Yosemite National Park: The Weekend Travel Guide
Yosemite National Park is the quintessential national park in the United States!
From mountains, to waterfalls, wildlife, and even one of the country’s most dangerous hike - if you’re reading this, there’s a pretty high chance that Yosemite’s on your bucket list.
One of nine national parks in the state of California, Yosemite consistently ranks in the top five of the most visited parks in the country. It’s best known for hiking, rock climbing, biking, camping, and even white-water rafting. It really all depends the season you visit! While the park is open year-round, peak season is April through September, which is when most trails and roads around the park are open.
It’s often recommended that you visit a park like Yosemite for no less than 3 days; however, as a weekend warrior, I know that because of work, that may not always be possible. Rest assured, though, that the beauty of the park can be captured through a weekend trip. Here’s everything you need to know before going to Yosemite for the weekend!
Things to know before visiting Yosemite
Location: Yosemite is HUGE... and not near any major metropolitan city. The biggest city near the park is Fresno, which is about 3 hours away. If you want to go bigger, then you’re looking at San Francisco, which is at least 4 to 5 hours away (depending on traffic).
Entry Requirements: Beginning May 20th 2022 and going until September 30th 2022, Yosemite will require you to have a reservation between the hours of 6am to 4pm. Bummed out? Don't be! While reservations are hard to get, just arrive to the park before sunrise and A. you won’t need to have a reservation and B. you can spend all day in the park
Road Closures: Part of the reason that Yosemite has a reservation system in place is because the park will be undergoing infrastructure repairs in 2022. Note that while some roads typically reopen after the winter season, popular roads like Glacier Point Road will be closed until summer of 2023.
Cell Service: National parks aren’t exactly known for 5G or LTE service, right? But a good surprise is that Yosemite actually has pretty great cell reception throughout the park! Now, take this with a grain of salt, this is in comparison to cell reception to other national parks. I have a AT&T as a provider and with the exception of the deep mountain hikes I did, I had cell reception in most of the popular places around the park. Still, download an offline version of google maps as a backup!
Food: While many national parks don’t have much more than a gift shop at the entrance or center of the park, Yosemite actually has a full-on village with shops, groceries, and restaurants! The location of this is near most major attractions, but if you’re not in the mood to pack a lunch, then don’t worry. You can most definitely drive up to the village and eat a good meal.
Wildlife Safety: please please please don’t approach wildlife! Sightings of black bears are not uncommon, so while this may be exciting, please exercise extreme caution. Please also respect speed limits. Bears, deer, and other animals are known to cross the road and there’s been numerous reports of these getting hit by tourists. As an added example, I saw my first bear as it was crossing the road and while driving through the park!
Flying to Yosemite
First thing you should know is that unless you’re planning on visiting in the off-season, flights to Yosemite aren’t exactly cheap. That said, it’s a well worth (and necessary) investment in getting to the park. Where you fly into will depend on what you’re okay with paying and how far you’re okay with driving. The closest airports are:
Fresno-Yosemite International Airport (FAT) - if you can’t tell by the name, this is the closest airport to the park! It’s about 65 miles or 1.5 hours from park entrance, so proximity to here is unbeatable.
Sacramento International Airport (SMF) - 115 miles or 3 hours away, SMF is the mid-distance airport to Yosemite. While not a bad option, I don’t find many flight options here. Most of my searches were limited to the flight arrival times.
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) - quite a road trip from the park, but by far the most accessible airport, SFO is located 170 miles or 4 hours from the entrance. To be frank, the drive from SFO to Yosemite is not too terrible. If flights to FAT are too expensive, then I heavily recommend flying here. Sometimes the extra trip ends up being way cheaper than the convenience of the closest airport.
You can also consider Oakland and San Jose if any of the above don’t work out!
Moving Around
Get a car! Is it possible to visit without? Maybe. Will you struggle and be limited on timing to the places you can visit? Most definitely!
Yosemite is a HUGE park and not all popular hikes or places are next to each other, so would definitely be in your best interest to rent a car in order to move at your own leisure. I didn’t find parking to be generally difficult, other than at peak times. Oh, and remember two things: 1. recall that reservation I mentioned earlier in the blog? You'll need it in order to enter with your vehicle. 2. Download an offline map within Google Maps. Trust me, you won’t regret this!
If you really want to brave the park without a vehicle, Yosemite does offer two shuttles:
Yosemite Valley Shuttle
El Capitan Shuttle
Visit the NPS site directly for the specific times, routes, and stops, as these tend to change frequently!
Where to Stay
So you’re visiting a beautiful but remote national park that’s practically in the middle of nowhere... where do you stay?!
