good for all ages but I didn't think my kids would do well sitting in a raft for 3 hours. (the water is too cold to dive in)

YOu might do well flying in and out of Bozeman. Feel free to PM me--I grew up near Yellowstone and worked there for a summer. We had a good trip last summer but it required lots of advance planning and prep, which I actually love. Have fun--your kids will remember it forever!

[cynsmimor]

Ok dialing it back some. We've decided to cut Glacier out and concentrate on Bozeman, Yellowstone and Grand Teton.

Day 1 fly into Bozeman
Day 2 Museum of Rockies, explore Bozeman
Day 3 maybe horseback riding near Bozeman???
Day 4 & 5 mammoth
Day 6 & 7 old faithful
Day 8&9 Grand Teton ???????
Day 10&11 Roosevelt
Day 12 Travel back to airport &Fly out

[StantonHyde]

It looks good. The only thing I would suggest is staying at Canyons instead of Roosevelt. More to do in that area. But it depends on what your family likes. You will want to check age minimums on horse back riding. Most are 7 or 8. The other thing you might want to do is to make reservations in Yellowstone but then look at subtracting a day in Yellowstone and adding a day in Jackson. IF you don't mind the "hold" charges on your credit card, then you can tweak your itinerary outside the park.

[TwinFoxes]

I would do someplace hard to get to, like Alaska or Western Canada, or Glacier NP. (I don't mean hard as in you'll have to take a mule, but hard as in expensive and not a lot of flight choices). If those aren't doable, I'd do AZ/NM/UT, hitting the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Santa Fe. DH and I did that as a two week trip our first year of marriage, and it was so fun and spectacular. He had never seen the west before, and was amazed by it. I was 6 when I first saw the Grand Canyon, and I still remember it. If you've never been to the Grand Canyon, you have to go!!!

[mytwosons]

Do not stay in the historic Old Faithful Inn unless you want to take your kids down the hall to use the bathroom (yep, just sinks in the rooms!).

It's been a LONG time since I've been there, but I recall they had several types of rooms. Some just had a sink, some had a sink and toilet and some also had a claw foot tub. IIRC, it was based on what floor you were on. We stayed in a room with a full bathroom (tub), so they existed - at least then.

[StantonHyde]

The only time of year I would do the desert southwest (Grand Canyon, Zion, Moab etc) is in the spring (April to early June) and fall (October). It is HOT in the summer and really, really crowded. I love those places--it's a large reason I moved to Utah, so that I could be close to the desert. But not in summer. That's when I head to the mountains.

If I had to pick a trip, I suppose I would opt for the southwest because it is unlike anything else in the US, even in the world. People come from all over the world to see southern Utah etc. And there are plenty of parks that are good for kids--Moab and Zion. If I could only go to each place once, though, then I would do Yellowstone with younger kids--there is so much that is accessible within 1 mile of a road. The desert (ESPECIALLY the Grand Canyon) often involves longer hikes and I would save that for older kids.

[cynsmimor]

Ok, which would you choose - old faithful inn west wing or old faithful lodge cabin? We have decided that we want in room bathroom.

[StantonHyde]

We stayed at a snow lodge cabin at OF and it was great I would recommend staying in the cabins over hotels. We had a great one at Canyon too. Try not to stay at grant village if possible.