International visitors: A $100 non-resident surcharge per person (ages 16+) applies at this park, effective January 2026.
National Park ServiceNational Park
Yellowstone was established on March 1, 1872, as the first national park in the world. The park sits atop one of the largest active supervolcanoes on earth and contains more geothermal features than any other place on the planet: over 10,000 hot springs, geysers, fumaroles, and mud pots.
Typical opening windows, the last few years of actual open dates, and current status pulled live from the National Park Service where available.
Beartooth Highway
US-212, Red Lodge to Cooke City
No live NPS road alert right nowTypical opening: Late May, around Memorial Day weekendThe highway targets the Friday of Memorial Day weekend; heavy-snow years slip into early June. One of the highest paved roads in the region.
Typical opening windowLate May, around Memorial Day weekend
Fall closureCloses for winter in mid-October, typically around October 15, weather depending.
Recent full-open dates
Year
Opened
Source
2025
May 23
NPS-sourced
2024
June 1
NPS official
Beartooth Highway is plowed jointly by Montana DOT, Wyoming DOT and the Federal Highway Administration; Yellowstone NPS issues the announcements. Earlier years were not verifiable to single authoritative sources and are omitted.
No live NPS road alert right nowTypical opening: Late May, around Memorial Day weekendThe Canyon-to-Tower road over Dunraven Pass is among the last Yellowstone roads to open, alongside Beartooth, because high-elevation plowing comes last. Most other park roads open by the third Friday in April.
Typical opening windowLate May, around Memorial Day weekend
Fall closureCloses with the general interior-road winter closure in early-to-mid November, earlier if storms hit the pass.
Recent full-open dates
Year
Opened
Source
2024
May 16
NPS official
Only 2024 was verifiable to an NPS dated release. Check the NPS Yellowstone operating-dates page for the current season schedule.
Bridge Bay Campground—elevation 7,800 feet (2377 m)—is located near Yellowstone Lake, one of the largest, high-elevation, fresh-water lakes in North America. Campers at Bridge Bay...
432 sites
Reservable
The campground is only open during summer. Checkout time is 11 am....
Canyon Campground—elevation 7,900 feet (2408 m)—lies in a lodgepole pine forest at Canyon Village, south of the Washburn range and near the breath-taking Grand Canyon...
273 sites
Reservable
The campground is only open during summer. Checkout time is 11 am....
Fishing Bridge RV Park—elevation 7,800 feet (2377 m)—is located near the Yellowstone River where it exits Yellowstone Lake on its way toward the Grand Canyon...
310 sites
Reservable
The campground is only open during summer. Checkout time is 11 am....
Grant Campground—elevation 7,800 feet (2377 m)—is located in Grant Village, just off the Grand Loop Road at the south end of Yellowstone Lake. It is...
430 sites
Reservable
The campground is only open during summer. Checkout time is 11 am....
Located about eight miles south of Mammoth Hot Springs on the road to Norris, Indian Creek Campground—elevation 7,300 feet (2225 m)—sits near the base of...
70 sites
Reservable
The campground is typically only open summer and fall. Checkout time is...
Lewis Lake Campground—elevation 7,800 ft (2377 m)—is about eight miles from the South Entrance and a short walk from the southeast shore of Lewis Lake....
85 sites
Reservable
The campground is typically only open summer and fall. Checkout time is...
Madison Campground—elevation 6,800 feet (2073 m)—sits about 14 miles east from the town of West Yellowstone and 16 miles north of Old Faithful. Nearby, the...
276 sites
Reservable
The campground is only open late spring through fall. Checkout time is...
The only campground in the park open year-round, Mammoth Campground—elevation 6,200 feet (1890 m)—is located five miles south of the park's North Entrance. Scattered juniper...
85 sites
Reservable
Mammoth Campground is typically open year-round, though part of the campground is...
Tower Fall Campground—elevation 6,600 feet (2012 m)—is located on the north side of the steep, winding, road to Dunraven Pass. The campground is near the...
31 sites
Reservable
The campground is typically only open summer and fall. Checkout time is...
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