las vegas - Yellowstone

[cinterion]

Hello,
we are a family of 3 from Italy and we are planning a road trip in usa next june but we have some doubt.
we are planning a 15 days/14 nights road trip in june starting/ending from Las Vegas, the main option is the classical "grand circle" but we are considering if it could be possible modify the itinerary in order to spend a couple of days also in Yellowstone.
I'm not sure because I don't want to spend al the time driving but on the other side I think that Yellowston could be great to visit for my daughter.
Is there someone in this forum that have already done this itinerary ? Any suggestion ?
Thanks in advance

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

The greatest thing about creating your own Road trip is the freedom to go at what pace you are most happy with. The first thing to point out is that Yellowstone is quite some distance from the rest of your trip. As part of your 'Grand circle' tour it would add a days drive from Bryce canyon and another back to Arches NP and they would be full days. Then 2 days in Yellowstone is barely enough time to do it justice, it is a huge park and the going is slow. So thats a minimum of 4 days just for a 'quick' visit and if your 15 days is 'door to door' you will lose 2 days in the air and you will want some time to adjust on arrival and some to relax before flying home. Before you know it half of your time is gone ! So it's possible to include Yellowstone but it will become all too rushed in my opinion, the choice is yours.

Personally I would plan to visit Yellowstone on another trip and have some quality time in Utah and Arizona visiting the National parks. If you would like any further help with your planning just ask here, we are happy to help. To give you an idea of what it might look like, here's a rough idea based on personal experience.

Day 1. Fly into Vegas
Day 2 PM drive to Springdale UT to visit Zion NP.
Day 3 Visit Zion NP stay Springdale
Day 4 Visit Zion and continue to Bryce canyon
Day 5 Visit Bryce canyon and stay or head to Torrey for night.
(UT scenic 12 Highway through Escalante is a wonderful drive between Bryce canyon and Capitol reef NP and highly recommend you take this route)
Day 6 Visit Capitol reef NP. Head to Moab UT.
Day 7 and 8 Visit Arches and Canyonlands NP's and Dead Horse SP.
Day 9 and 10 Drive through Monument valley to Page AZ. Lake Powell, Antelope canyon(tour) etc
Day 11 To the Grand canyon south rim via Desertview drive
Day 11 Grand canyon
Day 12 back to Vegas via Hoover dam
Day 13/14 Vegas and home

Of course this can be juggled in many different ways but I hope it gives you a start point.

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

The beauty of a RoadTrip is that you get to go any place you'd like to go and you aren't forced to follow someone else's itinerary.

Yellowstone is amazing - it's one of my absolute favorite places. However, the biggest thing to remember is just how big the distances can be. It's about 750 miles (1200km) from Las Vegas to Yellowstone, so that's a day and a half of driving all by itself. Even from Bryce Canyon, it's a long 10-12 hours of driving onto Yellowstone.

Having said that, you've got 2 weeks, so that's certainly enough time to include Yellowstone on a RoadTrip itinerary from Las Vegas. You could do an up and back, perhaps going through Great Basin National Park on the way up, and then making your way back through the Tetons, Bryce Canyon and Zion over 2 weeks. Archs/Canyonlands and Capital Reef could even potentially be apart of it.

It's all about choices - If you do Yellowstone, it would be harder, but not impossible, to still fit the Grand Canyon into your trip.

What I recommend is sketching out a rough day by day plan. You don't have to follow it exactly, but that will give you an idea about how much you can really do, and where you'll have to make decisions about what to keep and what things you might need to skip. You can certainly share those ideas and plans here, and we can give you additional insight about what would work, what might need improvement, and additional suggestions to enhance your overall experience.

[cinterion]

Thank you so much,
I have a rough day by day plan but there are so many things to do and place to visit that. This is my sketch plan:
1) Arrival in Las vegas - Transfer to St george
2) St george - Bryce canyon
3) Bryce canyon - Salt lake
4) Salt Lake - Yellowstone
5) Yellowston
6) Yellowston - Jackson
7) Jackson - rockspring
8) Rock spring - Moab
9) Moab
10) Moab - Monument valley
11) Monument valley - Grand canyon
12) Grand canyon - Las vegas
13) Las vegas
14) Las vegas
15) Las vegas - departure
This is just a first idea. Do you think I will miss some "must visit" place ?

[Southwest Dave]

No matter how hard you try you will miss out on some great places, there are just so many !! Its about finding a balance you are happy with. You say you don't want to spend all the time driving? From day 2 to day 12 you will drive around 2000 miles just to get from A to B which will equate to 4 to 5 hours per day driving with a lunch stop. (For distance comparision from the southern most point in Italy to Oslo in Norway before any detours) Then you will spend a lot more time in the car getting around Yellowstone and other National parks, then you need to get out of the car and actually see things, walk take in the sights and take in the fresh air ! So it's possible if you want a brief glimpse at things and take a few photos and are happy to spend a lot f time in the car.

[AZBuck]

I noted one leg in particular that seemed to need some things to do, the one between Rock Springs and Moab. I assume that the previous day, Jackson (the town) to Rock Springs is short so that you can spend the early part of that day still seeing some more of Jackson Hole (the valley). That also leaves you with 'only' 350 or so miles to cover the next day, long enough to require a rest stop or two but short enough that those stops can be rewarding in their own right. I would suggest two: Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area and Dinosaur National Monument.

