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Accommodations in Yosemite: One of the many things I love about the National Park system here in the United States is the great variety of options for lodging. You can place your bed roll out under the stars in the middle of the wilderness (free wilderness permit required), have a stick of beef jerky for dinner, or you can set up camp in the lap of luxury at one of the parks fine hotels and dine on fillet mignon.

Other than sleeping in the wilderness, the cheapest campground is Camp Four ($10.00 per night available only by daily lottery) Other sites are first come first serve with a limit of six people per site. You can also make use of your RV, if you happen to have this type of setup for your vacations. Lower Pines Campground is open March - October, and has 60 sites that take RVs up to 40 feet in length., North Pines Campground has 81 RV sites, and will also take RVs up to 40 feet.

Upper Pines Campground is open all year round, and has 238 sites available to RVs up to 35 feet. All these RV sites cost $30-$52 per night depending on the season.

Curry Village TentsOver the years, other than wilderness camping, Camp Curry was my favorite place to stay. Prices range from $155.00 per night for a canvas tent ($175.00 with heater), all the way up to $255.00 per night for a cabin with bathroom and fireplace.

I have stayed in all the various options in Camp Curry, but the canvas tent is my favorite. It is reasonably priced, and it maintains a sort of wilderness experience that you come to Yosemite for in the first place.

Curry Village was first established in 1899 by David and Jennie Curry. The cost was $2.00 per night. "Three squares a day, a clean napkin, and no tipping" was the motto. Breakfast was at 8:00 AM, and if you were late, you were out of luck.

Today, Curry Village has many options for dinning. My favorite is the all you can eat Pavilion Buffet. Meal tickets for adults go for $12.00 each for breakfast, and $15.00 each for dinner. Plenty of great food in my opinion.

Inside Tent CabinNoisy neighbors can be a problem, with only a thin canvas barrier between you and them. But I have found that most people are responsible in this area for the most part. My wife and I in the early days paid only $20.00 per night.

The best bet is to book early in the season. If you book during a promotional time of year, you can get the same tent much less. Tent cabins do not have restrooms, so you will have to make use of the public ones, for showering and other needs. In the photo to the left, you can see the interior of one of Curry's tent cabins. The insulated one shown here, accommodates three adults, or four if you put two small kids on the double bed, or if someone does not mind sleeping on the floor.

Wawona Hotel Sitting RoomIn the image to the left (of the Wawona Hotel sitting room), you can see the contrast of accommodations afforded by the more luxurious hotels (when compared to the tent cabins) that are available in Yosemite National Park.

In the photo in the upper right hand side, you will see an image of Curry Villages Pavilion Buffet. As stated earlier, this is my favorite choice for dinning in the Valley. I have a couple of older hungry sons along often, and the "All you can eat" ticket comes in handy. Plenty of good deserts too.

Another thing I need to mention, is that camping in the back of your truck or SUV is prohibited now. Thirty five years ago, I used to come to Yosemite and take off on backpacks after sleeping in the back of my pickup truck bed. Today, this is known as unauthorized camping, and you will be cited and possibly escorted out of the park if you try this. You will also need a wilderness permit for any type of overnight stay in the wilderness. If you have a wilderness permit, Yosemite has backpacker campgrounds for those who want to bed down in the valley before and after their backpack.

Ahwahnee HotelIn the early 1900´s the first director of the National Park Service, Stephen Mather, decided that Yosemite needed a first class hotel. Well the result of that vision was the Ahwahnee Hotel (photo to the right) (photo above) and it is certainly a first class hotel.

If you ever decide to stay in this beautiful structure, make sure you have reservations well in advance. Also be prepared to spend anywhere between $518.00 to over $1,200.00/per night if you decide to lodge in the Library Suite, Presidential Suite, or Third Floor Suite. But if you do not want to break the bank, you can stay in this magnificent hotel for much much less if you go off season during one of their promotions. My wife and I have taken advantage of this several times and gone in the months of January and February for $475.00 that included breakfast in their fine dining room. Such a deal! We found the park to be very beautiful in these winter months and the experience of staying in the Ahwahnee Hotel was a wonderful memory. I would highly recommend it. For more info and prices you can visit the following link HERE.

Yosemite Village, also has a hotel, and there are other campgrounds and hotels such as the ones in Wawona. I think the Wawona Hotel is beautiful, and is offered at great prices, but the problem is you have to travel a fair distance on windy roads to get to the valley floor where all the action is.

There are also accommodations in Tuolumne Meadows. The campground located there in the beautiful high country of Yosemite is the largest in the park. It has 304 sites, and will take RVs up to 35 feet.


Dinning in Yosemite can be as simple or involved as you want to make it. Often we just go to the Yosemite or Curry Village grocery store and eat some cold cereal and milk for breakfast, or make a sandwich for lunch. If you like fast food such as hamburger or pizza, Yosemite also has these type of establishments in Curry Village. But if simple food is not to your liking, you can put on your fine clothes and eat at the Ahwahnee and have a gourmet food if you have the funds.

INFORMATION AND MAKING RESERVATIONS IN YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK
  • All of Yosemite's seven hotels and lodges are run by Yosemite Hospitality.

  • You can make reservations for Yosemite Lodging by phone at: 801-559-5000

  • Overnight Wilderness Permits can be obtained by calling this number: 209-372-0740
The following links are available for Online information and booking:
Deeper Insight - A place prepared for you.
The planners of Yosemite National Park's accommodations have done a fine job providing all sorts of options for visitors lodging. I have always enjoyed my visits in this great outdoor park.

Due to the incredible popularity of Yosemite National Park, it is recommended that you get reservations well in advance of your planned visit. Many a traveler has been disappointed and vacation plans have had to be canceled due to people being unable to get reservations because space is full up.

Yosemite is not the only place that requires advance planning, where you will be staying for eternity also requires careful thought and planning. If you have not considered any of this, now would be a good time to do so. The good news is, that Jesus is up there preparing a place for you that makes the Ahwahnee hotel, or any other luxury accommodation look like a hole in the wall. But reservations are required, and only the Lord Jesus Christ can give them to you. So if you are at all interested, click here and watch a short video on the subject to find out more.

"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
John
14:1-4
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