4-Day In-depth Yellowstone Small Group Tour from Salt Lake City【Product Code: 8925】

Today we tour downtown Salt Lake City. First we will go to visit Temple Square. Salt Lake City is the headquarters of The Church of Jesus of Latter-day Saints (Mormonism), and the Salt Lake City Temple is the largest Mormon temple in the world and the most popular tourist attraction in Utah. There are female missionaries from all over the world serving tourists who speak various languages. Here you will visit the Seagull Monument, Beehive House, the Great Hall and many other historical buildings.

Leaving the temple, we will go to the Utah State Government Capitol Building. The scale and shape of the entire building can be compared with the Capitol Hill in Washington, and it is very majestic. The parliament building is often open to the public, and if you have the opportunity, you can go inside and see what's going on. Leaving downtown Salt Lake City, we will drive north to Pearl Antelope Island on the Great Salt Lake, the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. You can climb high on the island and look at the mirror-like water of the Great Salt Lake.

Leaving Antelope Island, we will visit the Seale Air Force Museum, where there are a large number of retired fighter jets for you to visit up close, not to be missed. In the evening, we will arrive in Idaho Falls, and it is very leisurely to walk along the green belt beside the waterfall.

Temple Squre (duration 60 mins)

Located in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a group of buildings that comprise the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), including the Salt Lake City Temple, the Salt Lake City Chapel, the Salt Lake City Assembly Hall, the Seagull Monument, and two visitor centers.

The Salt Lake City Temple is the largest Mormon temple in the world. The most popular tourist attraction in Utah, attracting 3 million to 5 million tourists a year, surpassing the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone Park. There are female missionaries from all over the world serving tourists who speak various languages.

The design of the chapel was inspired by tents. Called by Frank Lloyd Wright "this country, perhaps one of the world's architectural masterpieces"

The Assembly Hall is the most beautiful and colorful building on Temple Square, built in 1877. If you happen to visit on Friday and Saturday nights, you will be lucky enough to encounter concerts by well-known domestic and foreign artists. Admission to the concert is free, but children under the age of 8 are not allowed.

Seagull Monument (duration 30 mins)

It commemorates the legend that when the Mormon pioneers planted crops in Utah for the first time, seagulls devoured swarms of locusts and protected the farm and crops, commonly known as the "miracle of seagulls". Erection of the Seagull Monument, topped by a bronze statue of two seagulls devouring insects, designed by sculptor Mahonri M. Young.

Beehive House (duration 30 mins)

Composed of the Lion House and the Beehive House, it is the home and office of the Mormon Lord Brigham Young, 19 wives and 56 children. It is also a small museum. All the items in the house are still the same, and there are Mormon sisters from all over the world explaining to tourists. During the Mormons' westward migration to the Utah Territory, polygamy was practiced on religious grounds and was banned by church leaders in the late nineteenth century. However, the doctrine still emphasizes the importance of the family, advocating that "no success can make up for the failure of the family." Utah has three firsts in the United States, the first in the proportion of children whose parents are still married, the first in the couple's fertility rate, and the first in the proportion of married families. This should be the credit of the Mormons.

Utah State Capitol (duration 60 mins)

The entire building of the Utah State Capitol is comparable in size and shape to the United State Capitol in Washington. The top of the building is a Byzantine dome, which is dazzling and brilliant under the sunlight. And visitors can enter the building to visit. The building is magnificent and exquisitely crafted. The walls are smooth marble, the ceiling is painted with exquisite murals, and countless statues of finely carved figures stand in it, lifelike. In addition, because Utah is also known as the "Hive State", there is a sculpture of a beehive in a conspicuous place in front of the state government building, which is one of the must-see attractions for tourists who come here.

Antelope Island State Park (duration 60 mins)

Located near the Great Salt Lake in Syracuse, Utah, it is the largest of the nine islands in the Great Salt Lake and is the best place to visit the Great Salt Lake. It has the reputation of "mirror of the sky". The Great Salt Lake is the largest inland salt lake in North America and the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. It is a remnant lake of a large freshwater lake in the Great Basin of the Pleistocene Great Ice Age. The dry natural environment of the Great Salt Lake is similar to the famous Dead Sea, and the chemical characteristics of the lake water are the same as those of sea water. The altitude of the lake is about 1280 meters, and the salinity in most areas is as high as 150-288‰, which is higher than that of sea water.

