Discover the wonders of Wyoming’s historic Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks on this adventurous tour as you take leisurely walks or more strenuous hikes in both parks, learn about geology, and observe plentiful wildlife.

Starting at: $6,250 * Price includes special offer Make a Reservation Ask Us A Question or Call 855-330-1542
 Teton National Park and the Snake River
Teton National Park and the Snake River
 Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
 One of many Yellowstone geysers
One of many Yellowstone geysers
 Grand Prismatic Springs, Yellowstone
Grand Prismatic Springs, Yellowstone
 Bison in Hayden Valley, Yellowstone National Park
Bison in Hayden Valley, Yellowstone National Park
 Elk in Yellowstone National Park
Elk in Yellowstone National Park
 A black bear in Yellowstone National Park
A black bear in Yellowstone National Park
 Gray wolf, Yellowstone National Park
Gray wolf, Yellowstone National Park
 Curious red fox
Curious red fox
 Teton Range in Wyoming.  Credit: Patrick Wagner
Teton Range in Wyoming. Credit: Patrick Wagner
 Herd of bison with Grand Tetons in the background. Credit: Marco Crupi
Herd of bison with Grand Tetons in the background. Credit: Marco Crupi
 The landscape of the Grand Tetons. Credit: Megan Lorenz
The landscape of the Grand Tetons. Credit: Megan Lorenz

Yellowstone and the Tetons

7 days from $6,250

Discover the wonders of Wyoming’s historic Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks on this adventurous tour as you take leisurely walks or more strenuous hikes in both parks, learn about geology, and observe plentiful wildlife.

or Call 855-330-1542

Accommodations

* Click on hotel name to visit hotel web-site.

Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone

Gardiner, Montana, United States

The Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone sits on the banks of the Yellowstone River with views of the surrounding Absaroka and Gallatin mountains and just outside the northern boundary into Yellowstone National Park. The hotel features 86 comfortable guest rooms all with private bath, cable-satellite television, refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, hairdryer, iron, and ironing board. There is an indoor/heated swimming pool, a whirlpool spa, steam room, sauna, business center, self-serve laundry, a gift shop, guest computer access, and complimentary Wi-Fi is available in the hotel public areas. 

Old Faithful Snow Lodge

Yellowstone National Park, United States

Old Faithful Snow Lodge was fully renovated and transformed into a hotel in the 1990s, following the architectural guidelines of the Old Faithful Historic District. It received the Cody Award for Western Design and features recycled timber, hand-crafted furnishings, and rustic décor. Snow Lodge is the only lodge inside the park that is open in winter, and it offers a warm and relaxing atmosphere, with space to read and play board games by the fireplace. Rooms feature a telephone, coffee maker, refrigerator, and hair dryer. The lodge has a dining room, lounge, snack bar, gift shop, and laundry facilities, and WiFi is available in the main lobby for a fee.  

Rustic Inn

Jackson Hole, Wyoming, United States

The Rustic Inn sits on seven pristine acres and just a short walk from the heart of downtown Jackson with views to the National Elk Refuge, where thousands of elk congregate each winter. The inn has 152 sumptuously appointed guest rooms each offering cable television, telephone, air conditioning, hair dryer, iron and ironing board, and complimentary WiFi. There is an outdoor heated pool, hot tub and landscaped trails that follow Flat Creek. There is the Rustic Inn Bistro for dining, a casual bar for refreshments, and a patio with a fire pit (weather permitting) on site for taking in the views.

Activity Level

Expectations: This is a moderately active program incorporating walks and hikes from 1 up to 4 miles round-trip with options (at times) for shorter walks and hikes, most on well-marked trails. However trails in the national park can be rocky, uneven and dusty. Elevation gains during these walks and hikes can be strenuous and participants may be affected with shortness of breath. The Yellowstone Plateau sits at an average elevation of 8,000 feet and the area around Jackson and Grand Teton National Park is at roughly 6,000 to 7,000 feet above sea level. We recommend if you are susceptible to shortness of breath at higher elevations to check with your physician prior to registering for this trip.

