Best Camping In Yellowstone National Park

Above, the Gibbon River. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Today must be Thrillist's Yellowstone National Park day as they have another helpful article on the park posted.

This one is the best camping in Yellowstone.

When we visited Yellowstone National Park three years ago, we stayed at the West Entrance/Yellowstone Park KOA located just outside of West Yellowstone, Montana. Private campgrounds outside of Yellowstone such as this is another option for travelers, especially if all the campgrounds are full.

There's a number of camping options in Yellowstone and the article covers them all.

Their article begins with:

It is illegal to sleep overnight in Yellowstone’s parking lots or picnic grounds -- a fun fact I learned on my previous visit four years ago, when a park ranger woke me with a loud rap on my car window and abruptly asked me to move. (In my defense, I thought I’d already left the park, having passed under one of those big “You Are Now Leaving the Park” stone arches, but apparently I stopped some 30 feet shy of indeed leaving the park.) 

Please don’t sleep in your car in Yellowstone. You have better options! Yellowstone has a grand total of 2,178 camping sites spread across 12 campgrounds, seven of which are run by the National Park Service and are first come, first served. The other five are run by a private concessionaire called Yellowstone National Park Lodges -- these require reservations and are a bit more pricey. Visits to all campgrounds are limited to 14 days from July 1 through Labor Day, and 30 days the rest of the year -- with the exception of Fishing Bridge, where I guess you could just live out your remaining days in an RV if you wished. You also have options for backcountry camping in Yellowstone -- meaning you’re sleeping in the park’s undeveloped wild, carrying everything you need with you -- and glamping, meaning the opposite of that, plus private chefs and massages.

To read more, go here.