Glacier National Park (GNP)

Glacier National Park gained a lot of popularity during COVID. As per the reports, in 2023 alone there were close to 3 million visitors. I am from California bay area and for someone who loves nature and gets stressed out easily with the busy city life, Glacier National Park trip was a perfect getaway. We loved our time here and we definitely plan on visiting again. If you are like me, who likes nature, scenic locations, need a perfect time off from your busy work schedule, this park is for you. Come join us in this adventure as we will guide you with some helpful tips on how you can plan your next trip to Glacier National Park.

Download the park map from here: https://www.nps.gov/npgallery/GetAsset/9fe2fe28-43af-4574-8dde-2555a2657aca

When did we visit?

We went in the month of August and although it was still crowded we still had good time in the park. August is still a good time to visit.

About – A Little History

Glacier National Park is a 1,583-sq.-mi. wilderness area in Montana’s Rocky Mountains, with glacier-carved peaks and valleys running to the Canadian border. It’s crossed by the mountainous Going-to-the-Sun Road. Among more than 700 miles of hiking trails, it has a route to photogenic Hidden Lake. Other activities include backpacking, cycling and camping. Diverse wildlife ranges from mountain goats to grizzly bears.

How to visit

The easiest way to get to the park is flying to the nearest airport in Kalispell Montana . This airport is a 45-min drive from the south of the West Glacier Entrance. Alaska, American, Delta and United Airlines are the major domestic airlines that fly in and out of Kalispell MT.

By car: This is the best way to get around once you are in the park.

Very Important: Glacier National Park has entry reservation to drive along the Going to the Sun Road (GTSR). The only road that connects all tourist attractions in the park and you cannot enter without reservations unless you plan on entering the park before 6AM or after 3PM MDT. So make sure you have that reservation before you make any travel plans.

May 24 through Sep 8, vehicle reservations are required for the west side of the GTSR and North Fork from 6am to 3pm MDT.

July 1 through Sep 8, vehicles reservations are required for Many Glacier from 6am to 3pm MDT.

How to make this vehicle reservation: Reservations will be available 120 days or approximately 4 months in advance, starting on Jan 25, 2024 at 8AM MDT on a daily rolling basis. Check here for more details.

Next day vehicle reservations will be available at 7PM MDT for next-day entry starting on May 23,2024 on a daily rolling basis.

Note: Starting from 2024, Going to the sun road reservations (2$ USD) are valid for one day where as in 2023, they were valid for 3 days. So you will have to plan considering this in mind.

It is very difficult to grab a vehicle reservation on recreation.gov because the tickets get sold out in less than a minute and we were lucky that we were able to make vehicle reservations for 3 days.

What to do if I don’t have vehicle reservation: There are other ways to enter the Going to the sun road if you don’t have vehicle reservation.

  • Visit the park before 6am or after 3pm.
  • Visit St Mary and Two Medicine Entrances as they do not require vehicle reservations as of 2024. Please note that visitors who enter from the east side will not be able to return through the Apgar Check Point without a vehicle reservation between 6am and 3pm.
  • You can explore other areas until 3pm and then go through the GTSR later.
  • You can book a commercial activity or tour which can be used in place of vehicle reservation. (Eg: Glacier Park Boat Company for tours & Watercraft reservations, Swan Mountain Outfitters for horseback riding reservations, Non-Profit Partner reservations with Glacier Institute and special permit holders).
  • If you had booked a Hotel or have campsite reservation, you can use that as a reservation to access GTSR. For more details here.

Stay & Dine

There are quite a few accommodations within the park. However you will have to make reservations up to 13 months in advance and they get sold out pretty fast and they are very expensive because of the huge demand especially during summer. So please make sure you plan in advance. For example, for September 1, they will accept reservations through September 30 of the following year at midnight (12:00AM MST)

If you are up for camping, there are many campgrounds in the park. However remember that these campgrounds need advanced reservations as well.

Where we stayed

To avoid these hassles of advanced hotel or lodging reservations, we decided to stay outside the park and start the day early.

Evergreen Motel Coram, MT

We stayed here for one night. It was a decent cabin accommodation and we payed about 240$ USD inclusive for taxes for our one night stay. Note that there was no breakfast included. You can find more information on their website.

If you are looking for decently priced accommodation and still want to stay a little closer to the park, then we recommend this. Evergreen motel is about 8 mins drive (6.8 miles to the West Glacier Village).

