Written by Sandy Briggs - a long time resident of Island Park, Idaho

Note about Area Airports, best routes, and things to see along the way. There are a few options for flying into areas that are closest to Yellowstone National Park and near Island Park.  The furthest airport, but usually the one with the best airfares, is Salt Lake City, Utah. There is also Bozeman, Montana, West Yellowstone, Montana, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and Idaho Falls, Idaho. Below is information on distances, things to know, and some things to stop and see along the way. Keep in mind that driving times in Idaho are not normally in miles, but actual time/hours spent traveling.

Salt Lake City, Utah 

The international airport in SLC is a nice airport outside of town that is easy to get around and navigate. This is usually the cheapest airport to find flights and is a hub for Delta Airlines.

SLC is 5 hours from the cabin on nice roads. There will be the potential for some traffic until you are north of Ogden, Utah, when the road goes from many lanes down to two in your direction. The fastest route is SLC, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, and Island Park. There are many fast-food restaurants along the first part of the route, but they thin out considerably after Ogden. You won’t find a Starbucks unless you stop in Layton or Ogden and the next one isn’t until you reach Pocatello. If you are hungry, my favorite stop is Crown Burgers in Layton. They have surprisingly good Greek food, but they are known for their burgers. It is an easy on and off from the freeway.

There are Costco stores in Ogden, Pocatello, and Idaho Falls.

Bozeman, Montana - Route One
through Ennis

Bozeman Airport is a little outside of Bozeman in Belgrade. It’s a small airport and extremely easy to navigate. From Bozeman you have the choice of three routes, this is the fastest and will take you about 2-hours to get to Island Park depending on traffic and stops along the way.

Drive from Bozeman to Ennis, then turn toward Island Park and Idaho Falls on US-20. If you decide to take this route, at Four-Corners in Bozeman (where you turn right to go to Ennis) there is a restaurant called Best Burger. Stop if you are hungry, they have great burgers, fries, and huckleberry shakes. If you haven’t heard of a huckleberry, they are wild berries that can’t be domesticated and grow wild in the forest. They can be picked in late July or early August depending on weather and snowpack. They are great in milkshakes, pancakes, and just about anything. They are like a blueberry but smaller, tastier, and wild.

This route will take you along the Madison River which is beautiful, and you will begin to see why Montana is called the “Big Sky” state. The mountains from Ennis to the state border with Idaho are incredible. Along this route, about 30 minutes from Bozeman is Norris Hot Springs. It’s a great place to stop and stretch with a hot soak before continuing down the road. They have surprisingly good food, beer and wine that is served poolside while you soak the travel stiffness from your body. Look at their website for hours and days they are open, it varies.

Another 30 minutes down the road is Ennis. It’s a quaint little western town with a great Main Street that has been featured in many westerns over the years. If you like Bailey’s with your morning coffee, stop in at Willie’s Distillery for some Willie’s Coffee Cream or Huckleberry Cream. They are both awesome. Before you make the turn into Ennis, Deemo’s Meat is on your right. If you want some good meat or homemade beef jerky, this is the place to stop. They also have a surprising assortment of Italian food items and good take and bake pizza and frozen pies. Pick up some good steaks to grill at the cabin. There is also a little market that you could pick up some groceries on the right about a quarter mile before you get to the stop sign at Deemo’s. The Sugar High is a great place for a huckleberry shake or ice cream treat and they are close to Deemo’s.

Any of the bars in Ennis are good places for burgers and bar fare but if you wanted a nice sit-down dinner, the Alley Bistro is the best in town. They have great soups and entrées. Oh, and they have pizza, too, right next to a cute little six lane bowling alley.

There isn’t much after Ennis, except the Grizzly Bar, which is great, until you get to Island Park. The Grizzly Bar is on the right-hand side about 20 more minutes down the road from Ennis. You can’t miss it because of the pine shaped cell tower looming over the place. It is on the banks of the Madison River. We recently discovered this place and have been back many times it has been that good, and the prices are reasonable, too.

