Securing a campsite

My husband and I are planning a trip to YS for late August. We would like to stay at a campground, but I have been reading that hey are first come, first serve- any suggestions on what time to show up to secure a spot?

We will be flying in from NYC, and renting a car- what is your advice on flying equipment out? Just don%26#39;t do it?

Thanks!

Securing a campsite

The campgrounds operated by the NPS are first come first served, but the four operated by Xanterra can be reserved. Those are Canyon (prob the best one), Grant, Madison, and Bridge Bay. Here%26#39;s a page with a list of them all, and the link to Xanterra%26#39;s camping page is there too:

nationalparked.com/US/…Campgrounds.php

Securing a campsite

It is great to know that we can make reservations at those campsites! Thanks so much for the link.

Anybody have advice about flying out a tent/camping equipment?

If you mean taking your gear with you as checked baggage, I would check with your airline. I know that most airlines allow sporting goods, like golf clubs, skis, some diving gear, and even guns in locked cases, but I have no idea how expensive that might be for you, because it%26#39;s based on weight and overall size.

If you wanted to send the gear out ahead of you, like by UPS or FEDEX or something, you would need to arrange to have someone out there accept it for you. Shipping that way IS expensive, but it might not be any worse than going the checked baggage route.

We packed our tent, sleeping bags, air mats and cook gear into one of our checked bags and flew to Miami. No problem but we had bought our tickets before they quit letting you have 2 checked bags each. You might need heavier sleeping bags for Yellowstone and your tent might be bigger than ours.