Common Yellowstone Tour Questions
Expert Guidance for a great Yellowstone National Park Tour:
Q: Why visit Yellowstone with a tour guide?
Yellowstone National Park encloses 3,472 square miles, has several hundred miles of roadways, and has over 10,000 hydrothermal features such as geysers, hot springs, mud pots and steam vents. Additionally, the park is rich in wildlife and human history. At Big Sky GOAT Tours, we know Yellowstone! We make it easier for you to do the most important thing - soak in Yellowstone's iconic landscapes, while we take care of all the planning and logistics to help you de-stress, enjoy, and learn about Yellowstone's unique features with your loved ones. With our local expertise and love for the park, you'll be sure to see and learn about the best of what Yellowstone has to offer in each season without breaking your piggy bank.
Q: Why choose a private tour?
At Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours all tours are private at comparable prices to open group tours. With a private tour, you do not have to fight for the best seat in the van, and you can move around in the van. We pick up and drop off at your accommodations without the worry of getting bad seats. The snacks and binoculars that we provide for you can be more easily shared between your family members. With a private tour, we have the freedom to tailor a tour to your group's wishes and don't give the same tour over and over (tour in a can). Please let us know ahead of time if there is a particular feature or types of features that you want to see. We strive to explore the park in places and times that are not as busy and we often go to less visited areas.​
Q: Why is Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours one of the best Yellowstone National Park tour companies?
At Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours we offer private tours at affordable prices. In fact, our prices rival the big companies that charge a sum of money per individual on group tours. Our average price is less than $200 per guest.
Our tours take place in our comfortable Mercedes Sprinter and new Ford Transit 11-passenger high-top vans. In fact, our vans are so high, we can almost see above the clouds or at least above other vehicles. All kidding aside, these are the best vehicles to tour the park for comfort, easy into and out of, and viewing opportunities, while being committed to passenger safety. In fact, on tours that have less than 11 passengers, we remove seats to improve leg room and comfort. We don't just drive people around the park - we do more than that. We will go as deep into science and history as you want to go while making it fun!
On our tours, we provide full-immersion in Yellowstone National Park's history, geology, wildlife and ecology by walking and exploring the park. We use to diagrams, models, and demonstrations to present facts about the geothermal systems. We manage each tour day visiting iconic features and going to off-the beaten-path places to explore gorgeous canyons or extraordinary geothermal spots. Most of the tours are geologist-led by the company's owner. She is a Professional Geologist and offers a unique way of exploring through short and longer hikes on easy terrain while exploring the dominating processes in Yellowstone's caldera complex (marketing term: Supervolcano). Essentially, we love what we do!
Q: When is the best time of year to visit Yellowstone National Park?
May through September is the best time of year to tour Yellowstone since warmer weather conditions exist that enable you to get out and explore more features. The summer tours offer less driving and more walking time to see geysers and hot springs. There is much greater access into the park as all facililties and gates into Yellowstone National Park are open to automobile traffic. Whereas in the winter, only the North Entrance is open to automobile traffic while West Yellowstone is only open to on-snow vehicles like snowmobiles. If you enjoy easy wildlife viewing from the van and dramatic landscapes blanketed in snow, then winter may be for you. However, spring and early summer tours provide great viewing of young wildlife as it is calving season for elk, bison, pronghorn antelope, and many other critters. Either way you pick your season, you are bound to enjoy exploring with Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours.
Q: What types of tours does Big Sky GOAT Tours offer in Yellowstone?
Big Sky GOAT Tours offers a variety of guided tours both summer and winter. We offer more tours during the summer. The tours are geologist-led and/or led by certified park guides that know the park well, and therefore, make the most out of your time. Tours may include all of the following: wildlife watching, hiking, and geyser and hotspring exploring, and viewing waterfalls and Yellowstone's largest, highest alpine lake, Lake Yellowstone and touring the old hotels. Lunch stops can be provided at a viewpoint, a set of waterfalls, Lake Hotel, or Old Faithful Inn.
Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours offers half day, full day, and all day tours. The tours range from 6 hour to 11 hour tours and provide a lot of exciting insight to the park. If you have small children, the Half Day Old Faithul may be just right the right length for your family. If you cannot get enough of Yellowstone National Park, then perhaps the two and three day tours are for you. With the multi-day tours, you can schedule a day off inbetween the tour days and recharge while relaxing or doing other activities.
Q: Why Choose a small, locally-owned tour company?
At Big Sky Mountain GOAT Tours, we are a local family-owned business that creates authentic, educational, high-quality Yellowstone experiences from our home base in Big Sky, Montana. We give the tours, not other people, and it is important to us to do an amazing job! We do this by creating a fun atmosphere while using props such as foam models, diagrams, torches, and pictures to explain the landscapes, the interconnected hydrothermal plumbing system, and the caldera complex explained by a Professional Geologist & park certified guides. Our big group Party Tours are our best tours, because as a husband-wife team, you'll get to choose between the "science" van, or the "less science-party" van.
Q: What should you bring on your Yellowstone tour?
It's advisable to bring comfortable clothing, sturdy footwear like walking shoes (not crocs or sandals), reusable water bottle, and your favorite sandwich. During the summer, the mornings can be a bit chilly, therefore, bring a few layers. We also can have thunder showers all times of the day, so anything that is rain resistant will be great. Don't forget to bring your fully-charged camera to capture the stunning scenery and wildlife. By placing your phone in "Airplane Mode," will help preserve the camera battery, although we do have phone chargers in the vans.
Q: Do I need a reservation for a park tour?
If you would like a private, guided tour, please reserve at least a day or two in advance during the shoulder seasons. It's recommended to book one to three months in advance during peak season to ensure your spot because we often sell out. During the shoulder seasons mid-April through mid-May and the month of October, we are usually not that busy.