Circle R Motel

We stayed here for two nights. It was a decent accommodation, good location though and there was a nice breakfast place within walkable distance. We had breakfast at the same place on both the days since we loved it especially their scrambled eggs and french toast. This hotel doesn’t offer any free breakfast.

Although this hotel was in a good location, couple of things we didn’t like was the layout and the check in process. Basically they don’t have elevators and you are going to be disappointed easily especially if you are carrying checkin size luggages. Coming to the check-in, we reached hotel late night and there was no one at the front desk and the office was closed. We had to call and wait outside for sometime until someone answered. After sometime, a middle aged man came out and asked us about the reservation and helped us to check-in to our room.

They also don’t give any dental amenities or extra towels unless you ask them. I guess you get what you pay. We payed around 380$ USD for two nights for the month of August, which was the cheapest option for that price around that time.

Whistling Swan Motel

For our last day of accommodation, we stayed at this motel. Again there was no free breakfast. Its not a great accommodation, but instead just a small cabin which is just ok for two people. Parking is very limited.

Restrooms are very small and overall room space is not big enough. I am 5’7 and the place and room still felt congested. We do not recommend staying here unless you don’t have any other option and we suggest you pay little more and search for a hotel nearby.

Best Time To Visit

Summer (July – September) is the best time to visit because that’s when all the trails are open and you will have wonderful opportunities for hiking and incredible wildlife sightings. Although Glacier National Park is known for abundant wildlife including Grizzly Bears, during our visit we didn’t see any bear.

Top Things To Do & See In Glacier National Park

  1. Drive Going-to-the-sun road
  2. Grinnell Glacier Hike (A must do hike – Although its very strenuous)
  3. Hidden Lake overlook
  4. Triple Arches Overlook
  5. Weeping Well
  6. Avalanche lake (Trail of Cedars)
  7. Lake McDonald, Falls & Lodge
  8. Jackson Glacier Overlook
  9. St Marys Falls
  10. Sunset @ Wild goose Island Lookout
  11. Two Medicine Lake & Boat ride
  12. Twin Falls
  13. Running Eagle Falls
  14. Eat Huckleberry ice cream
  15. Whitefish Alpine Ride

Drive Going-to-the-sun road

If you are visiting the park, you will do this 100% because majority of the top attractions in the park are along this scenic road. It is a 50 miles long drive which is a beautiful scenic drive and takes about an average of 2 hrs to complete.

You will need advanced vehicle reservations to go through this road. For more information on the current vehicle reservations, visit the park’s website.

Note: You will only need reservation if you are entering the park via this road and entering between 6AM – 3PM.

Small waterfall along the Sun road

Grinnell Glacier Hike (Along Lake Josephine & Swiftcurrent Lake)

Note: Although some people treat this hike as moderate to slightly strenuous, for us this hike felt strenuous but we enjoyed every moment of it. Read further to see why!!!

How much time needed?
It took us almost 8 hrs to complete since we took many breaks during our hike and even then for us it felt like a good challenging hike.

We recommend you do not plan anything else on the day you are doing this hike.

Total hike duration:
10.6 miles out and back with Elevation gain of 1600 feet. You can shorten this hike to 7.2 miles by taking the boat ride.

Where is it located?
The Grinnell Glacier trailhead is located on located on Continental Divide Trail, the road that connects the Many Glacier Hotel with Swiftcurrent Motor Inn and the Many Glacier Campground. On Google Maps, it is labeled “Grinnell Glacier Trailhead.”

There is a small parking lot here. If you need to park here, it is advised to start early probably before 8 AM although even earlier is better.

Taking the shuttle boat ride
If you are planning on taking shuttle boat, from the trailhead it is 2.1 miles to get to the far end of the Josephine lake.

The shuttle boats consists of two separate boats with one starting from Many Glacier Hotel that crosses Swiftcurrent Lake and second shuttle across lake Josephine. Both the shuttles are operated from Glacier Park Boat Company.

Remember: Make advanced reservations for the boat rides. You will not get reservations at the last minute.