The time on the trails will be taken at an easy to moderate pace suitable for study. Appropriate footwear and gear is very important as you will experience the park rain or shine. We highly recommend dressing in layers and wearing trail shoes with a sturdy tread or well-worn hiking boots as well as having rainwear, a hat, sunglasses, sunblock, and sunscreen on hand. A full list of suggested items to pack will be included with your pre-tour documents.

Appropriate for: Travelers who are physically fit, expect a somewhat vigorous pace, are comfortable participating in up to five hours of physical activity per day, and enjoy some physical exertion.

Reading List

Learn more about the lost history of Yellowstone in Smithsonian Magazine.

Highly Recommended

A Weird and Wild Beauty: The Story of Yellowstone, the World's First National Park
By: Peabody, Erin
The Geysers of Yellowstone, Fifth Edition
By: T. Scott Bryan
This new edition of The Geysers of Yellowstone is the most up-to-date and comprehensive reference to the geysers of Yellowstone National Park, describing in detail each of the more than five hundred geysers in the park. The entire text has been revised and geyser descriptions have been updated based on activity observed through early 2018. Information about a number of significant new geyser developments has been added, as well as recent knowledge about some of the world’s geyser fields outside Yellowstone.   Both a reference work and a fine introduction to the nature of geyser activity, this popular field guide includes a glossary of key terms, a comprehensive appendix that discusses other geyser areas of the world, detailed maps of each geyser basin, and tables for easy reference. The Geysers of Yellowstone will continue to serve geyser gazers as well as newcomers to geothermal phenomena for years to come.  
Compass American Guides: Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks (Full-color Travel Guide)
By: Fodor’s Travel Guides
Yellowstone Wildlife: Ecology and Natural History of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
By: Paul A. Johnsgard
Yellowstone Wildlife is a natural history of the wildlife species that call Yellowstone National Park and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem their home. Illustrated with stunning images by renowned wildlife photographer Thomas Mangelsen, Yellowstone Wildlife describes the lives of species in the park, exploring their habitats from the Grand Tetons to Jackson Hole.  From charismatic megafauna like elk, bison, wolves, bighorn sheep, and grizzly bears, to smaller mammals like bats, pikas, beavers, and otters, to some of the 279 species of birds, Johnsgard describes the behavior of animals throughout the seasons, with sections on what summer and autumn mean to the wildlife of the park, especially with the intrusion of millions of tourists each year. Enhanced by Mangelsen’s wildlife photography, Yellowstone Wildlife reveals the beauty and complexity of these species’ intertwined lives and that of Yellowstone’s greater ecosystem.

Also Recommended

Travels in the Greater Yellowstone
By: Jack Turner
Award-winning nature writer Jack Turner directs his attention to one of America's greatest natural treasures: the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In a series of essays, Turner explores this wonderland, venturing on twelve separate trips in all seasons using various modes of travel. He treks down the Teton Range, picks up the Oregon Trail in the Red Desert, and floats the South Fork of the Snake River. Along the way he encounters a variety of wildlife: moose, elk, trout, and wolves. From the treacherous mountains in the dead of winter to lush river valleys in the height of fishing season, his words and steps trace one of the most American of experiences―exploring the West.Turner―who has lived in Grand Teton for three decades―designates the Greater Yellowstone as ground zero for the country's conflict between preservation and development, and his accounts of the area's conflicts with alien species, logging, real estate, oil, and gas development are alarming.A mixture of adventure, nostalgia, and Americana, Turner's rare experiences and evocative writing transform the sights and sounds of Greater Yellowstone into an intimate narrative of travel through America's most beloved lands.
Yellowstone Migrations
By: Joe Riis, Arthur Middleton, Emilene Ostlind, Gretel Ehrlich, Thomas Lovejoy
Winner of 2017 Gold Nautilus Book Award in Animals and Nature and 2018 Silver Independent Publisher Book Award in Environment, Ecology, and NatureLarge animal migrations are among the primordial rhythms of life on Earth, and, as scientists have recently discovered, the American West is home to some of the planet’s most magnificent migrations. Yellowstone Migration takes readers into the heart of the vast, wild landscapes found in America’s West, and shows us that it is possible to preserve the natural heritage of this iconic region and protect these last intact natural wildlife corridors―so that these animals can carry out the migrations that are essential to their survival.The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which is a dozen times the size of Yellowstone National Park, harbors the last great populations of migrating elk, pronghorn antelope, and mule deer. Thousands of these grand animals move with the changing seasons to feed and give birth. During their four-month long journey, mule deer navigate not only the natural challenges of rivers, lakes, and sand dunes, but also manmade obstacles such as three major highways and more than 100 fences, many with barbed wire. In Yellowstone Migrations, wildlife photojournalist Joe Riis follows three primary migrations: • The “Path of the Pronghorn” from Grand Teton National Park to southwest Wyoming;• The mule deer migration from Red Desert to Hoback, Wyoming; and• The Cody elk migration on the Absaroka front.People who care about the American West face a choice: we can manage our public and private lands in ways that allow and encourage these migrations, or we can encumber these animals with unchecked development, changing climate, pollution, and barriers. Riis’s stunning imagery and on-the-ground experiences shed light on these amazing animals and how, for them, migration is a matter of life or death.
Empire of Shadows: The Epic Story of Yellowstone
By: George Black
"George Black rediscovers the history and lore of one of the planet's most magnificent landscapes. Read Empire of Shadows, and you'll never think of our first―in many ways our greatest―nationalpark in the same way again."―Hampton Sides, author of Blood and ThunderEmpire of Shadows is the epic story of the conquest of Yellowstone, Wyoming, a landscape uninhabited, inaccessible and shrouded in myth in the aftermath of the Civil War. In a radical reinterpretation of the nineteenth century West, George Black casts Yellowstone's creation as the culmination of three interwoven strands of history - the passion for exploration, the violence of the Indian Wars and the "civilizing" of the frontier - and charts its course through the lives of those who sought to lay bare its mysteries: Lt. Gustavus Cheyney Doane, a gifted but tormented cavalryman known as "the man who invented Wonderland"; the ambitious former vigilante leader Nathaniel Langford; scientist Ferdinand Hayden, who brought photographer William Henry Jackson and painter Thomas Moran to Yellowstone; and Gen. Phil Sheridan, Civil War hero and architect of the Indian Wars, who finally succeeded in having the new National Park placed under the protection of the US Cavalry. George Black¹s Empire of Shadows is a groundbreaking historical account of the origins of America¹s majestic national landmark.
Yellowstone Has Teeth: A Memoir of Living in Yellowstone
By: Marjane Ambler
Few people have experienced Yellowstone National Park like Marjane Ambler. She and her husband lived in a tiny community near the shores of Yellowstone Lake, deep in the park’s interior. The natural beauty was magnificent, but Ambler and her neighbors discovered that Yellowstone “had teeth.” It could be an unforgiving place where mistakes mattered.In this well-constructed narrative, Ambler reveals a hidden Yellowstone, a place where delight and danger are separated by the slimmest of margins: a degree of pitch on an avalanche slope, a few inches of a buffalo’s horn, a moment during a deadly wildfire. She also tells about:The rangers and maintenance workers who handled everything from thundering avalanches to man-eating grizzly bearsThe mothers who carried their babies inside their snowmobile suits and prayed their machines would not fail on the long ride homeThe old-timers who forged communities despite the odds against them.With insight, love, and humor, Yellowstone Has Teeth paints a never-before-seen portrait of an iconic American landscape and the people who live there."We think of Yellowstone as one of the last vestiges of wilderness. In Marjane Ambler’s capable hands, we learn it is also one of the last places in North America where people live in a real community – isolated, buffeted by nature, and deeply, intimately dependent on one another. Life and death, love and loss – it’s all here, in an extraordinary setting, thanks to an extraordinary storyteller."—Geoffrey O’Gara, author and Emmy-award winning documentary producer"From 1984-1993, Marjane Ambler and her husband lived year-round in Yellowstone National Park. And what a life they led: struggling with recalcitrant snowmobiles in unpredictable winter weather to watching as the fires of 1988 blazed closer and closer to their door. But the stories of how women joined together to counter their extreme isolation are the ones that will stay with you long after you put the book down."—Diane Smith, author of Letters from Yellowstone"Readers with an interest in any of the more rugged national parks, from Maine to Alaska, will find this book a gratifying experience. It conveys cultural history, women's history, natural history, community awareness, survival stories, and humor."—Cassandra Leoncini, Leoncini Book Consulting"Marjane Ambler’s journals of her time spent living in the interior of Yellowstone interweave with the stories of pioneering earlier rangers and their families. With her natural story telling ability, she will pull you into the close-knit communities. By the end of her chronicle you won’t want to say good bye to the hardy souls she has introduced and brought into your life."—Alice Siebecker, retired NPS Ranger, Yellowstone"It wrapped itself around my heart, and I felt like I was going home."—Cindy Mernin, wife of ranger and year-round resident of Yellowstone interior for 25 years (1971-1996)
Letters from Yellowstone
By: Diane Smith
In the spring of 1898, A. E. (Alexandria) Bartram--a spirited young woman with a love for botany--is invited to join a field study in Yellowstone National Park. The study's leader, a mild-mannered professor from Montana, assumes she is a man, and is less than pleased to discover the truth. Once the scientists overcome the shock of having a woman on their team, they forge ahead on a summer of adventure, forming an enlightening web of relationships as they move from Mammoth Hot Springs to a camp high in the backcountry. But as they make their way collecting amid Yellowstone's beauty the group is splintered by differing views on science, nature, and economics. In the tradition of A. S. Byatt's Angels and Insects and Andrea Barrett's Ship Fever, this delightful novel captures an ever-fascinating era and one woman's attempt to take charge of her life.
Women in Wonderland: Lives, Legends, and Legacies of Yellowstone
By: Watry, Elizabeth A
The National Parks: America's Best Idea
The National Parks: America's Best Idea
By: Duncan, Dayton, Burns, Ken
History of the World Map by Map (DK History Map by Map)
By: DK

