One of the most popular visits in a trip to the west coast of the United States is the Yosemite National Park, California.
In this park you will find lush forests, where you will have the opportunity to see the gigantic sequoias that can be seen in various areas of California.
In this regard, I remind you that you also find these impressive trees in the sequoia national park.
DON'T FORGET YOUR TRAVEL INSURANCE
Are you planning your trip or getaway? Don't leave without take out your travel insurance before, and here we explain whyIf you contract it with us, you have a 10% discount with the code GUIASVIAJAR10.
Also, in Yosemite The great granite rocky mountains are also protagonists, the most famous being the so-called El Captain.
And if you decide visit Yosemite in spring, you can enjoy mighty waterfalls, of course, which in summer significantly reduce their volume of water until they almost disappear.
Below I detail different helpful tips to take into account for visit Yosemite National Park.
All the information in detail
- 1 Where is and how to get to Yosemite in California
- 2 What is the best time to visit Yosemite?
- 3 The best things to see and do when visiting Yosemite
- 3.1 Yosemite Valley, the heart of the national park
- 3.2 How to see El Capitan, Yosemite's iconic rocky mountain
- 3.3 Waterfalls in Yosemite
- 3.4 Mirror Lake, the Half Dome viewpoint
- 3.5 Tunnel View in Yosemite
- 3.6 Glacier Point, the best panoramic views of Yosemite
- 3.7 Mariposa Grove, where to see giant sequoias in Yosemite
- 3.8 Tioga Road Route in Yosemite
- 4 Yosemite National Park Entrance Fees
- 5 How to take a Tour from San Francisco to Yosemite
- 6 Map: how to get to Yosemite
Where is and how to get to Yosemite in California
Yosemite is located east of San Francisco, towards the interior of california.
In your California car trip, the usual thing would be to access from San Francisco awarded by the 49 Route, but if you come since the Angeles, you should go to Ash, and then take the 41 Route that will take you to the park.
Another option when plan the route to visit the Yosemite National Park is to consider it an intermediate stage in the travel between San Francisco and Las Vegas.
This option can take you to cross the national park along the route called Tioga Road, and then take the 345 Route that leads you to the national park death Valley (Death Valley), already on the way to Nevada.
Esta route along Tioga Road It is only viable in spring and summer because during the winter the high mountain road will be closed due to snow.
What is the best time to visit Yosemite?
Precisely when planning your Yosemite visit, it is important to know that circumstances change depending on the time of the year.
You have to keep in mind that in a large part of it you do not have access to some of the most interesting areas due to the Road closures due to inclement weather.
Specifically, the aforementioned mountain road of Tioga Road or the area of Mariposa Road, also located at altitude and where the sequoias are found.
The best things to see and do when visiting Yosemite
Yosemite National Park has various areas that are susceptible to your visit.
Yosemite Valley, the heart of the national park
The central area of Yosemite National Park is called Yosemite Valley, whose access is located to the west of the park.
After entering the park at 49 Route, you will find a gazebo from which you will enjoy the first panoramic views of the Yosemite Valley.
How to see El Capitan, Yosemite's iconic rocky mountain
From this first viewpoint, in the distance you will already see the rocky promontory known as El Captain.
On your route to the center of the valley, where the Yosemite National Park Visitor Center, you will have the opportunity to pass by El capitán and check the majesty of the 914 meter high rock.
Waterfalls in Yosemite
From the Visitors Center, in spring it is worth taking a path and approaching the Yosemite waterfalls, which in three different waterfalls complete a height of 740 meters.
Don't be surprised if you travel in August or in later months that you will find these waterfalls already dry.
ORGANIZE your TRIP
- Don't forget your TRAVEL INSURANCE with a 10% discount
- Book the HOTEL for your trip
- eSIM card to have INTERNET at a discount
- The best TOURS and EXCURSIONS in Spanish
- TOURS and ACTIVITIES in English and other languages
- NO-LINE TICKETS for museums and monuments
- RENT a CAR for your trip
- Has your flight been cancelled? How to claim compensation
- Book your TRANSFER from the airport
Mirror Lake, the Half Dome viewpoint
From the Visitors Center You can also go to the place known as Mirror lake.
It is a small lake that is the best place to contemplate the Half dome, the other iconic rocky promontory of Yosemite, which rises 1.500 meters above the base of the Yosemite Valley.
Tunnel View in Yosemite
When you leave the Yosemite Valley and you head south along the 41 Route, on the way to Fresno, right at the exit of the valley is the gazebo tunnel view.
It is possibly from this enclave where you have the best panoramic views of Yosemite Valley.
Glacier Point, the best panoramic views of Yosemite
Shortly after leaving the valley, you can take the road that turns left to ascend the so-called Glacier point.
From this location you will have beautiful panoramic views of the Yosemite Valley, including those mentioned Rocky Mountains El Captain and the Half dome.
