Flowers and mountains outside Jenny Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park/David and Kay Scott

We are nearing the end of a trip of nearly three weeks during which we stayed in or visited 24 national park lodges in Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and Glacier national parks. As a conclusion to three weeks in three of America's most popular national parks we thought it might be worthwhile to offer some thoughts about the trip, the lodges, and the people.

Our first night was at Lake Hotel in Yellowstone National Park and our last night was in Glacier Park Lodge just outside Glacier National Park. While we love the three parks, the primary purpose was to gather information for a revision of our book on national park lodges.  We obviously couldn't have stayed overnight at each of the 24 lodges in three weeks, but we were able to stay in six and visit the rest.

Although the air is getting a little smoky from numerous wildfires (it is dry out here) we couldn't have asked for better weather or a friendlier group of people.  Many of the park lodges seemed to be decorated with more flowers than during previous trips. The flowers' brilliant colors contrast nicely with the dark brown exteriors that characterize the majority of lodges.  These added to the beauty of historic buildings that already bring a smile and sense of awe to travelers.  Nowhere were the flowers more beautiful than at Glacier Park Lodge. 

Crowds, Staffing, And Connectivity

We cannot remember a trip to any of the three parks when they were more crowded.  A ranger at the entrance station at West Glacier commented that visitation to the park was up 16 percent over last year.  We believe it.  In terms of crowds, Yellowstone was the worst of the group with full parking lots, lines for dining, and lots of traffic.  Fortunately, unusually dry weather appears to have caused many of the bison to head for higher elevations, resulting in fewer traffic jams along the park's crowded roads.  The lobby of Old Faithful Inn was like Grand Central Station.  We were told by one lodge reservation employee that bookings for next year are heavy.

Xanterra Parks & Resorts has made improvements to the accommodations at Grant Village in Yellowstone National Park/David and Kay Scott

One of the joys of staying in a national park lodge is taking time to talk with the employees. The lodges increasingly rely on foreign students for summer help.  We encountered many young employees from Eastern European countries, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Slovenia, and Poland.  There were also many students from Asia, but we encountered only a few from Western Europe.  The student employees are friendly and interesting to talk with.  Mention that you have visited their country and their faces light up.  They appeared to be excellent workers who were enjoying their experience in the parks.  Most planned to engage in some end-of-the-season traveling.  Not surprisingly, their primary destinations were New York City, California and, of course, the promised land of Las Vegas.

For good or evil, Wi-Fi is slowly leaching into the national park lodges. First it was cell service, now it's the Internet.  Wi-Fi changes the dynamics of a stay in a national park lodge, and not necessarily in a positive way.  Where in the past we have found other guests eager to engage in conversation, now many are engrossed in their iPhones, iPads, and laptops.  Concessionaires seem to understand the downside, but feel an increasing number of guests expect to be connected regardless of where they are.  When we visited Isle Royale National Park's Rock Harbor Lodge a couple of months ago visitors seemed quite happy even though there was no cell phone service and only sketchy Wi-Fi.  Several told us they were happy to be unconnected for several days.

Expensive Stays And Changing Menus

The cost of a stay in a national park lodge has increased, sometimes dramatically. It is essentially impossible to find a room for under $100 per night, and then only if you are willing to accept a room requiring use of a community bathroom. Pioneer cabins at Yellowstone's Lake Lodge with a private bath are $88 per night, but these are the exception. The average price of a room in each of these three parks is over $200 per night. Consider that cabins in Grand Teton's Jenny Lake Lodge are now $716 per night for two persons. This includes breakfast and a gourmet dinner, but you get the point. Guest rooms at Jackson Lake Lodge are going for $300 and up. Rooms in Yellowstone's Lake Hotel begin at $380, although less expensive lodging is available in the cabins and revamped Annex that is now called Sandpiper Lodge.

Travelers visiting the parks often complain about “national park food.”  There have always been exceptions, such as dining at the Inn at Furnace Creek, Jenny Lake Lodge, The Ahwahnee (or whatever it is now called), Cavallo Point, and the El Tovar, but these are the expensive exceptions.  Surprising to many travelers who haven't stayed there, Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Parkway has long been known for serving some excellent food options. However, most national park lodging facilities have offered food that was, at best, average.

This seems to be changing as the corporate suits and food and beverage directors seek to offer more regional selections and farm-to-table ingredients. There also seems to be a trend away from cafeteria-style dining to food courts similar to those found in shopping malls.  Food choices at the parks aren't getting less expensive, but they seem to be getting better with chefs taking more pride in their offerings.

A venerable Red Jammer makes sightseeing in Glacier National Park a breeze (and breezy!)/David and Kay Scott

Glacier National Park Lodging

Xanterra Parks & Resorts, which took over the concession contract at Glacier National Park in January 2014, has undertaken major improvements in the park's lodging facilities.  It was a welcome surprise when we walked into the guest rooms of Village Inn, Lake McDonald Lodge, Rising Sun Motor Inn, and the new Swiftcurrent cabins.  Xanterra has spent a considerable amount of money sprucing up the Glacier lodges and it shows.  Forever Resorts has also completed a number of major improvements at Signal Mountain Lodge in Grand Teton since our visit five years ago.

During our last trip to Glacier five years ago, Going-to-the-Sun Road was closed because of snow and the possibility of avalanches even though our visit was in July.  Thus, it had been eight years since we drove the scenic winding road across the Montana Rockies, and we had forgotten how magnificent a drive it is.  We have driven a lot of mountain roads, but none is better than the one in Glacier.

A room in the Rising Sun Lodge at Glacier National Park/David and Kay Scott

Other than nearby Isaac Walton Inn, railroad buffs can find no better facility for a stay than Glacier Park Lodge. Amtrak stops twice a day at the historic station near the front lawn, and freight trains roll through night and day.  One evening we drove to nearby Marias Pass and watched a westbound Amtrak roar by.  It wasn't going fast, but it was roaring. 

Glacier Park Lodge welcomes from 10 to 60 guests per day who arrive in East Glacier via Amtrak.  We talked with one guest from Illinois who was a member of a combination bus/Amtrak tour. The group caught Amtrak's Empire Builder in Chicago and rode to Salt Lake City where they boarded a bus for a tour of Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier.  She told us many members of the tour group chose to sit in coach because they didn't want to pay extra for a cabin, which is quite expensive.  The result was they arrived in Salt Lake City without much sleep following the 30-hour train trip.  She said members of the tour group in the cramped sleeping compartments didn't fare much better.  The trip was nearing its end when we talked with her and tour members were to catch the eastbound Amtrak the following morning.  She said many in the tour group were dreading the last leg of the trip back to Chicago. 

Yellowstone National Park Lodging

Lodging changes in Yellowstone's Canyon area are quite amazing.  The construction of five new lodges to replace 350 aging cabins that have been removed has made Yellowstone's largest lodging facility much more attractive.  Guest rooms in the new lodges are quite nice and a limited number of $140 rooms make these one of the best buys in the park.  Xanterra also undertook major interior and exterior work on the six lodge buildings at Grant Village.  We have always considered Grant the least desirable lodging option in Yellowstone, but with the major improvements we may have to reconsider.

So, there you have our take on a trip through three of America's crown jewels.