Yellowstone verus Glacier Park

I will be flying in July, maybe into Billings and hope to be able to tour both Yellowstone and Glacier. Are they similar or completely different?

Any help would be appreciated on lodging, etc.

Yellowstone verus Glacier Park

In my opinion, the two parks are very different.

Glacier is very rugged. Lots of hiking from scary stuff to fairly flat. There%26#39;s a lot of wildlife but you%26#39;ll have to get out of the car to see a lot of it. I%26#39;d be surprised if you can find accomodations in the park but my favorite is the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn and Many Glacier Hotel. I haven%26#39;t stayed at MGH but would.

Yellowstone is less rugged and is very accessible by car. The wildlife is more likely to be seen near the road. It also offers the thermal areas (geysers). I like Glacier a lot but we%26#39;re planning our third tripp to Yellowstone this June. Accomodations here will be a problem too. www.travelyellowstone.com for reservations and you may need to call them. If you can%26#39;t find anything, I%26#39;d suggest looking in West Yellowstone, MT.

We put many pictures with comments, trip reports and planning information on our website. The intent was to help others see what these places look like.

If you think it will help, try

www.AlandSueJohnson.com

You can see the Yellowstone and Glacier links at the top.

Yellowstone verus Glacier Park

Hi Chipper3,

First off I would definately say both parks have their own unique personality.

I feel that YNP is a park that offers incredible wildlife viewing experiences matched by its open and grand scenery. It demonstrates the power of geologic change and its effects on a landscape and its life forms. There are many breathtaking views and the thermal features cannot be matched anywhere else in the world. If you like to get off the paved path, YNP has an abundance of hiking trails from short day hikes to extended backpacking trails to get into nature a bit more.

Compared to YNP, I feel Glacier is a bit slower paced and focused more on the scenic aspects of the mountains and valleys. There is plenty of wildlife, but you won%26#39;t hundred of bison, or large groups of other mammals coexisiting (wolfs, bears, elk, bison). This is a park that measures out small portions of wildlife as though you are being invited to continue around the next corner to see what else you might find. The high mountain peaks and their forested valleys extend as far as the eye can see and each valley provides different excosystems from the west side, the lower elevation cedar and hemlock valley floors are almost rainforest like, to the alpine vistas which seem to touch the sky. The east side of the park is more arrid and exposes the bigginings of the great plains. In some ways I feel that both parks compliment each other, where one is grand the other is subtle.

Either way, I encourage you to take some time to get off the road and walk for a bit, you might even find the pulse of nature and relax a bit.

Sorry I can%26#39;t be much help on the lodging questions as I tend to camp most of the time in both of these parks. There are many nice campgrounds in both parks and I would gladly recommend some if you are leaning that way.

Safe travels,

- Kery

Thank you for your insight as it is very helpful.