Instructions on the boat ride and hike:

  1. We started our hike by taking the boat ride from Many Glacier hotel. This shuttle boat will take you across the beautiful views of the Swiftcurrent lake, a journey which takes about 10 mins and then you disembark this boat and walk 0.2 miles to the lake Josephine. This hike was amazing and we enjoyed the views of the lake and the hike was pretty much inside the dense forest. However you will come across many people along the hike since you came through the boat ride and everyone disembark at the same point.
  2. After hiking 0.2 miles, you will reach Lake Josephine. Here you will board a second boat which is about another 12 mins ride to the far end of the Lake Josephine. From the boat dock, you will walk another 0.4 miles to the Grinnell Glacier Trailhead.

Note: We recommend making the two way out and back reservations in advance for the boat rides to drop you at the far end of lake Josephine and also to pick you up from the same boat dock at the end of Lake Josephine.

Some people prefer to do one way shuttle boat to either just drop at the end of Lake Josephine or to pick up from the far end of Lake Josephine. But we recommend doing both out and back boat ride option.

Note that the boat shuttle reservations do not include access to the Going to the Sun road. Many Glacier reservations through Glacier Park Boat Company will only provide access to the Many Glacier valley.

Main Highlight of the hike – Mountain Sheep

Hidden Lake Overlook

Hidden lake overlook is an easy 2.8 miles out and back hike. For the trailhead, you will start from the logan pass visitor center. Parking is a challenge here. We had hard time finding parking spot. We recommend you come early in the day to get some parking spot.

When we did this hike we almost did like at the very later in the day and by the time we came down to the parking area, it was completely dark.

Note: This hike is very popular during summer. Plan your day and try doing this in the morning. We made a mistake doing it in the evening. Also look out for Mountain goats and sheep. They are very common in this area especially early morning or later in the evenings.

Triple Arches Overlook

You do not have to plan your day to visit this attraction since its on the Going to the sun road itself. It is probably the most recognized features along the going to the sun road.

For more information visit: https://www.nps.gov/places/triple-arches.htm

Weeping Well

Weeping wall is a series of waterfalls that delights early season visitors and again this is on the Going to the sun road.

Tip: Go early in the summer to see this waterfalls along the road. It will eventually slow down to a tickle by the end of the summer.

For more information: https://www.nps.gov/places/the-weeping-wall.htm

In fact, there are multiple waterfalls like these along the going-to-the-sun road.

Trail Of Cedars

Trail of the Cedars is a easy 0.9 miles loop trail near Lake McDonald. It takes about 20 mins on an average to complete.

Where is it?

It is located 5.5 miles east of the Lake McDonald lodge. The parking area for the trail of the Cedars is right across from the Avalanche Creek Campground which is along the Going-to-the-sun road.

How? You can do this hike from any side, but we took the eastern portion of the loop which travels through a raised boardwalk and passes through a forest of ancient western red cedar trees and western hemlocks.

Once you reach the half-way point you will reach one of the highlights of the trail,  a footbridge over Avalanche Creek that provides commanding views of the lower Avalanche Gorge. You can pass this point and reach Avalanche Lake Trail junction and continue further for 1.6 miles to Avalanche Lake if you are interested.

Note: Trail of Cedars parking area has room for about 100 cars. Even if you get here early around 7.30 am, you’ll feel a bit rushed and pressured to find a parking spot, as this place fills up fast.  

Lake McDonald, Falls Creek & Lodge

Lake McDonald lodge is a historic lodge located within Glacier National Park, on the southeast shore of Lake McDonald. It was built in 1913 based on Kirkland Cutter’s design.

Physical Address:
288 Lake McDonald Ldg Lp, West Glaicer, MT 59936

Very Important: If you are planning on entering the park on the west side entrance near Apgar Check point, you will need Going to the sun road reservations. You cannot use lodging reservations to enter the GTSR unless you are entering from the east side along the St Mary entrance. You can still access Apgar Visitor Center, Apgar Village, and the Camas Road without a vehicle reservation.

Lake McDonald Lodge

Lodge Reception Area

Stores near the Lodge

You can take these red buses to travel within the park or to go the lodges if you don’t have a car. Off course you will have to pay for them or reserve in advance for the bus tours. Its very popular attraction in the park especially during summer.

These buses can cost anywhere around 56$ – 122$ depending on which route and how much distance you are travelling. https://www.glaciernationalparklodges.com/red-bus-tours/.

For more information, visit https://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/bus-tours.htm. These tours are organized by Glacier National Park Lodges Red Bus Tours.

