Drive the northern corridor
Approach from Gardiner. The North–Northeast Entrance road is normally the car corridor. The road beyond Cooke City toward Pilot Creek normally closes to wheeled vehicles in winter.
Get oriented for winter
Decide whether you want a northern-road trip or an oversnow visit to the interior.
- Mapped road corridor
- 1 · Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel
- 2 · Albright Visitor Center
- 3 · Mammoth Campground
- 4 · Old Faithful area
- 5 · Lamar Valley
- 6 · North Entrance at Gardiner
- 7 · Northeast Entrance at Cooke City
- Park boundary
Getting around in winter
A hotel booking does not replace the transport booking. Match the route to the part of Yellowstone you want to see.
Book the interior separately
Most interior roads normally take limited snowcoach and snowmobile travel from mid-December to mid-March. Confirm the exact route and operating dates.
Prepare for extreme cold
Carry winter equipment, warm layers, food, and water. Use pullouts for stops and allow wildlife the right of way.
Things to do in winter
Choose wildlife and northern trails, or an oversnow trip to the thermal basins.
Visit Old Faithful by oversnow
Book an authorized winter trip rather than planning to drive. The interior operating season and routes depend on snow and weather.
Ski or snowshoe northern trails
Mammoth, Tower, and Northeast trails can be reached from the North Entrance. Interior trail access needs additional transport planning.
Walk thermal boardwalks carefully
Stay on designated boardwalks and use footwear traction on ice. Thin ground and hot springs can cause severe injuries.
Where to stay in winter
Choose a drive-up northern base or an oversnow stay. Check the lodge season before arranging transport.
Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel
A northern-road base near the North Entrance. It normally has a winter season, with a seasonal break; confirm your dates.
Old Faithful Snow Lodge
An interior winter stay reached by commercial snowcoach or snowmobile. Arrange the transfer along with the room.
Winter camping NPS identifies Mammoth as the winter campground, normally first-come, first-served in winter. Check its operating arrangements and prepare for cold, snow, and ice.
Yellowstone winter crowds
The highlighted whole months average 35,551 recreation visits per month. July is the annual peak at 922,896.
Winter months highlightedNovember–March winter planning window
LowestLowModerateHighPeakAverage month: 369,320
Yellowstone winter temperatures
NOAA 1991-2020 averages at Yellowstone Park, Mammoth, WY. Mammoth is Yellowstone HQ at 6,194 ft. The northern-range districts (Lamar Valley, Tower) read close to these numbers. Old Faithful (7,365 ft) and Norris (7,484 ft) typically run 5-8°F colder; Yellowstone Lake (7,733 ft) and high passes colder still. Lake Yellowstone has its own NOAA station (USC00485345) at 7,892 ft if you need higher-elevation numbers.
Winter months highlightedNovember–March winter planning window
Cooler Hotter
Jan
High31°F
Low12°F
Feb
High34°F
Low12°F
Mar
High42°F
Low19°F
Apr
High50°F
Low26°F
May
High60°F
Low35°F
Jun
High70°F
Low42°F
Jul
High81°F
Low48°F
Aug
High80°F
Low47°F
Sep
High69°F
Low39°F
Oct
High54°F
Low29°F
Nov
High39°F
Low19°F
Dec
High30°F
Low12°F
Yellowstone winter daylight
Local sunrise and sunset on the 21st of each selected month. These are astronomical times, not a forecast or an access schedule.
| Date | Sunrise and sunset, local clock time | Daylight |
|---|---|---|
| November 21 | SunriseSunset | |
| December 21Shortest day shown | SunriseSunset | |
| January 21 | SunriseSunset | |
| February 21 | SunriseSunset | |
| March 21 | SunriseSunset |
Questions about Yellowstone winter
Quick answers to the practical questions below.
Can you drive to Old Faithful in winter?
Not by regular car. Most interior roads switch to limited oversnow travel in winter. Book an authorized snowcoach or snowmobile trip and check its operating dates.
Which Yellowstone road can you drive in winter?
Approach from Gardiner for the North–Northeast Entrance corridor. The road beyond Cooke City toward Pilot Creek normally closes to wheeled vehicles in winter. Check the park road report and your approach before departure.
Where can you stay inside Yellowstone in winter?
Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel and Old Faithful Snow Lodge normally operate winter seasons. Mammoth is on the northern car corridor; the Snow Lodge requires commercial oversnow transport. Confirm dates and transport together.
Can you ski in Yellowstone without booking a snowcoach?
From the North Entrance, you can reach Mammoth, Tower, and Northeast ski trails. Reaching Canyon or Old Faithful trails requires oversnow access planning.
Are Yellowstone boardwalks safe in winter?
Snow and ice make them slippery. NPS advises traction aids and staying on designated boardwalks; thermal ground and hot springs can cause severe injury.
How we built this page.
An independent guide using official data. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service.
- Official guidance
- NPS and the relevant operators. The linked official pages support the access, facilities and rules described here. Confirm details before traveling.
- Crowd context
- 2021–2025 monthly averages. NPS recreation visits describe normal seasonal demand, not trail congestion, parking availability or unique visitors.
- Schedules and conditions
- Planning patterns, not live status. Seasonal information describes the normal pattern or explicitly dated source schedule. Current conditions are handled separately. The official source is the place to confirm today’s access.
Topic sources and data details
NPS Explore in Winter supplies the normal car/oversnow distinction, limited winter services, lodges, Mammoth camping and thermal-boardwalk precautions. Exact transport and facility dates remain in the official operating pages.
The NPS lodging page distinguishes drive-accessible Mammoth from commercial oversnow access to Old Faithful Snow Lodge. NPS skiing guidance distinguishes northern trail access from interior travel.
Temperatures are NOAA 1991-2020 normals at Yellowstone Park, Mammoth, WY; Mammoth is Yellowstone HQ at 6,194 ft. The northern-range districts (Lamar Valley, Tower) read close to these numbers. Old Faithful (7,365 ft) and Norris (7,484 ft) typically run 5-8°F colder; Yellowstone Lake (7,733 ft) and high passes colder still. Lake Yellowstone has its own NOAA station (USC00485345) at 7,892 ft if you need higher-elevation numbers. Daylight is computed from committed USNO 2026 local-time records at Mammoth Hot Springs, WY (44.98N, 110.70W).
The official winter guide describes snow-covered landscapes, oversnow travel, and prolonged cold. The Mammoth station is lower and milder than much of the interior; this treatment must not imply one temperature or identical snow across the park.
Operational source check: October 21, 2026. Design and emphasized source review: 2026-10-21. A design review does not refresh every underlying record.