Yellowstone Day Tours — Local services in Jackson

When I originally booked with YDT I had booked a Grant Teton Sunset Tour for a very affordable rate. They had great reviews and fit into our loose schedule. I got a call a few days before telling me they didn’t have enough people to fill the tour and gave me several options to make things work. I had just booked our other days with diff activities so YTD very graciously put us on a full day Grand Teton Park tour from 6:45a-3p. I had the option for a full immediate refund after YDT offered several diff dates, but we took their offer of the full day.

We were picked up at our hotel right before 7a and our guide, Jeff Brown, kept in contact with us the day before and morning of so things would coordinate well.

We started outside the park going to a few scenic spots Jeff knows well and saw some wildlife along the way. Plenty of photo opportunities and nice basic binoculars were provided to everyone in the van. Jeff also had a professional scope on a tripod he would set up for us to get incredibly close looks to the wildlife.

Breakfast and lunch were provided and were delicious and filling. The van was spacious with nice captain seats and room for bags and cameras.

Jeff was truly an exceptional guide not just for the wildlife and scenery but for our group and the mood throughout the day. He was constantly keeping the conversation and jokes going, not in an annoying way, but starting at 7am means ppl are pretty quiet and he fixed that pretty quickly. He had us laughing and chatting all day and he was full of information on the area, wildlife, flora, parks, the town of Jackson, etc etc. He somehow remembered everything about everyone throughout the day to the point where he must have had a cheat sheet or was taking detailed mental notes all day. He kept breaking the ice between us all until we all felt like a family at the end.

We made our way to the Grand Teton Natl Park and entry fees were included with the tour cost. Once in the park we cruised around a bit and saw some scant wildlife before heading to Jenny Lake where we took the ferry across (again, fee covered in ticket price) so we could do the easy half mile hike to the Hidden Falls which was amazing. Only two ppl from our group stayed behind due to trail conditions but being stuck on the shore Jenny Lake for 30min isn’t a bad deal either. The area is uniquely gorgeous and picturesque.

We had lunch after the Jenny Lake hike and hit the road again going north. A traffic jam gave us a hint that wildlife was near and once we got close enough we found out the famous Grizzly 399 was with her cub on the side of the road, having their lunch as well. Due to the traffic flow and Rangers keeping ppl safe we voted to keep moving north through the dam and to a couple more spots Jeff had where bison/buffalo and elk could be seen.

We headed back south towards where the bear was and Rangers informed everyone she was on the move and had everyone go to the river flowing from the dam where we could see 399 and her (huge) cub grazing across the river in a field. We even saw 399 feeding her cub, them wrestling around a bit, and one of the bears raiding a bird feeder. It was something I’ll never forget.

We ran late but Jeff constantly kept in contact with everyone to make sure we weren’t disrupting anyone’s plans. Thankfully, no one was in a rush so the mood was very relaxed and enjoyable.

We were dropped off right where we were picked up at around 4/430pm. Leaving the group actually felt sad because we had gotten along so well and shared so much - mostly because of our great guide.

If/when we come back to the area we will be booking with YDT...

Something I most enjoyed during this trip was limiting the amount of driving I actually had to do. It was such a relief to be able to focus on the tour, information, and wild life sightings instead of the road. Plus, who knows better than a local?!

Sunset Tour - Brian, our tour guide, was super accommodating and tailored the tour to what his clients were seeking, whether it was to see wildlife or capture a particular image. It was beautiful and the sunset site finale was gorgeous!!

Full Day Yellowstone (Lower Loop) Tour & Full Day Grand Tetons Tour - We had close (appropriate distance) encounters with bison, moose, elk and black bear; we also saw eagles, osprey, blue herron, red tail hawks, Swanson’s hawks, white pelican, mule deer, red fox, ground squirrels, marmot, pronghorn and their babies, bison, and a sandhill crane.

You guys! The “close encounters” were epic! We watched a moose travel from one hill ridge, descend to the road, cross, pass through willow bushes, and enter a pond where we watched for 30+ min as it snacked on vegetation in the water. So neat!

The geysers were incredibly colorful and Brian ensured we saw the best of the best in an efficient manner. He provided great recommendations on where to position yourself at sites in order to get the best photos and hit the big ticket items.

The meals were tasty and consisted of a variety of options. Breakfast (for me) was a bacon/egg croissant from a local vendor (stimulate the local economy) and apple turnover pastry but there were other options too. Lunch was a turkey sandwich, chips, apple, and cookies but, again, there was a wide variety to choose from.

We also enjoyed the company of the other tourists who were respectful and just as excited; this is shared as an indication of the type of clientele this organization attracts.

Overall, A+ experience and highly recommend...

I booked a 2-day private tour in June of Grand Teton National Park & Yellowstone for my sister's family visting from abroad for 2 weeks, since Teton Excursions folks were unavailable on those particular dates, and my sister couldn't modify her itinerary because she had booked non-refundable business class tickets.

Katie was assigned to take my sister's family to Yellowstone. She turned out to be a designated driver rather than a tour guide because she did not accompany my sister's family to any spot they visited to brief them about that spot. This is in stark contrast to my own personal experience with another tour operator in the area (I couldn't book with them for my sister's family, though, as that tour operator's private tours are suitable for 8 people or more. I was unable to book with Teton Excursions either).

Katie did not let my sister's family visit the Grand Prismatic overlook although I had called twice to confirm before paying online, and the booking instructions also mentioned it. She did not even take them to all the places on the itinerary because she said it'd get dark soon. Well, the tour was supposed to span 12-13 hours.

The tour guide for the next day (for Grand Teton National Park) was quite good but Katie had already spoiled their experience.

I'm not one for schadenfreude, but I genuinely hope this unscrupulous tour operator goes out of business soon because they engage in bait-and-switch (mal)practice.

I emailed the tour operator after the tour regarding Katie's behavior & didn't receive a response.

My advice to anyone booking private tours with them due to lack of better options is to have commitments in-writing (over email), so that you can make your credit card issuer fight on your behalf against these fraudsters if they renege upon their commitments. I didn't try to do any chargeback, but perhaps I...