 Note: Cell reception isn’t good on this route. You will be lucky to have reception half of your trip, but that just gives you time to look out the window and enjoy the views.

Bozeman, Montana - Route Two
through Big Sky and West Yellowstone

Bozeman Airport is a little outside of Bozeman in Belgrade. It’s a small airport and extremely easy to navigate. From Bozeman you have the choice of three routes, this is the second choice and will take you about three-hours depending on traffic.

Drive from Bozeman to Big Sky, then continue through a small corner of YNP to West Yellowstone, then to Island Park. If you decide to take this route, at Four-Corners (where you go straight to Big Sky) there is a place called Best Burger on your left. Stop if you are hungry, they have great burgers, fries, and huckleberry shakes.

After four-corners, a couple of miles on the right, you will see Bozeman Hot Springs. This is a great place to stop for an outdoor soak in their newly renovated pools. Go through the indoor pools, plunges, and steam room to the outdoor pools first. They are wonderful.

After you exit the Bozeman valley, you will drive through a winding canyon along the banks of the Gallatin River until you reach the Big Sky turnoff stoplight. Keep going straight and a few miles down the road on the right, you will see Buck’s T4. A little more down the road and you will see Riverhouse Grill on the left. Both are excellent. Buck’s is upscale and will take longer to be served, but it is an old-time local favorite. I recommend eating in the bar as it is faster than the dining room. River House Grill BBQ is quicker, and I highly recommend their broasted chicken. We usually call in an order when we leave Bozeman (before the canyon when we still have cell service) and pick it up on the way by.

Note: Both restaurants open between 4:00 and 5:00 pm so it depends on what time you are passing through. They both can get crowded, so plan to arrive near opening or order in advance.

Once you leave the Big Sky area your next stop will be West Yellowstone. From here to West Yellowstone, it will be winding curves along the Gallatin River. The roads will open up and the speed will change to 55 mph as you enter Yellowstone National Park. This section of the park isn’t as spectacular as the rest of the park, but bear, moose, and other animals can be spotted if you keep an eye out. There is no toll booth at this entrance because you don’t have to pay to drive through this small section of the park. Watch for the Welcome to Yellowstone National Park sign on the right side of the road for a photo opportunity.

 The Gallatin River is great fishing, but if you are fishing it inside the park, you need a park license. Fishing the Gallatin outside the park will require a Montana fishing license. Both can be purchased online. Check the license rates, it may be cheaper to get a season pass to fish YNP if you are planning on fishing more than a couple of days. The same applies to Montana licenses.

From here, you will continue to West Yellowstone. Please see options for dining in the “West Yellowstone Places to Eat” section. Then on to Island Park which is about 30-minutes away.

Note: Cell reception isn’t good on this route. You will be lucky to have reception half of your trip, but that just gives you time to look out the window and enjoy the views.

Bozeman, Montana
Route three through Livingston, Gardiner, YNP at Mammoth, Norris, Madison, West Yellowstone to Island Park

Bozeman Airport is a little outside of Bozeman in Belgrade. It’s a small airport and extremely easy to navigate. From Bozeman you have the choice of three routes, this is the third choice and will take you five hours depending on park traffic. I would not take this route if you will be traveling at night. It is too beautiful to miss, and you will likely travel most of this route sometime during your stay if you plan on visiting the park.

From the airport you can get on the freeway heading to Livingston easily, but if you wanted to stop in Bozeman to eat, there are a couple of places I’d recommend. If you are there at breakfast or lunch time, check out the Western Café in downtown Bozeman. It is an iconic place with amazing home-cooked food. The Western isn’t open for dinner. There is also Ted’s which is Ted Turner’s bison restaurant. They serve more than bison, but that is what it is known for. They have lunch and dinner, and both are excellent. I recommend trying their fresh fried potato chips with dip, they are amazing.

Bozeman has the closest Costco to Island Park and Montana doesn’t have sales tax, so this is a great stop to stock up for your trip and fill up your rental car’s gas tank before returning it to the rental agency on your way out of Bozeman.

