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Message: Emoticon Listing HTML Help	[quote]I've finally had a chance to write up something about our trip to Yellowstone National Park at the end of June so here goes. This post will deal with the practicalities, and I'll do another on the experiences. [/i]Airlines[/i] - We flew from Pittsburgh to Denver via USAir, connecting with United to fly to Billings, MT. All flights went well and were on time or early. Our only problems were with luggage - two pieces were temporarily lost between Denver and Billings and were driven to our hotel in West Yellowstone by noon the next day. United's telephone voice recognition system for tracking lost luggage works quite well, and we called it several times to check on the status of our luggage. My two checked bags were flagged to be opened and searched by TSA on both USAir flights. Neither search was conducted in my presence, and neither bag had anything but clothing in them. Both were put back together reasonably well, but it's wise to pack [/i]everything[/i] in Ziplocs or other see-through bags. It's easier for TSA to inspect your bags if necessary and less likely that you'll lose small items if everything is bagged together and visible. My husband's two checked bags containing all the outdoor gear including matches, fish hooks, and other pointy things breezed through untouched. TSA in Pittsburgh and Denver refused to hand-inspect our cameras or Ziploc bags of film, but TSA in Billings was willing to do it. [/i]Rental car[/i] - We rented an intermediate size car from Hertz and received a Subaru Outback. We'd never driven an SUV before and were pleasantly surprised with this model - lots of room and very comfy. We were glad to have it in the various types of weather we experienced while in Yellowstone. The only strange thing that happened was that Hertz charged the full amount of the rental plus one day, which I didn't notice until we were well on the way to YNP. When we returned the car, I asked about it and was told that the final statement would show the actual rental charge only, which it did. I asked if the overcharge was something new for Hertz and was told it wasn't, but I've never encountered this overcharge in the past. [/i]Hotels[/i] - We stayed at three different hotels, one each in West Yellowstone, Billings, and Denver. We had five nights at the <a href=http://www.yellowstoneinn.com/ target=_blank>Stagecoach Inn in West Yellowstone</a>, the only hotel and the nicest one in town that wasn't part of a chain. It was $89 per night for two queen beds, and it was very nice and comfortable with pleasant, efficient, and responsive management. Although it's on a main street which our room fronted, we weren't affected by outside noise. There's a restaurant attached to the hotel, but it's under separate management/ownership. Food was very good - service was uneven. The hotel is a mile or less from the west entrance to Yellowstone NP. When we were walking around West Yellowstone one evening, I noticed that there's a hostel in town and have included a link to it <a href=http://www.kasbah.com/hostels/hostels_more.asp?hostel=3172 target=_blank>here</a> in case anyone is interested in checking it out. We spent one night in the Quality Inn Homestead Park in Billings, MT, and it was a nice, typical Quality Inn with a rate of $89 for two queen beds. There was one big problem, however - this hotel and several others are located in a business park with the hotels lined up alongside a very busy railroad track. There were at least four trains passing by per hour all night long, and that doesn't make for a sound sleep. If you ever find the need to stay in Billings, MT, be sure to stay downtown and not out on the west side in the business park! For our night in Denver I took advantage of a special offer last winter from the Hyatt Regency Hotel downtown and booked a room for $99 including breakfast. When we arrived at the hotel, the manager greeted us personally and asked if we'd mind moving to the Marriott one block away because an international convention was in town and the Hyatt was the center of it so they needed our room if we'd be willing to move. I asked if we'd receive an equal quality room and was assured we would so we happily accepted the [/i]free[/i] room at the Marriott and the [/i]free[/i] taxi to get there. The room at the Marriott was gorgeous - big corner room with a king-size bed on the quiet side of the hotel. We were glad we switched :).[/quote]
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DCMom

Yellowstone National Park trip - practicalities
replied on: 8/11/2003 3:36:11 PM

I've finally had a chance to write up something about our trip to Yellowstone National Park at the end of June so here goes. This post will deal with the practicalities, and I'll do another on the experiences.

Airlines - We flew from Pittsburgh to Denver via USAir, connecting with United to fly to Billings, MT. All flights went well and were on time or early. Our only problems were with luggage - two pieces were temporarily lost between Denver and Billings and were driven to our hotel in West Yellowstone by noon the next day. United's telephone voice recognition system for tracking lost luggage works quite well, and we called it several times to check on the status of our luggage. My two checked bags were flagged to be opened and searched by TSA on both USAir flights. Neither search was conducted in my presence, and neither bag had anything but clothing in them. Both were put back together reasonably well, but it's wise to pack everything in Ziplocs or other see-through bags. It's easier for TSA to inspect your bags if necessary and less likely that you'll lose small items if everything is bagged together and visible. My husband's two checked bags containing all the outdoor gear including matches, fish hooks, and other pointy things breezed through untouched. TSA in Pittsburgh and Denver refused to hand-inspect our cameras or Ziploc bags of film, but TSA in Billings was willing to do it.

Rental car - We rented an intermediate size car from Hertz and received a Subaru Outback. We'd never driven an SUV before and were pleasantly surprised with this model - lots of room and very comfy. We were glad to have it in the various types of weather we experienced while in Yellowstone. The only strange thing that happened was that Hertz charged the full amount of the rental plus one day, which I didn't notice until we were well on the way to YNP. When we returned the car, I asked about it and was told that the final statement would show the actual rental charge only, which it did. I asked if the overcharge was something new for Hertz and was told it wasn't, but I've never encountered this overcharge in the past.

Hotels - We stayed at three different hotels, one each in West Yellowstone, Billings, and Denver. We had five nights at the Stagecoach Inn in West Yellowstone, the only hotel and the nicest one in town that wasn't part of a chain. It was $89 per night for two queen beds, and it was very nice and comfortable with pleasant, efficient, and responsive management. Although it's on a main street which our room fronted, we weren't affected by outside noise. There's a restaurant attached to the hotel, but it's under separate management/ownership. Food was very good - service was uneven. The hotel is a mile or less from the west entrance to Yellowstone NP. When we were walking around West Yellowstone one evening, I noticed that there's a hostel in town and have included a link to it here in case anyone is interested in checking it out.

We spent one night in the Quality Inn Homestead Park in Billings, MT, and it was a nice, typical Quality Inn with a rate of $89 for two queen beds. There was one big problem, however - this hotel and several others are located in a business park with the hotels lined up alongside a very busy railroad track. There were at least four trains passing by per hour all night long, and that doesn't make for a sound sleep. If you ever find the need to stay in Billings, MT, be sure to stay downtown and not out on the west side in the business park!

For our night in Denver I took advantage of a special offer last winter from the Hyatt Regency Hotel downtown and booked a room for $99 including breakfast. When we arrived at the hotel, the manager greeted us personally and asked if we'd mind moving to the Marriott one block away because an international convention was in town and the Hyatt was the center of it so they needed our room if we'd be willing to move. I asked if we'd receive an equal quality room and was assured we would so we happily accepted the free room at the Marriott and the free taxi to get there. The room at the Marriott was gorgeous - big corner room with a king-size bed on the quiet side of the hotel. We were glad we switched

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