“Hotels near Yellowstone National Park” were exactly the keywords I used to search for hotels, motels, inns, lodging near Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.
For those wanting to visit the popular tourist destination in the wild, wild west Wyoming, finding the best hotel close to the park is the best option. However, searching for hotels online is a pain in the ass.
Yellowstone National Park is in the Western part of Wyoming and if you travel from the east by car, the closest city with available hotels/inns/motels is Cody. I am sure there are a couple of lodging at the park itself, but expect to spend few hundreds more or even a thousand more during peak season, like summer months.
Cody is the best city to find for hotels if you intend to enter from the East side of the park. The hotels listed online are those that offer higher rates, they’re the popular ones with established names. That is why, searching for good, cheap hotels for the “can’t-afford” tourists is a pain in the butt (i need to say that again).
When I visited Yellowstone Park (just to view the Old Faithful geyser), I stayed at “Big Bear” motel, in Cody. I paid over $100 a day, which includes a coffee and a dough for breakfast. The cost of the room is cheaper during non-peak seasons. I’ve heard it could even go down to less than $50 at some point.
Finding Big Bear Motel online took quite some time. Not every Wyoming directory listed the name of the hotel. Those I found had a rate ranging from $200 to $350 a day, which was too much for me who’d only be spending the weekend in Cody. Big Bear Motel was the cheapest I saw.
One reason that I finally reserved a room at Big Bear was the free internet connection, yes, free WiFi. Other hotels around the area don’t have this feature offered for free. Internet connection is important for me as I can’t live a day of travel without posting a blog.
The internet connection in Big Bear motel was a bit slow. There were few moments that the connection was cut and I had to move my laptop to a corner to be reconnected. Maybe it was the price of paying less for a room. Anyhow, I was able to do stuff online, still. The room was sufficient and spacious enough. There was a cable-connected TV, a table, a comfy queen-size bed. Shower/bathroom was good. One thing missing was the refrigerator, which I would have wanted because the chocolates I bought started to melt due to a very warm day.
When I went outside of my motel, I noticed that there were few hotels around the area that were not listed online. I bet those were cheap too.
So if hotels are fully booked when you are trying to reserve online, this doesn’t mean there isn’t any hotel accommodation left for you. There are still many hotels and inns that are available, waiting for you when you reach Wyoming. Don’t worry if you can’t get a room online, trust me, you’d get a room when you get there.
Big Bear Motel Address
139 W. Yellowstone Ave.
Cody, WY 82414-8723