First thing you should know is that you need to make these reservations at least 3-4 months ahead of time. The earlier you do it the better. Why? Because there are limited hotels within the Yosemite area and they tend to fill up FAST. This is especially true within peak season, which is the summer months. The other reason is that because of the limited availability, the prices of these hotel are often sky high, so be ready! Here are my top three recommendations based on my research:
In the park: Yosemite View Lodge – Located right on the portion of the Merced River, this hotel is for luxury and convenience. This hotel features four pools, spas, restaurants, lounges and stunning views from the balconies of most rooms.
Price range: Starting at $229/night
Airbnb: by far the easiest, most flexible, (and in my opinion) the cheapest option for staying within Yosemite. While there are various options for picking an Airbnb, here are a few things to keep in mind:
Distance: some may be advertised that they are “at the entrance of the park”, but in reality, they are much much further from park entrance. Make sure you are pre-mapping your Airbnb location to the destinations in the park
Cancellation policy: unless you cancel within 24hrs of booking, it’s likely you won’t get your full refund if you book then cancel through Airbnb. If you cancel after a certain time, you’ll be subject to percentage of refunds based on the cancellation date. I’d say, be mindful of this in case you aren’t able to get reservation tickets to be in the park for the dates that you booked.
Other options: the closest towns to the park are Groveland, Sonora, El Portal, Oakhurst, and Fresno, to name a few. These towns usually only have local hotels, so don’t expect to find the chain hotels you’re used to seeing around big cities! Worth a shot if you want more economical options and don’t mind the drive.
Top Hikes
The reason why you’re here... the HIKES! Yosemite has one of the best hiking trails in all of the 63 national parks. Not an exaggeration. From easy strolls within Yosemite Valley, to the infamous Half Dome hike - that is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous in the country - this is your mecca if you’re a hiker! Here are the top hikes you have to do when visiting the park for the weekend:
Sentinel & Cook’s Meadow Loop: not really a hike and more of the aforementioned stroll, the Sentinel & Cook’s Meadow loop is a 2.25mile hike that gives you a front row to Yosemite Falls and Half Dome! This is perfect if you’re not looking for a strenuous or brutal hike and just want to take in the views.
Lower/Upper Yosemite Falls: one of the most popular in the park, the Lower and Upper Yosemite Falls hike get you up close and personal to one of the tallest waterfall in North America - Yosemite Falls!
Lower Yosemite Falls will be the easier of the two hikes. Clocking in only at 1 mile, this hike will give you the best view of the Falls from the ground. Once you reach the end of the trail, you’ll get to see the raging waterfalls right in your nose!
Upper Yosemite Falls is the tougher of the two and is basically an all-day hike. Clocking in at about 7 miles round trip, this hike is strenuous with an elevation of 2,700 feet! The hike is arduous, but looks to be worth it!
Mist Trail: if you want more waterfalls, then this is the trail for you! This trail actually passes through both Vernal and Nevada Falls. Be advised that this trail is strenuous. For me, it was one of the tougher hikes I've done in a while. My recommendation is to start on the Mist trail on the way up and come down via the John Muir trail. This gets the tough part out of the way first and makes the hike down a lot more doable. Be advised that a good portion between Vernal and Nevada Falls involves lots and lots of steep stairs. I’d bring a hiking pole for less stress on the knees!
Half Dome: the famous (or infamous?) half dome hike! Considered one of the most dangerous in the country, this hike is so extremely popular that you need tickets to be able to hike it. These are attainable only via lottery, with only a few available two days in advance. If you’re lucky to score tickets, then be sure to research this hike so you’re mentally and physically prepared. This is a tough and dangerous hike. Hoping to cross it off mylist soon!
Hiking tips:
Water, water, and more water! Don’t underestimate the amount of water you’ll need here. I did this mistake and I was finding myself trying to be conservative with the water that I have. Be sure to buy some in the local shops and fill up at the trailhead!
Sun gear: is a must. From sunscreen to hats to cool clothes, the sun is a beater and the trails are very much exposed to it. Don’t underestimate the strength of the rays!
Wildlife awareness: I mentioned this earlier, but it is imperative that you keep your eyes out and be loud so to not surprise any of the wildlife on trails.
Have Fun!
You don’t need to spend a week in Yosemite like most people say (although if you can, do it), the park can be equally enjoyed in a weekend! Whether it’s your first foray into a national park, whether you’re a hiker or a photographer, Yosemite has something for everyone and I can guarantee you that you’ll think back to your time there well after you’ve left.
Can’t wait to see your pictures!
Ben
