Wyoming Favorite Tips by toonsarah Top 5 Page for this destination

Planning your trip - useful websites

Favorite thing: There are several websites that I found helpful when planning our trip to Wyoming. Some of the best were:

http://www.wyomingtourism.org/
This is the official tourism website for the state. It’s a bit clunky in places but packed with useful info and well-supplied with external links. I found many of the best accommodations here – the info about them on this site might be limited but there are links to the motel or B&B’s own website if you want to investigate further. You can also order a useful trip planning pack which includes a reasonable road map.

http://www.ultimatewyoming.com/
This is another useful general website for holiday planning, though more commercial in its approach.

http://www.byways.org/browse/states/WY/
We enjoyed getting off the main roads and exploring the scenic byways in Wyoming – this website helped us identify the highlights on each route and plan where to stop for a walk or a picnic lunch.

http://www.bedandbreakfast.com/wyoming.html
If like us you enjoy staying in B&Bs you’ll find this website very helpful. We discovered the excellent Spahn’s Bighorn B&B through this route.

http://www.nps.gov/state/WY/
One of the highlights of any visit to Wyoming has to be the National Parks (Yellowstone and Grand Teton), so the National Park Service website is a must. And don’t forget the Devils Tower National Monument, the lesser known Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area and the various historic sites.

For history buffs

Favorite thing: One of the aspects of Wyoming that I particularly enjoyed were the numerous historical sites associated with the Oregon Trail and other pioneer routes, and with the legends of the wild west.

Check out Register Rock and the Oregon Trail Wagon Ruts near Guernsey and Fort Laramie for the former. For western "heros" go to Old Trail Town in Cody to see the Hole in the Wall Cabin, or to Laramie's Wyoming Territorial Prison to see where Butch Cassidy was once incarcerated, or to Sundance to learn how the Kid got his name.

National Parks

Favorite thing: It's stating the obvious, but one of the main highlights of any trip to Wyoming has to be a visit to the two great National Parks. And I do mean two - everyone seems to know about and visit Yellowstone, but you really shouldn't omit Grand Teton from your itinerary. They're both very different, although close neighbours.

We spent 3 days in Yellowstone, which I would say was about right for us (but allow more if you want to see absolutely everything, or intend to do some of the longer hikes). We only allowed 1 day for Grand Teton, based on advice given us by a friend who'd visited previously (not a VT-er!), and this wasn't really enough.

Fondest memory: Go to Yellowstone for the geysers and other geological phenomena, the spectacular canyon and the wild animals, especially bison. For me the great attraction of Grand Teton is the mountain scenery, and also the (relative) lack of crowds.

For lots of tips to help you plan, check out the National Parks websites:

www.nps.gov/yell/ for Yellowstone
www.nps.gov/grte/ for Grand Teton