Overview
Yellowstone National Park is one of America’s great treasures. This full day safari will show off the highlights of this incredible place; volcanic thermal features, giant waterfalls, diverse wildlife, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and Yellowstone Lake. Throughout the day we will drive scenic roads, walk historic boardwalks, enjoy the peace of natural landscapes and use our optics to view wildlife. Your guide is your driver, and their goal is to cover as many of Yellowstone’s famous features as they can in a day.
Highlights
- Old Faithful & Grand Prismatic Spring
- Lower and Upper Falls, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
- Geysers, Hot Springs, Mudpots & Fumaroles
Each tour will be tailored to the specific desires and needs of each group and guest. Our guides’ flexibility and adaptability allow them to plan the day perfectly for optimal sight-seeing. Along the way we will include what we consider to be “must-see” attractions of the National Park; famous volcanic features such as Old Faithful Geyser, geologic wonders such as The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and the megafauna who call Yellowstone home such as bison, elk, bears and wolves.
This safari will entail a full day of exploration where we take care of every detail so all you have to do is enjoy the day. We will pick you up and drop you off at your lodging. We provide fuel for the journey, including snacks, beverages, fresh picnic lunches, optics for distance viewing, and the passion of our naturalists who will feed your curiosities with their knowledge gained from years of experience in the field.
Your exact route and itinerary will be determined by your interests, current wildlife sightings, and current weather and road conditions. Our guides are all highly experienced, with thousands of hours in the field, and will expertly tailor your safari to you and your group.
Yellowstone is the world’s first National Park, and for good reason. Not only does this land sit atop one of the largest super volcanoes in the world, showing off half of planet Earth’s hydrothermal features like geysers and hot springs, but also the environment itself is nothing short of awe-inspiring; with mountains that touch the sky, grizzly bears that scour the earth and the sound of more than 250 waterfalls roaring as our wilderness ambience.
Yellowstone is vast National Park notable for a variety of landscape and terrain. The southern half of the park is known as the Yellowstone Plateau, a level expanse of sprightly lodgepole pine forest which has grown over the crater formed by the last eruption of the Yellowstone Volcano. It is a high-elevation landscape between 7000 and 8500 ft above sea level. Here we focus on Yellowstone Lake, the largest alpine body of water in the United States, the rolling wildlife-filled hills of Hayden Valley, the spectacular Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River with several waterfalls as tall as sky-scrapers, and as many geysers, hot springs, mud-pots and fumaroles as our guests want to see.
Yellowstone’s roads cover about 300 miles of the National Park in a unique figure-eight design meant to bring visitors as close as possible to the highlights. Our tours focus on all the best known and unknown attractions on the lower loop of this path. Our guides will make the most of your time and in a single day show you as much as they can to paint the picture of why Yellowstone deserves its status not only as the first, but as the best-loved National Park in the country.
What's Included
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Hotel pickup (private tours only)
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Professional naturalist guide
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Private or small group safari
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Breakfast
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Lunch
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Snacks
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Water bottle
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Use of spotting scopes and binoculars
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Guide gratuities
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National Park entrance fees
For open tours, we have two entrance options. If you are staying in Bozeman, Paradise Valley, Gardiner or Mammoth, choose the NORTH entrance. You will see the following highlights: North Gate/Roosevelt Arch, Mammoth Hot Springs, Swan Lake Flats, Norris Geyser Basin, Grand Canyon, Hayden Valley, Yellowstone Lake, Old Faithful, Geyser Basins.
For guests staying in Big Sky, West Yellowstone or Bozeman, choose the WEST entrance. You will see the following highlights: West Gate, Madison River Valley, Norris Geyser Basin, Grand Canyon, Hayden Valley, Yellowstone Lake, Old Faithful, Geyser Basins.
Open Safari NORTH
Open Safari WEST
Private Safari
This is a private safari.
Pickup Information
For all open tours, you will meet your guide at a designated central meeting location in Bozeman, Paradise Valley, Gardiner, Mammoth, Big Sky or West Yellowstone. When you reserve, we’ll confirm your exact pickup time, based on the season. Please check your confirmation email for the full list of meeting locations for open tours.
Please allow your guide an additional 5-10 minutes before and after the scheduled pickup time in case of weather delays or traffic conditions.
Approximate pickup times include:
- 6:00AM Bozeman
- 6:45AM Paradise Valley
- 7:30AM Gardiner
- 7:45AM Mammoth
- 6:45AM Big Sky
- 7:45AM West Yellowstone*
For all private tours, all of our guests are picked up (and dropped off) at their lodging location. We pick up in Bozeman, Paradise Valley, Gardiner, Mammoth, Madison Junction, Canyon Lodge, Old Faithful Inn, Big Sky and West Yellowstone*. At the time of reservation, we’ll confirm your exact pickup time, based on the season, as well as your exact pickup location.
Please allow your guide an additional 5-10 minutes before and after the scheduled pickup time in case of weather delays or traffic conditions.
Approximate pickup times include:
- 6:00AM Bozeman
- 6:45AM Paradise Valley
- 7:30AM Gardiner
- 7:45AM Mammoth
- 6:45AM Big Sky
- 7:45AM West Yellowstone*
- 6:30AM Madison Junction**
- 7:00AM Canyon Lodge**
- 7:00AM Old Faithful Inn**
Guests may request an optional 6:00AM pickup from West Yellowstone. This option includes a $100 charge for early pickup.