Flaming Gorge can be done as a simple detour from the standard route. You'd take I-80 west from Rock Springs to Green River (the town) and WY-530 south from there along the Green River (the river). There are a few pull-offs and such, but what I really enjoyed about this road was the scenery and the fact that the rock layers along it were labeled by their geological age so that you can see how you're progressing through history as you drive along. At the southern end, WY-530 becomes UT-43 when you cross the state line. In Manila UT you'd take UT-44 south, another great scenic road with occasional overlooks, until it rejoins US-191 south.

Knowing the geology of the rocks will then set you up for a visit to Dinosaur National Monument. This is, as its name implies, the place to see dinosaur bones. One of the best parts of the quarry is now preserved as an entire wall in the exhibition hall. If you've got young children with you, this is as 'must see' as any place along your route. It is a simple in-and-back side trip on UT-149 from US-40 at Jensen UT.

AZBuck

[Midwest Michael]

That is a good starting point, but it does make some pretty common mistakes, especially in regarding trying to do too much in an attempt to see everything.

First off, arriving in Las Vegas and immediately going to Utah the same day is really pushing things right off the bat. The drive isn't particularly long or hard, but you'll almost certainly have been traveling for 20+ hours by the time you arrive in Las Vegas - and then you'll have to clear customs, and rent a car. Add in jetlag - if you arrive at 7pm, your body will think it's 4am, and that 2 hour drive to St. George become a much more difficult ordeal. You also don't really have much place to rest and catch up afterwards as you're immediately onto Bryce the next day.

Yellowstone is also a huge place, so just one day really isn't enough - especially noting the effort you're putting in to get there. I recommend at least 2, if not 3, full days there - and then an additional day for Jackson/Grand Teton.

On a trip like this, it's important to remember you can't see everything - and trying to see everything can just mean you go to more places, but actually see significantly less. There certainly are more great places you could visit on this route - Zion National Park for example - but I think you're already pushing the limits for how much you can comfortably do, and I'd be more likely to make cuts than any more additions at this point.

[AZBuck]

As others have noted, your overall plan is quite ambitious. They have offered a few places where you can cut back and make your trip better because of doing so. Since I've suggested things to add to your trip, I should also offer places to cut. One would be to substitute Zion National Park for Bryce Canyon. Zion is easier to get to and just as rewarding. Take UT-9 east from I-15 to Springdale UT, visit Zion and then return to I-15 using UT-9/UT-17. You had this in your original plan and I would return to that. It's not a big savings in time or miles, but every bit will help.

I would echo Michael's warning about getting to St.George on the day you arrive in Las Vegas. If nothing else, you could move one of your Las Vegas days from the end of your trip to the beginning. But you will need time at the beginning to get over jet lag and get set to continue at your leisure rather than in haste.

The other thing that people have warned you about and I will reiterate is the fact that travel through Yellowstone National Park will be slow. The park has a very short season and the roads will be packed. It will be standing room only at Old Faithful, and when the road is blocked by bison herds you will not see much or move at all unless you're one of the first few cars in the traffic jam that ensues.

The only other place I see where you can cut without too great a loss is between Moab and Las Vegas on the return portion of your trip. Both Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon (South Rim), despite their undeniable beauty, are scenic drives without a whole lot more to do other than take pictures and short hikes. Seeing both on this leg could be done comfortably in two days rather than the three or four you've got scheduled.

AZBuck

[cinterion]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

The greatest thing about creating your own Road trip is the freedom to go at what pace you are most happy with. The first thing to point out is that Yellowstone is quite some distance from the rest of your trip. As part of your 'Grand circle' tour it would add a days drive from Bryce canyon and another back to Arches NP and they would be full days. Then 2 days in Yellowstone is barely enough time to do it justice, it is a huge park and the going is slow. So thats a minimum of 4 days just for a 'quick' visit and if your 15 days is 'door to door' you will lose 2 days in the air and you will want some time to adjust on arrival and some to relax before flying home. Before you know it half of your time is gone ! So it's possible to include Yellowstone but it will become all too rushed in my opinion, the choice is yours.

Personally I would plan to visit Yellowstone on another trip and have some quality time in Utah and Arizona visiting the National parks. If you would like any further help with your planning just ask here, we are happy to help. To give you an idea of what it might look like, here's a rough idea based on personal experience.

Day 1. Fly into Vegas
Day 2 PM drive to Springdale UT to visit Zion NP.
Day 3 Visit Zion NP stay Springdale
Day 4 Visit Zion and continue to Bryce canyon
Day 5 Visit Bryce canyon and stay or head to Torrey for night.
(UT scenic 12 Highway through Escalante is a wonderful drive between Bryce canyon and Capitol reef NP and highly recommend you take this route)
Day 6 Visit Capitol reef NP. Head to Moab UT.
Day 7 and 8 Visit Arches and Canyonlands NP's and Dead Horse SP.
Day 9 and 10 Drive through Monument valley to Page AZ. Lake Powell, Antelope canyon(tour) etc
Day 11 To the Grand canyon south rim via Desertview drive
Day 11 Grand canyon
Day 12 back to Vegas via Hoover dam
Day 13/14 Vegas and home

Of course this can be juggled in many different ways but I hope it gives you a start point.

Thanks to all,
I think you are right Yellowstone is definitely to far to include in my trip. Also I didn't consider the road traffic in Yellowston.
Perhaps the Itinerary suggested by Southwest Dave is more realistic.
Anyway I'm always open to hint.

[Southwest Dave]

Have a good look around the RTA site, there is much info and planning resources including the Map centres you will find in the tool bars and search function for the forums. Sit down with the family with a good map and start a rough day to day plan as mentioned by Michael and remember to take travel time into consideration. Once you have got the basics decided we can help fill in detail and fine tune your trip.

Enjoy the planning, it's part of the fun !