Lunch & Dinner: We had our Lunch on one day and Dinner on another day at the restaurant inside the lodge. There are three different restaurants inside the lodge which offer dinner till 10PM in the night. We liked Lucke’s Lounge. The other two restaurants were Jammer Joe’s Grill & Pizzeria and Russel’s Fireside Dining Room.

Lunch at Lucke’s Lounge was good. We had Farfalle Skillet with Lentil Soup which was good. Dinner was ok at Russel’s Fireside Dining Room and we had salad. Salad we felt it was just overpriced for the quantity.

Note: Staying in the lodge needs more than 6 months advance reservations and they open on a specific date and time which requires you to be online to make those reservations and they are overpriced as well due to the popularity in summer. We felt it was much better to stay outside the park and wake up early and drive to the park instead.

We saw many people travelling from outside the park early in the morning since they could not get advanced Hotel reservations.

Important: For entire list of Glacier National Park Lodges, visit their website.

Visiting the McDonald Falls and Creek area is very easy. Along the GTSR, you will see a sign for McDonald Falls. There is a small parking area nearby although it can get filled up quickly during summer. So Plan accordingly.

McDonald Falls & Creek Area.

If you continue, along this route you will reach Lake McDonald and the lodge. Lake McDonald is the largest lake in Glacier National Park and it is located at 48°35′N 113°55′W in Flathead County in the U.S. state of Montana. Lake McDonald is approximately 10 miles long, and over a mile wide and 472 feet deep, filling a valley formed by a combination of erosion and glacial activity.

Note: Popular Activity in Lake McDonald is swimming and Kayaking. Also the place is popular for some of the picturesque locations in the park.

Lake McDonald (Image Credits: PlanetWare)

Jackson Glacier Overlook

Jackson Glacier Overlook as the name suggests, its a glacier overlook which is right on the GTSR. The Glacier has however receded from 316 acres in 1966 to 187 acres by 2015. You can see this glacier from the parking area, or you can hike towards it along the trail to the Gunsight Lake, which begins at the Glacier overlook.

For more information, visit: https://www.nps.gov/places/jackson-glacier-overlook.htm

Jackson Glacier Overlook

St Mary’s Falls

Trail Location: St Mary Falls Shuttle Stop
Roundtrip Length: 1.7 miles

You must have realized by now that majority of the attractions in Glacier National Park is on the GTSR and the importance of this reservation.

Where?: St Mary Falls in Glacier National Park begins from the St Mary Falls Shuttle stop, which is located 10.6 miles west of the St Mary Entrance stop on the GTSR. Note that the parking here is very limited. Sometimes you will have to hike from the St Mary falls trailhead, which will add roughly two-thirds of a mile to your overall roundtrip hike.

How to do this?: From the shuttle stop, you will begin your hike on the St Mary’s falls cutoff trail. For a brief segment near beginning of trail you will enjoy commanding views of Dusty Star Mountain and if you look towards the west you will be able to see the Heavy runner Mountains, Fusillade and Reynolds Mountains.

Once you descend towards St. Mary Falls you’ll begin passing through an area that was burned during the Reynolds Creek Fire of 2015. At roughly one-quarter of a mile from the shuttle stop hikers will arrive at the Piegan Pass Trail junction. You should turn right here, and then proceed for a very short distance to reach another junction. The Piegan Pass Trail continues up the hill towards the right. To visit St. Mary Falls hikers should veer left onto the St. Mary Lake Trail at this juncture.

At six-tenths of a mile hikers will reach the St. Mary River. Soon afterwards you’ll begin hearing the thunder of crashing water, and in another quarter-mile, will finally arrive at St. Mary Falls, one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the park. This was our most favorite short waterfalls hike in the park and it was completely worth it.

Note: Watch out for St Mary Falls trail signs.

Sunset @ Wild goose Island lookout

This is one of the fantastic view of the St Mary Lake and is perhaps is one of the most recognizable scenes in all of the park. The island rises only 14 feet from the surface of the water yet is in the center of one of the most often photographed locations along the world-famous Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Two Medicine Lake, Boat ride & Twin Falls

Two medicine lake is less visited than the other parts of the park but it definitely has its own beauty and dramatic views.

Note: You do not need vehicle reservations to enter the Two Medicine Entrance of the park and boat tour reservations at Two Medicine Lake will not include vehicle reservations to the GTSR corridor.