Livingston is about 30 minutes out of Bozeman. You exit at Livingston for Gardiner and YNP so if you wanted a good meal, go to the Rib and Chop House. They have take-out as well. Try one of their huckleberry drinks. Note: Bars in Montana can make alcoholic drinks to go – bonus!

Once you leave Livingston, there are two possible stops for hot springs. One is Chico and the other is Yellowstone Hot Springs. Both are amazing. Chico is a few miles off the road in beautiful Paradise Valley and Yellowstone is right off the road on the banks of the mighty Yellowstone River. Chico does have an amazing dining room and superb food, but you’ll need to make reservations early, it does fill up and they are only open for dinner. They have a grill poolside that has your standard American fare that is open around noon. They also have a poolside bar.

Once you get to Gardiner you are poised to enter the North Entrance of YNP. For places to eat, please see the Yellowstone Entrances document which details the best options for Gardiner and the North Park Entrance. This is also where you can take photos of the Roosevelt Arch and will pay to enter the park. Talk to the ranger in the booth for your best option for a pass depending on how many days you plan to visit. I believe it is also possible to buy entry into the park online but buying it at the window gives you a chance to ask questions. Also, don’t forget to check with the ranger to see if Boiling River is open (photo above). It is just a few more miles up the road when you cross the Gardiner River. Park on either side, but the trail is to your left. There are changing rooms there. Wear water shoes, as it has rocks you need to walk across to get to the right spot (where the cold and hot water meet for your perfect temperature). It is normally closed until after July 15th, but the last two years it hasn’t been opened at all.

Once in the park you will go by Mammoth Hot Springs, to Norris, Madison, West Yellowstone and to Island Park.

Note: Cell reception isn’t good on this route. You will be lucky to have reception half of your trip, but that just gives you time to look out the window and enjoy the views.

Idaho Falls, Idaho to Rexburg, St. Anthony, Ashton, and Island Park

Idaho Falls Airport is only 1.5 hours from the cabin, but it is usually expensive to fly there because of the Idaho National Laboratory. The airlines charge high rates for flights knowing the government will support the costs. For this reason, I’d recommend avoiding this airport unless you can find a cheap rate. To get to Idaho Falls it usually requires connecting flights and there is always the chance you will miss your connection and be stuck in Salt Lake City because you are unable to get into Idaho Falls. For some reason, their connection times are only 30-45 minutes in SLC. If you have a delay, it makes it very difficult when the connection time is so short and unfortunately, they don’t often hold planes.

There is a Costco in Idaho Falls. If you are coming up from Salt Lake City, or landing in Idaho Falls, this is the closest one to the cabin.

Jackson Hole, Wyoming – Jackson, Wilson, Driggs, Ashton, Island Park

Jackson’s airport is on the north side of Jackson Hole and about two hours from the cabin. There isn’t an easy way to go around the city of Jackson Hole to get to Jackson Pass, so expect some traffic as you go right through the middle of town. Honestly, if I was going to fly into Jackson, I’d stay for a couple of days and see Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole. Both are fun and worth the trip and if you are already there, no reason to go back, except to catch a plane, right?

If you want dinner and other information about Jackson Hole, please see the “Must-See Grand Teton National Park (GTNP)” section.

West Yellowstone, Montana – Island Park

The West Yellowstone Airport is on the north side of town. There are limited flights in and out of the airport. Ocasionally, you can get a pretty decent rate into the airport, but it may be difficult to arrange for a rental car if you need one.

The airport is only 30-minutes from the cabin. West Yellowstone does have a couple of grocery stores if you wanted to stock up before coming to the cabin. The selection at these two stores is much better than Robin’s Roost in Island Park, but they charge premium prices.

If you wanted restaurant information look in the “West Yellowstone Places to Eat” section.

If you are looking for the best places to stay while you are here look no more. Visit Island Park Idaho has cabins of all sizes to fit your vacation group perfectly. Check out our accommodations here