Old Faithful Snow Lodge, Yellowstone, Wyoming

Location

Yellowstone National Park is the world’s oldest and most famous national park, established by the US Congress in 1872 “for the preservation of its many wonders and for the enjoyment of the people”. It extends over 2.2 million acres in the northwest corner of Wyoming, and embraces small parts of Montana and Idaho as well. The lodge is conveniently located within the park, about 30 miles from the West Entrance and the town of West Yellowstone, and a mere five minutes’ walk from the legendary Old Faithful geyser after which it was named. A daily shuttle is available in winter to carry guests from Bozeman Airport to Yellowstone.

Accommodation 

Completed in 1999, the heavy timber and cedar shingle Snow Lodge is the newest of Yellowstone’s full-service hotels and it offers plush modern furnishings designed in a traditional Western style. Guests can choose to stay in lodge rooms or cabins. Rooms are simple, spacious and comfortable, and feature a full bathroom, refrigerator, coffee maker, and king-size bed. Cabins come in two varieties: Western Cabins offer two queen-size beds and a full bathroom, while the simpler duplex Frontier Cabins include double-bed, shower, toilet, and sink. All Yellowstone Park lodgings encourage their guests to spend time exploring the park itself, so televisions and radios are absent from the rooms.

Dining 

The Obsidian Dining Room in the Snow Lodge serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner amid handsome wood furnishings and custom chandeliers. The hotel’s philosophy is to provide the highest quality food with the softest possible footprint. The emphasis here is on fresh, sustainable, organic, local produce, with menu highlights including bison short ribs and Montana trout. Next door, the Firehole Lounge offers the promise of a relaxing evening drink by an open fireplace while the Geyser Grill provides guests and other park visitors with a quick-service option throughout the day, featuring traditional American deli and burger fare.

Facilities

The natural treasure of Yellowstone itself is of course the star attraction here: mountain-range wilderness and rich wildlife (including grizzlies, wolves, bison, and elk); thousands of thermal features and over 250 geysers; the spectacular 1200-foot deep Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and its powerful Lower Falls. It all requires several days to properly explore and park professionals are on hand year-round to offer a wide range of guided tours - on foot, horseback, bus, bike, boat, or even stagecoach. As its name suggests, the Snow Lodge really comes into its own in winter: a warm and cosy base for experiencing Yellowstone’s wonderland, with snowmobiling, cross-country ski trails, snowshoeing, ice-skating, and snowcoach tours all easily accessed from the lodge.