And from there you can also see the waterfall Nevadaa, whose most spectacular moment occurs in the month of May.
Mariposa Grove, where to see giant sequoias in Yosemite
Before arriving at the Yosemite National Park South Exit, be sure to come to the place called butterfly grove.
Going up to this enclave will take you to a large and leafy forest where you will see the spectacular giant sequoiasWithout a doubt, one of the main attractions of visiting Yosemite National Park.
Tioga Road Route in Yosemite
In the northern part of the Yosemite Valley There is the road that crosses the entire national park at the top of the mountains.
In this Tioga Road route, and as we approach the east exit of Yosemite, you will find Tulumne Meadows, a large meadow in the highlands that shows the visitor a beautiful landscape of the national park, as it is very flowery in spring.
Tuolumne Meadows is located 90 kilometers from Yosemite Valley, which amounts to an hour and a half through Tioga Road.
This large meadow in the Yosemite highlands is located at 2.600 meters above sea level, so it is only open to visitors from mid-May until the first snows of November, as happens along the entire route of Tioga Road.
The great meadow of Tulumne Meadows It is crossed by the Tuolumme River and is surrounded by large peaks with a height of more than 4.000 meters.
When we arrived at Tuolumne Meadows we found a campground, a visitor center, and some shops and restaurants. This meadow is also accessible in winter to practice Nordic skiing.
This route is only accessible from spring to fall.
Yosemite National Park Entrance Fees
El entrance fee to visit Yosemite It is $35, and it includes access to a car with all its occupants, as many times as you want for seven consecutive days.
If you go by motorcycle the price is 30 dollars per vehicle with its occupants, and if you go by bicycle...or on foot, the entrance price is 20 dollars per person.
Now, if in your trip along the west coast of the United States you are going to visit several national parks, you can consider the option of purchasing the Annual Pass.
It is a tourist pass valid annually for $80 for a vehicle and four passengers, which allows you to access the vast majority of the aforementioned parks.
Book your hotel, 15% discount, free cancellation
When planning your trip, we advise you to, well in advance, Book your hotel now on booking.com where you can find discounts from 15% and you will have a possible cancellation for free
How to take a Tour from San Francisco to Yosemite
If instead of driving on your own you prefer to sign up for a organized excursion To visit this national park, you have the option of tour from San Francisco to Yosemite.
This 14-hour excursion will allow you to spend 5-6 hours in the national park, where in a single day you will see its most notable corners.
Distances to Yosemite National Park in California
It will be useful to know the driving distances from Yosemite National Park to notable places in the West Coast of the United States:
- Distance from San Francisco to Yosemite: 304 kilometers, three and a half hours
- Distance from Los Angeles to Yosemite: 497 kilometers, five hours
- Distance from Las Vegas to Yosemite: 793 kilometers, eight hours
- Distance from Death Valley to Yosemite: 468 kilometers, six and a half hours
More information about Yosemite National Park
- Official website of Yosemite National Park
- El Capitan Rocky Mountain in Yosemite National Park
- Giant sequoias at Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park
- Road closure times due to inclement weather in Yosemite
- Tour in Spanish from San Francisco to Yosemite in one day
Map: how to get to Yosemite
On this map you have the location of the Yosemite National Park in California, and you can see how to get there from San Francisco by car.
Hello Jose Luis, I have read your blog and I appreciate your comments, I travel to Sn Fco in December-January with the family and I would appreciate any comments to get to know the park at that time
We are going to travel from Tijuana to San Francisco from March 18 to 22, 2016, we are going as a group of adults and children of 10, two families, what do you recommend, San Francisco, Yosemite park and Napa Valley, as usual
Hello José Luis, I thank you in advance for helping all of us who have questions. I think, going from SF, spending the night in Fresno and the next day, entering Yosemite early, I want to return to Fresno at night to continue the next day to Las Vegas, what do you recommend I see during the day? The estimated date is September 17/18. Thank you
Eduardo, on that full day in Yosemite you will have time to see the valley, with the great promontory of El Capitan, hike to go up to the Mirror Lake area, go up to the Glaciar Point viewpoint and see the redwoods in Mariposa Grove, whose access you have at the entrance from Fresno
Good trip
Hello José Luis, in September I am taking the route by car along the west coast and with Yosemite I am full of doubts. I wish you could help me, I tell you: we come from Death Valley and spend the night in Bishop. And our idea is from Bishop (getting up early of course) to reach Yosemite through the Tioga Road entrance, see what we can of the park and continue to San Francisco. My question is the following, considering that we have to get to SF even if it is late, what would we have time to see about Yosemite? Do we have time to see El Capitan, Glacier Point and even get to Mariposa Grove? No matter how much I look at the maps, I don't know to what extent, even if we don't spend much time looking at things, it would give us time to go through everything and get to SF :S If you could help me, I would greatly appreciate it.