For more updated vehicle reservations, visit: https://www.recreation.gov/timed-entry/10087086/

How to get to the Lake?: You can make a reservation at the Glacier Park Boat Company for the two medicine lake boat scenic round trip. Plan to arrive at least 30 mins before your tour departure time.

Tour Length: 45 mins round trip.

Visit https://www.glacierparkboats.com/tours-rentals/two-medicine for more information on the boat tour times and ticket reservations.

Two Medicine Lake. There was some rain while we were there. We couldn’t take good photos here 😦

Twin Falls

Once you arrive at the boat dock, you can hike for 2 miles round trip to get to the Twin Falls. This is a easy hike and the best part of the hike is that majority of the hike is inside the dense forest which is very peaceful and perfect setting for nature lovers.

However we were not so excited about the waterfalls but we did enjoy the hike more. If you are not much into waterfalls you can definitely skip this one.

Twin Falls near the Twin Medicine Lake area

Running Eagle Falls

Where? Running Eagle Falls is a 0.7 miles loop trail near East Glacier Park Village in Montana. The trailhead is in the Two Medicine area of the park, past the entrance station.

How to go? The trail to the falls is a wide, well maintained path suitable for everyone in the family. It’s also one of two trails in the park that’s handicap accessible. Just prior to arriving at the falls, hikers will cross over a footbridge. From the trailhead, follow the well-maintained, handicapped accessible trail about a quarter-mile to a viewing platform for the falls. You can also climb around on the rocks to get a closer view.

Eat Huckleberry Ice Cream

One of the most top attractions in the park is to eat Huckleberry Ice Cream. If you are looking for a place to have ice cream, we recommend Eddie’s ice cream shop in Apgar.

We also took Huckleberry jam from the Huckleberry hut in the West Glacier Montana. Official address is 130 Going-to-the-sun rd, West Glacier, MT 59936. You can also follow their Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/huckleberry_hut/

For the year 2024, looks like they were temporarily closed. Please check their hours before visiting.

Whitefish Alpine Ride

Our last attraction while we were in the park was Whitefish Alpine Ride. This is in the Whitefish area of Montana.

Physical Address:
3808 Big Mountain Rd, Whitefish, MT 59937

We recommend you make online reservations in advance which also saves you 10% on the ride tickets. Alpine slides were fun and we definitely recommend.

For more information on the reservations visit https://skiwhitefish.com/alpine-slides/.

This is a popular summer activity and the ride costs about 13$ per person for a single ride. There are multiple ride options with 1,2,4 and 25 rides. We did just 1 ride as we were little short on time and we think 1 ride should be more than enough.

We are currently working on the video of this guide which will be uploaded soon on our Youtube channel.

Itinerary

If you would like to do all the attractions we covered in this guide, we recommend 4 days.

DAY 1

  • Going-to-the-sun road attractions
  • Logan Pass Visitor Center
  • Hidden Lake Overlook
  • Trail of the Cedars

DAY 2

  • Apgar Visitor Center
  • Visit Lake McDonald Lodge
  • McDonald Falls
  • Lake McDonald
  • Jackson Glacier Overlook

DAY 3

  • Swiftcurrent Lake & Lake Josephine
  • Grinner Glacier Hike
  • St Mary’s Falls
  • Sunset at Wild Goose Island Lookout

DAY 4

  • Twin Medicine Boat Ride
  • Twin Falls
  • Running Eagle Falls
  • Whitefish Alpine Ride

What did we miss in this Trip and What we plan to cover in our next visit?

We missed few top attractions in the park due to time constraints and we plan on doing these in our next visit.

  1. Avalanche Lake Hike
  2. Highline Trail (Very strenuous. You will need an entire day for this)
  3. Iceberg Trail (9.6 miles round trip. Trailhead starts behind hotel Iceberg Ptarmigan Trailhead)
  4. Apikuni Falls
  5. Virginia Falls (3.6 miles RT including St Mary’s Falls)
  6. Visit the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park (This is however on the Canada side. We will do this when we visit Canada)
  7. The red bus tours (We couldn’t do this because of time constraints)
  8. Polebridge Town (Polebridge Mercantile – For some huckleberry bear claws and other pastries. Also visit the Bowman Lake or do Kayaking)

Thats it for this guide!!! We hope this travel guide helps you plan your next adventure to Glacier National Park. Please do write us in the comments about your trip to this beautiful National park and your recommendations and feedback.

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