Reserve Now to Stay Inside National Parks

Families planning travel to the great national parks of the West have a rare opportunity this spring and summer. While guestrooms at iconic park lodges and hotels are usually reserved as much as a year in advance, this year sees availability at some of the most sought-after hotels, cabins and even campgrounds within the most popular parks.

At the Grand Canyon, for example, rooms are available at South Rim and Grand Hotel at The Grand Canyon. Styles vary from log interiors with beamed ceilings to sleek modern lines, and many of the rooms have canyon views. Or, you might be lucky enough to score a pine-clad guestroom at the ever-popular Yellowstone National Park in the iconic Old Faithful Inn overlooking the geyser. Elsewhere in the vast park are the Adirondack-style Cascade Lodge, the waterside Lake Lodge and several others.

Along with the well-known Old Faithful, several other geysers and geyser basins, as well as Mammoth Hot Springs and the Mud Volcano, demonstrate the powerful thermal activity under the park. You’ll need to plan a stay of several days to see all these, plus the waterfalls of Yellowstone River and the abundance of wild animals part of the Yellowstone experience.

Accommodations are still available at Glacier National Park, Zion National Park and Oasis at Death Valley, a green resort village and golf course set in the middle of the barren Death Valley. But they are going fast, so contact Xanterra Travel Collection to find out what’s still open for reservations, as well as special packages and value-added programs.