Sisters Trip - SLC,W.Yellowstone,Grand Tetons,Cheyenne,Rocky Mtn Nat'l Park - WHEW!

Hey y'all!

I'm new to this site and planning my first REAL road trip. It'll be next summer...as a sort of a catch all trip with my sisters -- happy high school grad sister #3, happy college/you can do it sister #2, happy CPA exam is done ME! :)

I would love ANY and ALL advice, references to other useful threads, etc!

Here it goes...

10 days in June 2015

Day 1. Fly NOLA to Salt Lake City. Rent SUV/Van (if we have our cousin come). Purchase tent/supplies/groceries. Head to Antelope Island and float without sinking in the Great Salt Lake. PM drive to Idaho Falls, night 1 in a hotel there.

Days 2 & 3. Idaho Falls to West Yellowstone. See Norris Geyser Basin on route to Canyon Campground. See Lower Falls and Grand Canyon on day 3. Nights 2 & 3 at Canyon Campground.

Days 4 & 5. Canyon Campground to Grant Village Campground. See Hayden Valley on route to Grant Village. See Old Faithful and upper geyser basin on day 5. Nights 4 & 5 at Grant Village Campground.

Days 6 & 7. Grant Village to Jenny Lake. See West Thumb Geyser Basin. Day 7 Snake River rafting trip. Stay nights 6 & 7 at Jenny Lake campground.

Day 8. Jackson Lake boat cruise for breakfast. Drive to Laramie, WY & stay in hotel.

Day 9. Laramie to Cheyenne -- Hoping to overlap our trip with Frontier Days 2015. Stay in hotel in Cheyenne. (Plan to ship tent home)

Day 10. Cheyenne to Denver by way of the Rocky Mountain National Park. Fly Denver to NOLA.


Any advice on our accomodations?

Any tips/information on our points of interest? Anything we are missing? Sister #3 would love horse back riding. Sister #2 would love zip-lining. If anyone knows of any good places along our route, its appreciated!

Antelope Island
West Yellowstone area
Norris Geyser Basin
Canyon Campground
Hayden Valley
Old Faithful
Upper Geyser Basin
Grant Village Campground
West Thumb Geyser Basin
Jenny Lake
Snake River rafting trip (from Jenny Lake area)
Jackson Lake boat cruise (breakfast)
Cheyenne Frontier Days
Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park / Estes Park


WHEW! That might seem like a lot...and maybe it is...but just to note we will be eating out of an ice chest for the trip. We don't like to shop. We don't need too much sleep. If we miss a shower it isn't the end of the world. :))


Thanks in advance!!
Sister #1

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

It looks like a nice plan for a little sisterly bonding ! If you want to shop and head to Antelope Island on the day of arrival I think you might be better off lodging locally and just get an early start to Yellowstone the following morning. Getting through the airport, collecting the car and getting your bearings all takes time. Can't help with Zip lining or horse riding, but I'm sure you would find somethibg with a search. If you are camping in Yellowstone I would recommend booking sites in advance as it it does fill up in the summer months. You might pick up some info scrolling through the pages of this Yellowstone and Tetons part of a trip report.

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

For the most part, your trip seems well thought out, with lots of activities and great scenic drives. The one problem I see is right at the beginning. Having just finished a cross-continent flight with a 3½ hour drive at the end, I'll tell you it was no fun and pretty much spoiled the next day as well. If you made a minor alteration to your plans and stayed in the Salt Lake area for your first night, then I think you'd get this trip off to a much better and less stressful start. Everyone tends to overestimate what they can do in a day, and places much to much reliance on airlines to be able to keep to published schedules. We want to believe that everything will go right on our trips, but the sad reality is that it often doesn't. Make your first day simply about getting into your vacation area, and plan on actually starting the vacation the next day. Less stress, more fun.

The same is true for your last day, if I read your itinerary right. You plan to wake up in Wyoming, drive to and tour Rocky Mountain National Park, drive to Denver, and finish up that day with a cross-country flight(s) to New Orleans. Again, that is just too much for one day. It's too much even if everything goes right, but the least little problem or delay in getting to Denver will ruin your entire trip if you miss your return flight. You need to plan on being in the Denver area the night before departure. If all goes well, there is plenty to do there. If not, you can always return at another time.

Besides that, my one other suggestion is pretty minor: consider an alternative route from SLC up to Idaho Falls. I-15 will get you there but US-89/US-26 will get you there in style.

AZBuck