There are antelope, bison, hare, deer and other animals on the island, and it is also an ideal place for bird watching. It can be used for camping, picnicking, hiking, water sports and more. There are sandy beaches and bathing facilities. You can go to Buffalo Point to see the whole island.

Hill Air Force Base (duration 30 mins)

Hill Air Force Base is home to the 388th Fighter Wing of the 12th Air Force. There is a Hill Aerospace Museum (Hill Aerospace Museum) next to the air force base, which is a top-level museum in all aspects, which exhibits various military aircraft that have been decommissioned in the United States: helicopters, transport aircraft, bombers, reconnaissance aircraft..., as well as missiles and space vehicles. , all kinds of ammunition, military supplies, aerospace ground support equipment, military vehicles, uniforms and other cultural relics. There are special exhibition halls in the museum to display aircraft and war photos used in the Korean War and Vietnam War, and restore the prisons where American prisoners of war lived in the Vietnam War.

The museum was completed in 1982, opened to the public for the first time in 1987, and relocated to its current venue in 1991. It is part of the National Air Force Heritage Project.
*The museum is open from Monday to Saturday and closes at 4:00pm. We will decide whether to visit according to the schedule

Idaho Falls (duration 30 mins)

Idaho Falls City is the gateway to Yellowstone National Park or Grand Teton National Park from the south or west. It is also a small tourist town worth spending half a day visiting, and its biggest feature is the Snake River that runs through the entire city. And the waterfalls formed by several artificial dams on the Snake River. The waterfall in the city center is the largest artificial waterfall in the world. The long Snake River Waterfall has become the main landscape of Waterfall City. The white building with a steeple in the distance is the local Mormon temple. The functions of the Mormon temple and the church are different. The place where believers worship every Sunday is the church. The church can be said to be everywhere, almost every block; the temple is only available in a city or a region. one.

Depart at 9:00 in the morning, and we will enter the famous Yellowstone National Park in 5 minutes from the hotel.

Yellowstone National Park, covered by virgin forests, is the first national park in the United States. It is a pristine world, quiet and beautiful. But the underground here has the largest active volcano on the earth, waiting for you to discover the magical and huge energy underground.

Drive east along the Mandison River for about 30 minutes, with all kinds of wild animals roaring past our window, we will come to the most famous geothermal area in Yellowstone Park. We will first visit the upper, middle and lower geyser basins of Yellowstone Park, and watch various geothermal landscape sections such as hot springs, blowholes, geysers, and mud. Leaving the geothermal area, we will go to the beautiful alpine lake Huangshi Lake, where you can wander along the lakeside trails to enjoy the lake view and hot springs by the lake, and you can also go boating on the lake, which is a special experience. Finally, we will go to the magnificent Grand Canyon of Yellowstone to see the Yellowstone Falls and colorful weathered volcanic rocks.

In the end we return to the small town of West Yellowstone to end the day trip.

Lower Geyser Basin - Fountain Paint Pots (duration 40 mins)

Not long after leaving Madison Junction, the steaming geothermal area came into view. The first thing we saw was a geothermal landscape dominated by mud pools, named because the mud here is red, yellow, and brown, and these different colors of mud are caused by the different oxidation states of iron in the mud. of. One of the attractions of Mud Pool Geothermal is its "bubbles," which are created by gases emitted by Yellowstone volcanoes. And these "bubble phenomena" will also vary with the seasons.

Middle Geyser Basin - The Grand Prismatic Spring (duration 40 mins)

A 10-minute drive from Fountain Paint Pots, we will come to the famous Grand Prismatic Hot Spring, the largest in the United States and the third largest in the world. It is about 75 to 91 meters wide and 49 meters deep, and about 2,000 liters of groundwater with a temperature of about 71°C gushes out every minute. The Grand Prismatic Hot Spring is an outstanding representative of Huangshi Hot Springs. Its diameter is more than 100 meters, and it presents different colors such as blue, green, yellow, orange, and red from the center to the outside. It is the largest and most beautiful landscape.

