Best Time to Visit Yellowstone (Month by Month)

The best time to visit Yellowstone is late May, June or September, when most park roads are open and there are fewer people than in July. July is the busiest month, with an average of 979,051 visits. We read the National Park Service and the park's lodge operator on 15 October 2026.

Month by month: weather and crowds

Note: Temperatures are the Park Service's monthly averages for Mammoth Hot Springs (6,200 feet) and Yellowstone Lake (7,782 feet). The crowd label is the Park Service's own rating (NPS seasons page, updated 18 Mar 2026, read 15 Oct 2026). Visitors are the Park Service's recreation visits for the whole park, averaged over 2023, 2024 and 2025 from its visitation service (irmaservices.nps.gov, read 15 Oct 2026). The NPS weather page also gives a table, but it does not name its station, so we used the seasons page

The NPS weather page says spring and fall highs run from 30 to 60 F, with snow common and up to 12 inches in 24 hours "regularly" (updated 30 Sep 2025). Summer days are often about 70 F, and afternoon thunderstorms are common. The page gives an annual snowfall of 150 inches, and the record low is minus 66 F.

We left 2022 out of the average. On 13 June 2022 all park entrances closed because of historic flooding, so that summer's counts are low (NPS news release, 25 Jul 2022).

As a cross-check, NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals for its Yellowstone Park Mammoth station (USC00489905) give average highs of 80.8 F in July, 68.8 F in September and 31.4 F in January, close to the Park Service figures above (NCEI normals service, read 15 Oct 2026).

Which month for which plan

• Open roads and fewer people: late May and June. Many facilities are open in May, per the Park Service rating, and all are open from June.

• Warm weather: July and August, with 70s and low 80s F at Mammoth, and the biggest crowds.

• Fall: September has the elk rut and still counts as "Busiest". October is quieter, with the lodges closing and Dunraven Pass closing on 12 October.

• Fewest people in the park: November, at 22,734 visits, but few facilities are open and most roads are closed to cars.

• Snow and wolves: December to March, by snowcoach or the one open road. See the winter guide.

When the roads open and close

Hours: 2026 regular vehicle dates. North Entrance to Northeast Entrance: open year round. West Entrance to Madison, Madison to Old Faithful, Madison to Norris, Mammoth to Norris and Norris to Canyon Village: 17 April to 31 October. East Entrance to Fishing Bridge and Canyon Village to Bridge Bay: 1 May to 31 October. South Entrance to West Thumb, West Thumb to Old Faithful, West Thumb to Lake Village and Tower-Roosevelt to Tower Fall: 8 May to 31 October. Canyon Village to Tower Fall over Dunraven Pass: 22 May to 12 October, and the page says it could stay open longer. The Beartooth Highway and Chief Joseph Scenic Byway, which lie outside the Northeast Entrance, run 22 May to 12 October. The page says part of the Chief Joseph road, from WY-120 to the Pilot Creek parking lot, is open all year (NPS park roads page, updated 13 Oct 2026, read 15 Oct 2026)

All dates are projected and depend on weather. The page lists no 2027 spring dates, only the 2026-27 winter dates. The seasons page says roads begin opening to regular cars in mid-April and all roads are typically open by late May. Campgrounds begin opening in May and are all open by mid-June, and they start closing in September.

What is open in winter

Hours: 2026-27 over-snow dates, for snowcoaches and snowmobiles. Mammoth to Norris: 15 Dec 2026 to 7 Mar 2027. Norris to Madison, Norris to Canyon Village and Canyon Village to Washburn Hot Springs Overlook: to 9 Mar. Canyon Village to Fishing Bridge: to 14 Mar. West, South and East entrances and the remaining groomed roads: to 15 Mar 2027. All dates depend on weather (NPS park roads page, updated 13 Oct 2026)

This matches our winter guide. Between 1 November and 14 December you can drive only the Gardiner to Cooke City road, and the over-snow trips have not started yet. That gap is a poor time to plan a first trip.