*For all West Yellowstone pickups, please meet at the West Yellowstone Chamber of Commerce, 30 Yellowstone Ave., West Yellowstone, MT.
**Specialty pickups within Yellowstone National Park are available for an additional fee of $100.
Thank you Yellowstone Safari Company! My guide was top notch. He shared quite a bit of historical, geological, and biological information about Yellowstone. I saw bald eagles, a moose, elk, bison, and a grizzly bear, among other animals. If you're looking for a tour of Yellowstone, this is the tour company to choose.
Safari Tour Gallery
All photography has been shot by our talented tour guides.
FAQs
When is the best time to visit Yellowstone?
Each season provides a different experience in Yellowstone National Park. Summer days are warm and long and many different kinds of animals can be seen on the move, tending their young or foraging for food. Grizzly bears might be the main summer attraction, but plenty of other wildlife can be seen and observed. Winter, in contrast, is the season of the wolf. While grizzly bears hibernate and other wildlife migrate to lower elevations or warmer climates, the wolf has adapted to thrive in the harsh winter conditions of Yellowstone and is much more visible on the landscape than in the summer months. There’s no best time to visit the park, but if you know where to look, you’ll be rewarded with an amazing experience in any season. Our Best of Yellowstone Tour is a summer tour, designed to show off the highlights of Yellowstone National Park.
How do I take the best photos at Yellowstone?
In a place like Yellowstone National Park, it’s hard to snap a bad photo. With dramatic alpine landscapes and colorful geological wonders, you’ll have plenty of opportunities for a frame worthy photo. Our Best of Yellowstone Tour offers great opportunities to photograph the landscape and the geology that is unique to Yellowstone National Park. Be sure to let your guide know that photography is a goal for the day, so they can be on the lookout for photo opportunities. If wildlife photography is more your style, the Yellowstone Wildlife Safari offers personalized attention to wildlife throughout the Park. We will always be sure to keep our distance from wildlife, so be sure to pack your favorite equipment. Let your guide know in advance if you would like to capture a certain area or species in particular and they can be on the lookout for photo opportunities for you. For the best opportunities to photograph both wildlife and landscapes, we recommend booking the tours back to back – booking a Yellowstone Wildlife Safari first, then a Best of Yellowstone Tour for the next day, so that you can make the most of your time in the area.
What is the difference between a Best of Yellowstone tour and a Yellowstone Wildlife Safari tour?
The Best of Yellowstone tour is designed to show you the highlights of Yellowstone National Park. We will spend time at most of the major sites, such as Old Faithful Geyser, Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone Lake, the Lower and Upper Falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and other lesser known wonders. This tour will focus the time mostly along the Lower Loop of Yellowstone, while the Yellowstone Wildlife Safari will be traveling the Upper Loop and the Northern Range in search of wildlife. Yellowstone is a large place, covering over 2 million acres in size. It is impossible to see it all in a day, a week, or even a month. To get the most out of your visit, book a Best of Yellowstone for one day, followed by a Yellowstone Wildlife Safari for the next day. You’ll get to cover the best parts of the National Park and see more than you would on your own. We recommend booking your tours for the beginning of your vacation. You’ll learn a lot about the area on each tour, and you’ll be able to apply that knowledge as you continue your travels in the area.
What do others say about this tour?
5 Stars
I can’t recommend this group enough. Our guide was informative and entertaining. We saw a lot of wildlife and beautiful scenery. Best of all he was able to keep a six year and a two year old interested and engaged for hours. The company was well organized and easy to work with.
Allison V.
5 Stars
Hands down kudos to our tour guide!! Bless his heart, he was so knowledgeable of the park and knew where all the wildlife hung around. He was so helpful with our children, helping them with his scopes to get a closer look at the animals. He drove through an early spring snow to see the higher elevation at old faithful. Also, provided us with tips on the bears, which we used in Glacier as well. Offered to take family pictures for us too, which was a huge plus! He made the trip very fun, we were happy with our experience and he is such a great guy! We highly recommend this tour for a pleasant trip to Yellowstone!
Mandy M.
5 Stars
Our tour was in depth, our guide is very knowledgeable, history, park, places for best photo ops. Food and drink were tasty, we observed many buffalo, cougar, long horn sheep, hot springs… No wolves, many deer, elk, eagle, and more… Well worth your time and money, provided us very fine memories of our Montana trip. Thank God for Teddy Roosevelt; without his foresight the country would be deprived of our geographical monuments.
Steven D.
Guides and Staff
Our Team
Local, experienced naturalist guides.
Further Readings
Visiting Yellowstone in the Summer
Jun 18, 2021
Yellowstone is one of the most popular National Parks, and it’s no wonder why. Between the stunning scenery, unique wildlife, and hot springs, there’s plenty to do and see during your stay, no matter the season.
The Best Things to See in Yellowstone National Park
Mar 8, 2021
Yellowstone National Park truly has something for everyone. From wildlife watchers to geyser gazers, and history buffs to the most intrepid of explorers, this iconic wonderland offers endless opportunities for observation, adventure, and inspiration.