Old Faithful (duration 90 mins)

After a 15-minute drive, we will come to Yellowstone's largest visitor center and attraction: Old Faithful.

Old Faithful was the first named geyser in Yellowstone National Park. It is also the most famous scenic spot in Yellowstone. The current eruption rule is about once every 90 minutes, and the eruption height can reach about 40 meters. There is a visitor center here for you to visit and learn, buy souvenirs and watch park-related videos.

Upper Geyser Basin - Morning  Glory Pool (duration 60 mins)

After lunch we will take you to explore the trail area behind Old Faithful. The Upper Geyser Basin is the area with the highest density of geysers in Yellowstone. There are about 200-250 geysers in the entire Yellowstone National Park, of which 180 are located in this area. Along the trail, we will visit many famous landscapes such as the Castle Fountain, the Great Fountain, the Daisy Cave Fountain, the Riverside Fountain, and the Morning Glory Pool. Here I can see blowholes, hot springs, geysers and mud all four different geothermal landscapes.

Yellowstone Lake (duration 60 mins)

After a 30-minute drive, a mirror-like smooth lake will appear in front of our eyes. This is the West Thumb Geyser Basin on the edge of Yellowstone Lake. Located on the edge of Yellowstone Lake, it was formed due to the subsidence of the earth's crust 150,000 years ago. Under the combination of hot fountains and lake water, a smoggy and wonderful landscape appeared: the smoky place is the steam of the hot spring, and the green wave is full of Yellowstone. The lake water and the blue sky and white clouds in the background reflect each other, forming a landscape different from other hot spring areas in Huangshi. This is equivalent to the bay of Huangshi Lake, where many geysers gather, and the colors of the water spouts are various, some are transparent green, and some are dark black like cement. Many water spouts present a beautiful fantasy.

Yellowstone Grand Canyon (duration 30 mins)

After an hour's drive, we will arrive at the canyon area of Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone Lake passes through the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and millions of years of carvings have cast the majestic and majestic Yellowstone Grand Canyon. The artist's observation point is located on the top of the cliff on the southern edge of the Yellowstone River Grand Canyon in Yellowstone National Park, just west of the Yellowstone Falls. It is the best scenic spot to watch the Grand Canyon and the Yellowstone Falls. This is where the painter Thomas Moran painted Yellowstone Falls in 1872, so it is called Artist's Point. The canyon is about 20 miles long and about 1,000 feet deep. Stopping to watch, the most fascinating thing is neither the depth and shape of the canyon, nor the dark green river singing and rushing in the waves, but the most unforgettable thing is the grotesque and colorful weathered volcanic rocks. From head to toe, the walls of the gorge are shining with dazzling brilliance-white, yellow, green, blue, vermilion and countless secondary colors mixed with red, everything around it looks like oil paint. There are millions of tons of such rocks in front of you, and the firm colors will neither be washed away nor faded by wind and sun.

Today the tour guide will continue to take you to visit the scenic spots on the Yellowstone National Park.

We drive north from Madison Junction, and after Gibbon Falls and Beryl Hot Springs, we will come to the oldest Norris Geyser Basin in Yellowstone. The diverse geothermal landscape of Norris will bring you a multi-sensory experience of sound, color and smell. There are multiple trails for you to choose from, and you will also see the largest geyser in the world. At noon, we will arrive at Mammoth Hot Springs, another important scenic spot in Yellowstone Park, after passing the volcanic pillar cliff and the roaring mountain. In Mammoth Hot Springs, you can enjoy the travertine steps on the plank road, or go to the visitor center to learn more about the history and culture of Yellowstone. After a short stay at the Roosevelt Arch at the north gate of Yellowstone, the guide will take you to visit the Roosevelt District of Yellowstone, which is the favorite area of President Roosevelt. In Laman Valley, you can watch groups of wild animals, and in Roosevelt Ranch, you can also experience various western style experience projects such as carriage and horse riding. At sunset, we will return to the waterfall area. Interested tourists can walk along the rugged mountain road to the edge of the waterfall of the Yellowstone Great Falls to see the magnificence of the Great Falls.

Then return to West Yellowstone.