Wildlife timing

Note: Grizzly bears begin to leave dens in early February, and most have left by early May. Most enter dens by mid-November. Black bears hibernate until late March and are seen most often around Tower and Mammoth. For grizzlies, look at dawn and dusk in the Hayden and Lamar valleys, on the north slopes of Mount Washburn and from Fishing Bridge to the East Entrance (NPS bear page, updated 18 Apr 2025). Bison calves are born in late April and May. The rut starts in late July and runs through August. In winter bison move to lower ground as snow builds (NPS bison page, updated 4 May 2026). Wolf pups are born in April, about five to a litter on average, and the northern range is "one of the best places in the world to watch wolves." Wolves are most active at dawn and dusk. The page names no best season (NPS wolf page, updated 9 Sep 2026). Cow elk are fierce around calves in May to early July. In September and October bull elk battle for cows and are "highly stressed and unpredictable" (NPS safety page, updated 28 Jul 2026). All read 15 Oct 2026

Stay at least 100 yards from bears, wolves and cougars and at least 25 yards from all other animals, including bison and elk (NPS safety page, updated 28 Jul 2026). The park says the animals you see are "largely a matter of luck and coincidence," and that early morning and evening are better (NPS wildlife page, updated 30 Apr 2025).

For wildlife, May and June give bears and calves. September gives the elk rut. We did not find a source that ranks one month as best, so this is our reading of the dates above.

Lodging seasons for 2026 and 2027

Hours: Dates from the lodge operator's opening and closing page, as printed. Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel & Cabins: 24 Apr 2026 to 8 Mar 2027, then 23 Apr 2027 to 6 Mar 2028. Old Faithful Snow Lodge & Cabins: 24 Apr to 25 Oct 2026, 16 Dec 2026 to 7 Mar 2027, 23 Apr to 31 Oct 2027 and 16 Dec 2027 to 5 Mar 2028. Canyon Lodge & Cabins: 15 May to 25 Oct 2026 and 14 May to 31 Oct 2027. For 2027 only: Old Faithful Inn 30 Apr to 11 Oct, Old Faithful Lodge Cabins 7 May to 3 Oct, Lake Yellowstone Hotel & Cabins 14 May to 10 Oct, Grant Village 28 May to 10 Oct, Roosevelt Lodge Cabins 4 Jun to 6 Sep, Lake Lodge Cabins 10 Jun to 3 Oct. The page says lodges open on a variable schedule and dates are subject to change (Yellowstone National Park Lodges, opening and closing dates page, read 15 Oct 2026)

The page prints opening and closing dates in separate columns. Its own note says the Mammoth Hotel is open all year except between early March and late April, which matches the pairs above, and the Mammoth and Snow Lodge dates match our winter guide. The page lists no 2026 dates for Old Faithful Inn, Lake Hotel, Grant Village, Roosevelt, Lake Lodge or Old Faithful Lodge Cabins. Lodging in the park is run by this one concessioner, says the NPS lodging page (updated 26 Feb 2026), which gives only typical seasons. We did not check room prices.

Events

We did not find a Park Service event or festival that changes when to go, so we list none. Holiday weekends are not covered by a source we read. This is not confirmed.

The worst time to go

For most people it is July. It is the hottest and busiest month, and the Park Service suggests avoiding the main attractions from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you must go in summer, it suggests arriving at an entrance before 7 a.m. or after noon. The other poor window is 1 November to 14 December, when most roads are closed to cars, few facilities are open and the over-snow trips have not started.

What we checked and what can change

Checked on 15 October 2026: the NPS pages on park roads (13 October 2026), seasons (18 March 2026), weather (30 September 2025), lodging (26 February 2026), safety (28 July 2026), the bear page (18 April 2025), bison (4 May 2026), wolves (9 September 2026) and wildlife (30 April 2025). The NPS visitation service for 2023 to 2025, and the NPS news release on the June 2022 flood. NOAA's NCEI 1991 to 2020 normals for the Mammoth station. The lodge operator's opening and closing dates page.

Not confirmed: 2027 spring road dates, 2026 dates for several lodges, room prices, events, a single best month for wildlife, and which station the NPS weather page uses. Visitor numbers are averages, and conditions change with snow and fire. Check the NPS roads page and the lodge operator before you book.