For those who value convenience and informative guide, this is the perfect travel. Purchased this tour via TRIPADVISOR. I appreciate the flexibility for me to book and cancel then book once more. Shopping dilemma when opting for the best tour.
I supposed we lucked out as we signed up for the tour and had the van and guide to ourselves. It became a private tour and our guide, ITAE, is awesome. We gave the liberty and trusted him to take us where the best spots are. The hubby ecstatic from not being the driver 😊. Itae took us to Yellowstone lower loop via Grand Teton.
The Ride – Itae drove safely and comfortable. Nice chevy suburban, six passengers, and as I’ve mentioned, we had it all to ourselves. We were offered snacks and water regularly which was a pleasant gesture even though it was included with the tour cost. He is informative and knowledgeable. Learned a lot from our conversations. Just hope I retain it, lol. It was our first time to Grand Teton/Yellowstone, not knowing anything, so he made sure we had a great time.
The Tour - via Grand Teton took us to Mormon Row - A little village of the first Mormon settlers who travelled all the way from Utah. We stopped by the Jackson Lake spot, picturesque, very beautiful. An overlook of the Teton peak, kind of snow-capped a little bit and the calm lake on an early sunrise – breathtaking! Of course, Old Faithful ever reliable spewed out steam 20 minutes early than scheduled. It wasn’t as faithful with its time when we arrived. Luckily, we still witnessed it. Itae had mentioned it has never been that early. Fabulous sight. Mesmerizing as well, just stand there and be amazed. The place had so many geysers. It’s like earth is smoking continuously. On our way to Grand Prismatic, stopped by excelsior geyser crater, for me, another massive geyser to awe at. Now, GP is my favorite. Itae gave us the option to wither do an uphill 2-mile hike all the way for the overlook or do the ground view. Chose the ground view as my right foot has taken a beating walking during our entire 5-day tour. No regrets, I truly enjoyed the up-close view of the bacterial mats the geyser continually is creating. It is captivating. I found myself staring at it joyfully. The turquoise pool is enchanting as well. A few more minutes’ drive and we were gawking over the river of Yellowstone. Itae took us the beginning and end spot of the river. Another breathtaking place. Timely, a rainbow showed up at the end of the river falls and it was such a magical view. The canyon edges, the colors of it, so beautiful. Stayed and stared, I had to be pulled out from the view. We also did the Jenny Lake, Itae took us to the Yellowstone Lakeview Hotel. Vintage and historical and was told most of the upper echelon population will book for R&R. I may not have remembered everything as we went to more than what I’ve mentioned in my review. It was a full day, and we would not have been able to maximize the places to see if it had not been guided. No wasted time. I truly appreciate this tour and the key is to have a very wonderful tour guide. Thank you Itae!
Very blessed to have him as our guide.