Yosemite Trip Tips and Recs Please!

[elbenn]

We are trying to figure out where to go this summer and considering Yosemite. I am hoping it isn't already booked out. Anyway, any tips on where to stay so I can look into rentals? Things to do? How long would you make a trip to Yosemite if you want to include just regular sightseeing and some smaller hikes? Thanks!

[SnuggleBuggles]

Unless you are lucky and stumble upon a cancellation, you are too late. Bookings open a year in advance. I personally would only go if I could stay in the park, in the Valley. I wouldn't want to commute. Plus, depending where you are, you might require a day pass to enter- and those sell out too. Sadly, Yosemite isn't great for last minute planning. 2-3 nights would be good for your plans though.
Eta- this Trip Advisor Yosemite forum has a ton of good info though https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForu...alifornia.html

[AnnieW625]

In park Yosemite Valley campgrounds/house keeping cabins book out a year in advance. If you are able to stay outside the park you might have better luck with a rental site like this one (I believe this is one my cousins have used it and been happy): https://redwoodsinyosemite.com/ . This is near Wawona at the southern end of the park and it is an easy less than an hour drive (although with traffic it could be a little more).

You could also look at Sequoia National Park which is about an hour and a half to two hours south of Yosemite.

FWIW: we always went the second weekend in June and sometimes Father’s Day weekend (and it just depended on when we got out of school) and I don’t recall it being super crowded. If your schools go back in September still I would look at mid to late August as a lot of schools (nationwide and in California) now are out in late May and go back in mid August. If you can manage a long weekend in September or maybe even early October the crowds will be less.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[echoesofspring]

You might be able to rent something in Yosemite West, it's a private community you access by driving into the park. I have not stayed there in the summer, but have done a couple winter girls trips where we rented a house there in the past and it was great. When I was checking this year they were unsurprisingly super pricey compared to what we paid in the past, but maybe that will change as things start to open back up.

[SnuggleBuggles]

You might be able to rent something in Yosemite West, it's a private community you access by driving into the park. I have not stayed there in the summer, but have done a couple winter girls trips where we rented a house there in the past and it was great. When I was checking this year they were unsurprisingly super pricey compared to what we paid in the past, but maybe that will change as things start to open back up.

That was the place I was trying to remember. Being inside the gates of the park will be key. I've been to National Parks in the summer and entry lines can extend for miles. I still personally love nothing more than waking up in the Valley but if Yosemite is a must and there are no spots there then YW is worth a look.

[Globetrotter]

I have heard that the prices are up this year to try to compensate for the lost revenue. People are willing to pay..

[elbenn]

Thanks for the replies. I'm going to check these out but I will probably extend the vacation destination to other places. Maybe a national park in Utah or somewhere else that will have more availability. We were planning on doing Europe this summer but since Covid has changed international travel, we want to do some sort of trip in the continental US and Yosemite was my first thought. We've already done Jackson Hole, as well as national parks in Colorado and South Dakota, so we are looking for somewhere else.

[3isEnough]

We've been able to snag last-minute accommodations in the park by having the reservation portal open and checking daily. Yosemite attracts a lot of international visitors so I imagine many of them will be cancelling their reservations as their travel dates near given the ongoing COVID situation in a lot of countries. We went to Yosemite a few summers ago and it was like Disneyland, it was so, so crowded we decided we'd never go again in the summer. However, we went this past summer (in the midst of covid, with capacity restrictions in place) and it was so wonderful - relatively empty and so beautiful. I was hopeful then that they would extend the capacity restrictions forever since it's not enjoyable for anyone when it's packed. I don't know what kind of restrictions they have in place now but I hope it's similar to last summer.

[elbenn]

We've been able to snag last-minute accommodations in the park by having the reservation portal open and checking daily. Yosemite attracts a lot of international visitors so I imagine many of them will be cancelling their reservations as their travel dates near given the ongoing COVID situation in a lot of countries. We went to Yosemite a few summers ago and it was like Disneyland, it was so, so crowded we decided we'd never go again in the summer. However, we went this past summer (in the midst of covid, with capacity restrictions in place) and it was so wonderful - relatively empty and so beautiful. I was hopeful then that they would extend the capacity restrictions forever since it's not enjoyable for anyone when it's packed. I don't know what kind of restrictions they have in place now but I hope it's similar to last summer.

Thanks for this advice. It's a great idea to check for cancellations. But I'm not sure what I am checking. Are there certain federally run travel lodging that is within the park or are there also private lodging companies? Is there one website that covers all the lodging reservations?

[AnnieW625]

Thanks for the replies. I'm going to check these out but I will probably extend the vacation destination to other places. Maybe a national park in Utah or somewhere else that will have more availability. We were planning on doing Europe this summer but since Covid has changed international travel, we want to do some sort of trip in the continental US and Yosemite was my first thought. We've already done Jackson Hole, as well as national parks in Colorado and South Dakota, so we are looking for somewhere else.

A few years back (2016) we did a small portion of Zion (the part closest to Cedar City) and did the rim of Bryce Canyon in early to mid August and it was great although it was pretty warm in Zion so we kept the hikes pretty simple. We stayed in Brian Head and other than the initial altitude change (DD2 is prone to stomach sickness after long drives that involve a sudden altitude change....we went from sea level to 7500 feet in a day) we had a great time and it wasn’t that crowded. If you flew into Salt Lake you could add Capital Reef and then make your way south to Zion/Bryce and then fly home out of Las Vegas. SLC is about a 4 hour drive from Zion (I think). If you were willing to spend a day or two in Vegas you could check out Red Rock National Park although it will be hot but lounging around a nice hotel pool (if you are okay with that now) is always nice. We like the JW Marriott in Summerlin. Vegas is about 2/1/2 hours from Zion.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk