Denver to Jackson, WY and Yellowstone

Any help would be appreciated. Myself and 2 others will be flying into Denver in late Sept. for a friends get together. We will then be leaving on a Sat. to drive to Jackson, WY to visit my niece. We need to be back in Denver by late Friday of the following week so our time is limited.

My niece is planning visits to Yellowstone and several other sites in the area and we will probably be spending about 3 days with her.

What is the best and/or fastest way to Jackson and what else might we see along the way. We realize that our time is limited.

Thanks,
jbugq

Welcome to the RoadTrip America Forum!

The quickest way to Jackson that I could find is to head North on I-25 out of Denver, West on I-80, US-26 to US-89. This would take a full day of travel to complete.

Along this route you'll be able to visit Grand Teton National Park. From Jackson, you're only about 1 1/2 hours away from the South entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

Let's see - if you're spending three days with your niece, then you'll have Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with her, and that gives you Wed, Thurs, Fri to get back. You could head South from Jackson to Flaming Gorge, and from there to Dinosaur National Monument and/or Rocky Mountain National Park, then back into Denver.

jbugq,

Mass Tim hit the fastest route on the nose. I have driven it a half of dozen times in the last year and will also be traveling it again late this month and again about the same time as you. It is a pretty easy route to navigate, however be careful when driving this route at night due to lots of wildlife.

Keep in mind that it generally will take 2 -3 days to explore just the highlights of Yellowstone. Mass Tim is correct that it takes around 1 1/2 hours from Jackson to Yellowstone’s South Gate. That means that if you are staying all three days in Jackson you can plan on an additional 3 hours of driving the first day, 4-5 additional hours the second and third days that you visit the park. Most of the bears seem to be sited around the "Tower-Roosevelt Junction" area which is in the NE side of the park. To reduce travel time and minimize backtracking, I would suggest that you spend at least one night in West Yellowstone Montana. This will allow you to explore the northern part of the park. I spend the first and fourth nights in Jackson and the second and third nights in West Yellowstone. If you do decide to stay in West Yellowstone, you will need to reserve a room now. I was surprised to find many of the places in Jackson and West Yellowstone sold out.

Have a GREAT trip!