Grand Teton national park is one of my favorite parks I’ve visited yet. The park has such a magical feeling from the Teton mountain range, incredible wildlife, lakes, and the nearby town, Jackson Hole. The park offers so much to do and has several different options depending on interest level. Here is a quick guide on some amazing things to do in GTNP!

Things to Know about Grand Teton National Park

🎟 The park requires an entrance fee. It’s $35 for a 7 day period. I’d highly recommend purchasing the America the Beautiful pass if you plan to visit multiple national parks at once (like combining the Tetons and Yellowstone into one trip). The annual pass is $80 and gets you into any national park for a year!

🐴 Grand Teton’s closet town is Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I would recommend spending time in Jackson Hole, it’s about 30-40 minutes outside of the park, depending on the area you’re staying in. There’s plenty of restaurants, stores, and accommodations if you’re unable to stay inside the park or if you’d prefer a hotel stay.

🏕 There are six established campgrounds within the GTNP which are all conveniently located throughout the park. As always, I’d suggest making a reservation well in advance if you plan to camp, typically reservations open 6 months before your trip date. We stayed at Jenny Lake campground which is tent only and this was a very central location. Be sure to research on where in the park you’d like to be, the campgrounds are spread across the entire park.

Other than campgrounds, there were a decent amount of free camp spots which was a nice surprise! We stayed at a free spot for three nights before moving to our campground. These free camp spots were definitely more crowded then others we’ve stayed at but it was nice to have a free sleep! Keep in mind, free camp spots are always primitive so no amenities (water, bathrooms, guaranteed spot, etc).

🚐 Grand Teton is a relatively small national park and there’s two sides to it, one is highway 191 (outer road) and the other is the scenic drive (inner road) which includes many beautiful look out points and access to popular trails. Interestingly, if you stay on the side of highway 191, you don’t have to pay an entrance fee even though you’re technically in the park! Highway 191 also takes you into Jackson Hole.

Things to do in GTNP

Watch the Sunrise

This was my favorite thing to do in the park! The sunrise within the Grand Teton national park, is truly one of the most spectacular experiences you’ll have. Watching the Teton mountains change to pink and purple as the sun comes up is breath taking. Anywhere you watch the sunrise within the park will be beautiful, but I’d recommend Schwabacher landing or Mormon Row.

Go on a Hiking Adventure

Grand Teton national park has so many incredible hikes to do. Throughout my visit, some of my favorites were:

• Hike to Hidden falls and Inspiration point. There’s a boat shuttle available you can take from Jenny Lake that drops you right near the trail head to hike up to hidden falls. If you feel up for a longer hike, continue on past Inspiration point and hike towards Cascade Canyon. This is a long hike but it’s worth doing parts of it!
• Cascade Canyon. This is a long hike but we were able to hike parts of it and combined it with the Jenny lake loop so we could also see hidden falls and inspiration point like I mentioned above.
• Delta lake. This is a stunning but strenuous and steep hike that takes you to delta lake. We attempted to hike this trail but had to turn around after a few miles in due to Patrick getting elevation sickness. Make sure you go prepared with plenty of water and snacks as well as giving yourself time to adjust to the elevation in the area.
• Taggart Lake. This is a fairly easy to moderate 4 mile hike that takes you to Taggart Lake. The views along this trail were beautiful and gives you another lake to spend time at within the park.

Visit Jackson Hole

Jackson Hole, Wyoming is one of the coolest towns I’ve ever been to! It has such a western classic feel to it, with amazing shops and restaurants. The energy from the Tetons truly carries into Jackson Hole making the perfect mountain town for this national park. Some favorite spots I’d recommend:

• Hand Fire Pizza
• Lee’s Tee’s (for souvenirs)
• Cowboy Coffee
• Snake River Brewing
• Million Dollar Cowboy Bar

Drive Along the Scenic Drive

Take a drive on the scenic roads within the park. Grand Teton offers two scenic routes, the outer road, also known as Highway 191 and the inner road, also known as the Teton Park road. See the map below for reference.

Inner road pull off spots to see:

• Windy point turnout
• Teton Glacier turnout
• Jenny Lake overlook
• Cascade Canyon turnout
• Mountain View turnout
• Mount Moran turnout
• Potholes turnout
• Oxbow Bend turnout

Outer road pull off spots to see:

• Elk ranch flats turnout
• Snake river overlook
• Teton point turnout
• Schwabacher landing road
• Glacier view turnout

Go Fishing

If you like to fish, the park offers amazing spots. Last summer, my boyfriend Patrick loved fishing along iconic spots like the snake river in the Tetons. The park’s visitor center can provide information on spots to fish within the park and certain regulations. You will need a fishing license as well which can be purchased at any fish shop in Jackson Hole!

Kayak or Swim in Jackson Lake

This is something we didn’t get to do during our visit, but looks so fun! Jackson Lake is stunning and kayaking and swimming are options for visitors to enjoy the lake from a different perspective. If kayaking or swimming aren’t your thing, I’d still recommend spending time at Jackson Lake to enjoy the view.

Spend Time at Jenny Lake

Jenny Lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in the park and the area offers a visitor’s center with souvenir shops, and there’s also a campground here. Be sure to check out Jenny Lake lookout area for a stunning view of the lake with mountain views. You can also drive the Jenny Lake scenic drive for a special view and area of the lake that’s usually less crowded.

Visit Mormon Row

Mormon row is a historical site within the park. Here you’ll find barns that were built in the early 1900s by the mormon community that settled here. The most iconic barn is the moulton barn because of it’s position with the Teton mountain range in the background. This is a popular photography spot within the park and it’s best viewed at sunrise or sunset to capture the Teton mountains changing colors in the background of the barn. This was one of my favorite mornings watching the sun rise and it is a must see while visiting the park!