Just one week after Denver and I got back from our Southwest National Park Road Trip, we managed to snag an RV relocation deal and hopped right back on the road to hit some of our favorite northern national parks!
We picked up the RV in Chicago and had exactly 8 days to get it from Chicago to Oakland, CA for its pick up. Around a 2200 mile road trip, but we were thrilled to do it in an RV we were paying only $1 a day for!
SEE MORE || Our Whole 12 Day Southwestern National Park Road Trip
OUR FULL ITINERARY
Day One: Drive from Chicago all the way to Wall, South Dakota (which also involved some night driving)
Day Two: Spent the day exploring the Badlands and Mount Rushmore then drove that night as far as we could toward the Grand Tetons
Day Three: Early morning drive to Grand Tetons where we spent the full day
Day Four: Yellowstone Full Day
Day Five: Yellowstone Full Day
Day Six: Drove all day long to Lake Tahoe
Day Seven: Lake Tahoe for the day then drove to Yosemite
Day Eight: Yosemite National Park all day
Day Nine: Dropped off the RV and headed back home!
Total Trip Cost for Gas: $550 + $200 credit from RV Rental company
Total Trip Cost for Housing: $150 for various RV Parks
Total Trip Cost for Supplies/Food: $300, we splurged a little on food some night
Total Trip Cost for Activities: $200 for more splurging!
How We Got an RV for Free
This sounds like absolute clickbait, but it’s 100% real and WE DID IT OURSELVES so I can personally confirm. RV companies have a lot of locations with TOO MANY RVs in stock that they actually need to move to their other locations to be picked up. So if you have a lot of families taking RVs to Chicago, then they need people to drive those RVs one way back to where they came from before their next pick-up. Instead of paying employees to drive them back, they release them to the public for $1 one-way. You don’t pick the dates or the destination or the pick-up, so you have to be flexible!
You stalk the iMoova Website:
There are plenty of websites that list these one-way rentals, but we used iMoova so they’re the only site I can vouch for. You just keep an eye on the site, and the second an RV pops up that fits the bill for you, stick your name and card down! Next, the company will either contact you directly or you can reach out to whoever is running the RV relocation and let them know yourself that you want the spot. We applied to about 2 before we got accepted and snagged this Chicago to San Francisco trip!
How Does This Work:
You usually have a time period to pick up the rental, and a date it need to be there by and a capped number of miles. We had 7 full days and 4k miles with a $200 gas stipend. We ended up taking the full 7 days so we can drive through the night and spend our days at the National Parks! We JUST barely went over our 4k miles limit, which is fine because then you just pay 25 cents per mile. We were fine with that!
What Does It Come With?
You DO have to bring your own supplies. Ours very luckily came with kitchen supplies because they needed the kitchen supplies in San Francisco, but most do not. We originally planned to pack the items we needed, and then we decided that the most efficient cost option was actually going to be hitting Walmart and Goodwill and just getting essentials from there. When we arrived in San Francisco, we donated everything we had bought so that it didn’t go to waste!
The Badlands National Park Guide
The Badlands was one of my FAVORITE national parks when I was a little kid because I loved getting to climb all around it! It was a huge human gym for little me. And while I am less of a human monkey now vs age 13, we still had a blast climbing all around the park. You really only need one day (even one afternoon is fine) for this park since it’s one giant road and stops along that!
Things To Do in the Badlands:
- Panorama Point: A stunning view of the valley and the Badlands! It’s just a stop-and-go point, but worth the views to take a dip here.
- Pinnacles Overlook My personal favorite viewpoint on the Badlands. It’s a truly stunning view. You get the best of the Badlands here.
- Notch Trail: A pretty easy 1.3 mile hike (round trip) we were able to do in like 40 minutes. There is a ladder you have to climb, so best avoid the trail if you’re afraid of heights! Otherwise, solid easy-level trail. The end has a stunning view of the valley!
- Saddle Pass Trail: Okay so this SEEMS short (0.25m) but it’s definitely just straight uphill and not the easiest thing in the world. But you do get an incredible viewpoint at the top!
- Cliff Shelf Trail: Just a pretty moderate 0.5m hike up to the shelf point! It’s not a super high elevation gain (it’s 200m) but it’s still a cool little hike to do if you want to climb on the mounds.
Where We Stayed: With the RV, we ended up camping out in the parking lot of the Wall Drug! Had no problems there and other RVs were with us! I would say Wall is probably the best place to stay near the Badlands.
The Grand Tetons National Park
I came in having pretty meh expectations of the Grand Tetons. Sounded like two kinda cool mountains and that was about it. So I ended up being SUPER impressed! We spent one full day from 10am to 6pm at the Grand Tetons. I would say one day is solid, but I would recommend 2 days there total and getting to spend some time in Jackson while you’re at it.
We originally planned on going to Yellowstone Canyon first but we found a camping spot at the Grand Tetons the day before our Yellowstone campsite reservation, so we rearranged our trip and came here first! We drove through the South entrance and then up through the Grand Tetons and straight into Yellowstone!
Heads up, we had ABSOLUTELY NO cell service at the Grand Tetons. If you need cell service, you’re going to want to make sure to stay in Jackson.
Take the Jenny Lake Shuttle Boat:
It’s $10 for one way and $18 for the round trip! I would personally recommend taking it there and then doing the walk back yourself (2 miles long one way). The boat line back was SO long compared to going there!