Norris Geyser Basin (duration 60 mins)

The name Norris comes from Philetus Norris, the second director of Yellowstone Park. He was the first to summarize many details of Yellowstone's geothermal energy. It is the hottest and most unstable series of geysers in Yellowstone Park. The world's largest geyser "Steamboat Geyser" is also located in this area. It has been dormant for a long time and erupted once a long time (the last eruption was in 2008). A record eruption height of 380 feet was set. Due to its instability, new fountains are created every year, and old fountains die. "Echinus Geysers" is a famous fountain in Yellowstone. Its characteristic is that it is an acidic hot spring, while most of the hot springs in Yellowstone are alkaline. Its pH value is 3, which is said to be as acidic as lemon juice. Famous hot springs in this area include Pearl Geyser, Porcelain Basin, Ledge Geyser, Colloidal Pool, etc. There are also some orange or green river channels formed by fungi, which are also very beautiful.

This basin is the hottest, oldest and most active geothermal area in the Yellowstone region. Under the influence of earthquakes and groundwater levels, the basin's geothermal phenomena vary from day to day. The highest temperature recorded by borehole measurements in the entire Yellowstone region was 237 degrees Celsius at 326 meters below Norris. There is almost no geothermal activity below the boiling point in the Norris area (93°C at Yellowstone's elevation).

Sheepeater Cliffs (duration 30 mins)

Sheepeater Cliff consists of columnar basalt deposited by lava flows about 500,000 years ago. The Gardner River flows through the valley, outcropping and forming cliffs. The basalts of Sheepeater Cliff are called columnar basalts because of the hexagonal fracture lines that form when the basalt cools.

Mammoth Hot Springs (duration 60 mins)

Located in the northwest of Yellowstone Park, it is the headquarters of the Park Service and the most preferred area during courtship of moose. Known for its limestone formations, Mammoth Hot Springs is quite different from other geothermal phenomena in the park. The snow-white and dark-yellow steps formed by the hot springs are like terraced fields. When the hot spring gushes out from the limestone layer, the hot water will dissolve the calcium carbonate in the limestone into the water. When the water flowing out of the surface cools down, the calcium carbonate in the water will condense and deposit into a lime platform because it is too saturated. When the underground outlet hole is blocked by accumulations, the spring water will flow to other outlets to form another platform. The spring water deposited in the platform is affected by the activities of algae and microorganisms, so it forms yellow, white, brown and other colors, and the layers are stacked to form "travertine steps". It's like a giant woolly mammoth in ancient times. Mammoth Hot Springs is the world's largest proven carbonate-deposited hot spring. Its spring water comes from the Norris Geyser Basin, and the water temperature can reach 77°C. Many algae live in the hot springs, making the hot springs brown, orange, red and green in color. The endlessly flowing hot springs rush down with the terraces, and the colors are different, forming a colorful big step, which is very magnificent. After a crustal movement in 2002, most of the hot springs stopped moving, causing a large number of microorganisms to die, making the Mammoth Hot Spring lose its color, and the dead bacteria also turned into off-white powder, remaining on the dry big steps .

Roosevelt Arch (duration 20 mins)

Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, laid the foundation stone for the arch in 1903. It is located at the north gate of Yellowstone Park and is one of the main symbols of the park. The North Gate is also the only gate with a gate in Yellowstone Park. After the arch was completed, Roosevelt quoted 10 words from the Act of Congress "for the benefit and pleasure of the public" engraved on the arch.

Lamar Valley (duration 30 mins)

Located at the northeast end of Yellowstone Park. The hillside is gentle and green grass is overgrown. Residents in the valley have yaks, brown bears, antelopes, black bears, North American elk and other wild animals. It used to be a farm in the early 20th century, and now it has become a spot for watching gray wolves in the mornings of spring, early summer and winter.

The perception of the junction of Tower Roosevelt and Lamar Valley in the middle of Yellowstone Park is described by tourists as "sexy first, heroic second". I believe that every tourist will have their own unique perception when they are in it.

Brink of Lower Falls (duration 30 mins)

The Brink of Lower Falls Trail is a must-see trail for viewing the Yellowstone Falls. Walk down the rugged mountain road and you will reach the edge of the Yellowstone Falls. Here you can witness the spectacular scenery of the Yellowstone Falls at the closest distance.