Wow, Maria, really tight. Actually, to see Yosemite well starting from Bishop, the ideal would be that after the visit you stay in a hotel as you leave the park towards San Francisco. If not, you may arrive quite late at SFCO.
In any case, you will have time to see Yosemite Valley and El Capitan, and possibly it will be very tight to climb to Glacier Point. You will see that as you go.
As for seeing the redwoods in Mariposa Grove, you probably won't have time. I tell you that near SFCO there is a redwood park.
http://guias-viajar.com/los-estados-unidos/yosemite-vistas-panoramicas-glacier-point-secuoyas-gigantes/
Good trip
Thank you very much, really!! Your answer was what I was more or less afraid of, but corroborated by someone who has been there, I felt calmer. And if there is another redwood park in the SF area, we'll see if we have time to see it.
Thank you
Hello Jose Luis! Thank you very much for your prompt response. We were just seeing that if we slept in Fresno, we would miss Tioga Road and we want to see EVERYTHING! Where would you recommend sleeping if we return via Tioga? I saw that on Route 95, it would be about 8 hours of driving to LVegas, so we should sleep when leaving on the east side.
Thank you again and I tell you again that this page is good!!!
Claudia, indeed, the ideal would be to sleep in a hotel once you pass Tioga Road.
I'm sorry I can't recommend anything to you, because I went through Fresno 🙁
Good trip
Thank you very much for your answers! Your comments have helped us organize ourselves better. The site is very good, and the amount of information that can be found is great.
Regards!
Hello! I'm traveling to the west coast and I have these questions: *from LAX to SFsco along the coast (route 1), should I sleep halfway?
*Can I see the important points of Yosemite Park in 1 day? (they talk about many access doors and it confuses me)
*To get to LVegas from Yosemite and continue seeing landscapes, what route is best for me and how long does it take?
Thank you very much if you can respond, because the truth is I have gotten a lot of information from everything I read!! Thank you!
Claudia, if you went direct from LAX to San Francisco on route 1, you arrive on the same day, you don't need to sleep on the way.
As for Yosemite, if you can see it in one day. Specifically, from what you say, I assume that you will go from San Francisco. You will enter from the west, through Yosemite Valley, which is the center of the park.
You then have the option of heading south to climb the Glacier Point Overlook and then see the redwoods at Mariposa Grove. From there the most comfortable thing would be to go down through Fresno and then continue on to Las Vegas.
But if you want to continue visiting Yosemite and other different landscapes, the ideal would be that you return to leave Yosemite to the east, along the Tioga Road route, and then go down towards Las Vegas, possibly even passing through Death Valley.
This route would take you a little more time than through Fresno, but it is more interesting
Hello, I have some questions to see if you could help me:
• Is it necessary to reserve for camping?
• We are planning a trip from Tijuana to Yosemit, we were thinking of going in December when it is snowy. Do you recommend it? I understand the park is open all year round.
PS.- The page is incredible, greetings.
Hello, at the beginning of September I will go to California and one of the stops is Yosemite. We will go by car from Las Vegas and we don't really know how to ride it. We have thought about making the trip from Las Vegas to Fresno and sleeping here (which is much cheaper) and the next day going to the park. It is very far? Or better to look for accommodation in places like Butterfly?
The day after visiting the park we go to San Francisco and we are in the same situation. We don't know whether to spend the night in Butterfly or surrounding areas or look for a destination halfway between Yosemite and SF. What do you recommend me?
Sleeping in Fresno is a good solution, since it is close to Yosemite.
I did it on my trip through that area, and it is much cheaper than doing it in Yosemite Park or the surrounding area. And for the route to San Francisco, it is also a good option to look for accommodation on the way to San Francisco.
I have always wanted to go to this place, I have been told that it is very good but I have never had the opportunity to go there.
Hello, we are planning to go to Yosemite park, we are from Guadalajara. We want to camp at least one night in the second week of April this year. When does it cost to camp and do you have to make a reservation? We also plan to make a stop in Fresno, any Fresno attractions worth seeing?
I'm sorry I can't help you, Adriana, but I have no information on camping prices in Yosemite.
And Fresno, although it is a city where I slept one night on my trip along the west coast, I don't know it, but I don't think it has anything notable to visit.
Hello! We are planning a trip to Yosemite for a couple of days and we are not sure which is the best area to stay! We are going from San Francisco by car, we want to spend a night in Yosemite, and return to San Francisco... What area is best for us to stay and try to see everything we can? Thank you!
Cris, within Yosemite Valley there are a couple of hotels, but they are not cheap, and there is also the option of cabins or tents. In any case, you have to book well in advance if you travel in high season.
Another option is the Wawona hotel in the Mariposa Grove area, where you can see the redwoods. There is also accommodation, outside the park, in Mariposa and Oakhurst, also in the southwest of the park, and about 50 kilometers from Yosemite Valley.
I insist, you have to reserve in advance.