Yosemite National Park Lodging

While Yosemite Valley has the pick of the lodgings, with everything from the five star Ahwahnee Hotel to the cheap sites at Curry Village and Housekeeping Camp, there are other choices outside the valley, including Wawona Hotel in the south and Tuolumne Meadows and White Wolf Lodge farther north and up into High Sierra Country. Privately owned cabins, lodges and homes are also dotted about the park and there are less expensive options in the nearby towns of El Portal, Mariposa, Oakhurst, and Groveland.

Demand for lodges and booking

Visitors need to book as far ahead as possible and most of the hotels and lodges in the park are bookable through the National Park Service up to a year in advance. Booking Yosemite National Park lodging is especially important from spring through early fall (May to September) when the park really packs out. It is easier to get into those places that are open in the winter, barring those near the Badger Ski area, while cancellations may also be made available online. You can make reservations online through the park although discounts are rarely given as they might be with private operations.

Lodging types in Yosemite

Yosemite Lodges: Yosemite Lodge at the Falls is a lodge-cum-hotel and is one of the best accommodation options in the park. It is positioned very near Yosemite Falls, right in Yosemite Valley, but does not come cheap. Other lodges are available in High Sierra country at White Wolf Lodge and Tuolumne Meadows Lodge. These places also have campsites and prices here are more reasonable.

Yosemite Hotels: There are three main hotels within the confines of Yosemite National Park: The Ahwahnee, Yosemite Lodge at the Falls, and Wawona. They all have plush rooms and good restaurants and facilities, with pools and games for the kids as standard. Ahwahnee and Yosemite Lodge at the Falls are both in Yosemite Valley, while Wawona lies in the south near the Badger Pass ski area.

Yosemite Cabins: The top hotels also come with cabin suites, while private vacation rentals also have luxury cabins and homes for rent. Budget cabins are also available in Yosemite. They come with concrete walls and floor with a glorified tarp stretched over the top. Curry Village and Housekeeping Camp are the main sites with this type of cabin and are right by Yosemite Village, while White Wolf Lodge and Tuolumne Meadows Lodge also have them.

Yosemite Campsites: Most sites can be had in the busy Curry Village and Housekeeping Camp with something like 600 sites between them. Each site can hold several people, to boot. They typically come with the tent cabin hybrid as well as space to pitch your own tent. There are campsites all over Yosemite.

Yosemite Rentals: Spread throughout the park, Yosemite National Park lodging vacation rentals usually come in the form of lodges, cabins, and homes and go from midrange to all out luxury.