*As an Amazon Associate, Smithsonian Journeys earns from qualifying purchases.

Travel Insurance

For the convenience of our travelers, Smithsonian Journeys includes a basic medical expense and evacuation plan through Trip Mate, a Generali Global Assistance & Insurance Services brand, at no additional charge. This plan provides post-departure Medical and Dental coverage of $250,000 per person and Emergency Assistance and Transportation coverage of $1,000,000 per person (U.S. Residents Only). Note: For full details regarding these coverages please review the following Plan Documents here.

In addition, we recommend that travelers purchase a travel protection plan to help protect their travel investment from unforeseen events such as cancellation due to illness, flight delays due to adverse weather, baggage loss, and more. For your convenience, Smithsonian Journeys offers an optional Travel Protection Plan administered by Trip Mate, a Generali Global Assistance & Insurance Services brand. For those interested, optional "Cancel for Any Reason" coverage is available for an additional charge. Note: Certain eligibility requirements apply and Cancel for Any Reason coverage is not available to New York residents. For full details regarding this coverage please review the following Plan Documents here.

To learn more about the Travel Protection Plan, you may visit https://www.generalipartner.com/smithsonianjourneys or call the administrator, Trip Mate, a Generali Global Assistance & Insurance Services brand at (866) 501-3252.

Related Tours