Today we will go all the way south from Yellowstone Park into Grand Teton National Park. The highest mountain in the park is Grand Teton Peak, 4198 meters above sea level, with remaining glaciers. Among the icy lakes distributed in this area, Jenny Lake is the most famous. Jackson Lake, formed by damming the Snake River, is the largest body of water in the area. There are towering mountain tops, covered with thousands of years of glaciers, mountains and mountains, peaks and peaks, just like entering a fairyland on earth. Leaving Grand Teton, we will enter the National Caribou Refuge and come to the town of Jackson, an important western cowboy town. Here you can feel the local customs and visit the antler arch in the center of the town. Return to Salt Lake City in the evening to watch the gorgeous sunset over the Great Salt Lake City.

Jackson Lake (duration 30 mins)

Lake Jackson is a natural lake formed during the Ice Age. It is located in the Grand Teton National Park in northwest Wyoming. It is about 24 kilometers long, 11 kilometers wide, and 134 meters deep. The annual average temperature of the lake is 16 degrees Celsius. After the Lake Jackson dam was built, the lake continued to grow because of its water storage, and the surface water was used by farmers in Idaho to irrigate their farmland. The Snake River flows into Lake Jackson on the north side to resupply it, and then exits the Jackson Lake Dam on the east side of the lake. The lake is rich in aquatic resources, including imported and local trout species, Snake River killer trout and mountain whitefish. There are more than 15 small islands in the lake, the most famous of which are Elk Island and Donoho Point. The Little Rockefeller Memorial Road extends from the southern end of Yellowstone National Park to the northern end of the lake, and then along the east bank of the lake. There are many cruise ship terminals and hotels nearby. Except for the Jackson Lake Hotel, they all provide cruise ships. The west bank of the lake has almost maintained its original style, which is suitable for hiking, camping, and enjoying the lake scenery with the lake as a mirror and the wind as waves.

Oxbowbend Overlook (duration 30 mins)

The Snake River flows down from the Jackson Lake Dam, close to Highway 89, and makes a big bend in the direction of Moran, shaped like a curved bison horn, hence the name Oxbow Bend. There is a special stop road next to the highway. Looking west from here, the majestic Moran Mountain seems to be born out of nowhere, standing on the bend of the river. The huge granite mountain is so extraordinary. If there is no wind in the morning and evening, the water surface is calm and there is no trace, shooting the intersection of heaven and earth, and the snow-capped mountains reflecting in the river bend can be described as a scene of heaven and earth; countless domestic and foreign photography enthusiasts regard this place as an iconic location for shooting.

Tall trees and sparkling river water create a lazy atmosphere, reminiscent of the leisurely rural scene works of British landscape painters. This is a famous wildlife viewing spot in Grand Teton, and it is also a must-see spot for all photography enthusiasts. It is the best place to appreciate MtMoran. The autumn scenery of Grand Teton is very famous, attracting countless photographers to shoot here every autumn.

Teton Point Turnout (duration 30 mins)

Go south from Snake River Overlook along Highway 191 and you will see a sign on the side of the road that says Teten Point Turnout. After entering, there is a parking lot. The view here is very wide, and you can see Teton from a distance. The peaks of the mountains are undulating and lined up, feeling the majestic grandeur of the Grand Teton, and seeing the eternal glaciers on the peaks, which will give you a shocking feeling.

Elk Antler Arches Park (duration 30 mins)

This park is not big, and there are giant arches made of antlers in the four directions of east, west, north, south. These antlers are not obtained from hunting, but a large number of elk come from the mountains to Jackson's "National Elk Sanctuary" every winter for the winter. In spring, the antlers naturally fall off and then regenerate. After the elk leave, countless treasures are left everywhere.

Great Salt Lake Marina (duration 30 mins)

If time allows, we can go to Great Salt Lake Marina to watch the gorgeous sunset at sunset, and then return to Salt Lake City to end your pleasant trip.

We will get back to the meeting point around 8:00pm depending on traffic and weather conditions. If you are departing from SLC on the last day, please book flights departing later than 11:00pm.