Things To Do at the Grand Tetons:
- Hike to Hidden Falls: Firstly. The waterfall you see when you get off the boat is NOT hidden falls. We totally thought it was. Keep walking about half a mile and you’ll see these beautiful waterfalls! I cannot get over how stunning they were.
- Hike to Inspiration Point: This uphill hike is about 1.5 miles but the view of the lake when you hit the top makes it so worthy. I didn’t actually think the hike was that hard and the views totally made it worth it! And the entire hike up is stunning.
- Hike to Cascade Canyon: This is ANOTHER 2 miles after Inspiration Point. Denver and I only made it halfway before we somehow got in a hail storm and had to take cover and ditch. However, if you’re big on hiking then this is a fabulous option! Also, you’re likely to see wild animals along the trail. We heard there was a moose when we were there!
- Lake Day at Signal Lake: This lodge actually rents out kayaks and boards for the day on the lake, or you can just hang out at the shore! Either way, a great way to relax and enjoy the mountains and lake.
- Sunrise at Schwabacher Landing: One of the best places to get sunrise views of the Grand Tetons! Denver and I are absolutely not morning people so it was a no from us, but worth it if you are!
Favorite Essentials From Our Trips:
Explore Jackson, Wyoming:
If you have the time, hang out in Jackson and enjoy the cute town! We didn’t have the time and didn’t want to waste it, so we skipped. But I have heard rave reviews of Jackson! Tons of adorable restaurants, hotels, and coffee shops.
Where To Stay in the Grand Tetons:
If you want to stay in the City: Stay in Jackson! There are plenty of cute hotels you can hit here within different price ranges.
If you want to stay in the Park: There are tons of beautiful lodges in the Grand Tetons. I will warn you that they fill up crazy fast, so make sure you book early on. Additionally, check back often for cancellations! We happened to get a spot because someone canceled and we snagged it in time. Otherwise, the entire park was FULL while we were there.
If you want to Camp: The park has plenty of first come first serve campgrounds, and there is back-country camping available as long as you get a permit in time!
If you have an RV: a couple options are available. You can boondock at Antelope Flats (supposed to be one of the prettiest spots), Shadow Mountain, Lower & Upper Teton View, and more! The blog I listed below gives you all the details.
SEE MORE : ONE WEEK IN THE GRAND TETONS & EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Yellowstone National Park Guide
Yellowstone National Park has always been my dad’s favorite. It’s just so different from so many other national parks and has the most interesting and diverse landscape. If you can spend at least 2 days there that would be ideal! Otherwise, three is probably a great amount. One, and you’ll be struggling to cross everything from your list!
The absolute HIGHLIGHTS of Yellowstone Park
- Upper Geyser Basin (Old Faithful): Obviously, one of the most popular spots in the entire park! This geyser basin is home to some major active geysers, including Old Faithful. I recommend arriving and seeing what time Old Faithful will erupt, and if you’re there early then walk around the entire geyser basin and see the other springs and spots! Totally one area worth walking the whole thing, about 2 miles total (easy).
- Grand Prismatic Springs: This is the stunning giant rainbow geyser pool you always see in pictures! While you can go directly to the basin, the BEST view is actually from the Fairy Falls parking lot. Head there, and follow the signs up the dirt path to the top ledge view. Takes about a mile and a half, with a small uphill trek but nothing crazy!
- Mammoth Springs: I will warn you, this spot is pretty dried out vs the images you see from years past. But still worth checking out because of how iconic it is.
- Lamar Valley: If you’re wanting to stop some wild bison, this is the place to go! We came across HUNDREDS driving through here, including one guy that walked straight in front of me at one point.
- Boiling River Hot Springs: If you’re there during non-COVID times, this is usually open! One of the only hot springs actually open to the public for swimming in. We went when it was closed, but I’ve heard only good things!
Yellowstone Canyon Viewpoints
Yellowstone Canyon was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen. Truly. So I wanted to share some of our favorite viewpoints for the Canyon!
Artist Point: One of the best views of the entire canyon + the river, but not the falls itself. Still stunning, especially for sunset!
Lower Falls Brink: So stunning, you go right at the top of the waterfall for this viewpoint. It’s super steep though, be warned.
Lookout Point: Going down a set of stairs farther into the canyon, a beautiful view of the falls from here.
Secret Point: Denver and I managed to find a secret little path through the woods to the most STUNNING viewpoint of the canyon. It’s steep, and not for the faint of heart. But when you get to the canyon ledge, you’ll be blown away. Coordinates are 44.72048, -110.49329 – view from this image!!!
Where to Stay in Yellowstone Park:
If you want to camp: stay in Joshua Tree National Park and try to get the Jumbo Rocks campground! This is the one we enjoyed, with plenty of shade and all the needed amenities. Plus tons of fun boulders to climb on!
If you need a hotel: definitely try and stay in Palm Springs! Only a 45-minute drive from Joshua Tree’s entrance, and with endless restaurants and fun hotels.
Outfit Essentials for Hiking the National Parks:
I hope you guys found our Northern United States National Park RV Trip guide helpful! We absolutely recommend checking out these relocation deals, they’re a BLAST and totally worth it if you have the flexibility.
