Wyoming is the least populous U.S. state yet one of its most spectacular, encompassing Yellowstone National Park, Grand Teton National Park, and vast high-plains ranching country. Cowboy culture runs deep, rodeos are a living tradition, and the landscape swings from boiling geysers to glacier-carved peaks within a single afternoon's drive.
Top day trips
Handpicked excursions within easy reach.
Yellowstone National Park from Jackson
Yellowstone's south end concentrates the park's best-known thermal features within a single day's loop from Jackson, making it feasible to see geysers, hot springs and a stretch of Yellowstone Lake without an overnight stay. The drive alone crosses the Continental Divide twice. Expect to spend most of the day on boardwalks moving between thermal basins rather than hiking long trails.
Highlights: Old Faithful - erupts roughly every 60-110 minutes and is predictable enough to plan a lunch stop around · Grand Prismatic Spring (Midway Geyser Basin) - the park's largest hot spring, best viewed from the Fairy Falls overlook trail for the full color band · West Thumb Geyser Basin - thermal features sitting directly on the shore of Yellowstone Lake · Yellowstone Lake - North America's largest high-elevation lake, visible for miles along the South Entrance road
Devil's Tower National Monument from Gillette
Devils Tower is an isolated igneous rock formation rising abruptly out of the surrounding pine forest and prairie, and the monument around it is small enough to see thoroughly in half a day. Most visitors combine the close-up trail with time at the base watching climbers on the columns. It works well as a shorter add-on day rather than a full one.
Highlights: Devils Tower Tower Trail - a 1.3-mile paved loop around the base that gives changing angles on the columnar rock · Prairie dog town near the visitor center parking area, active through the day · Circle of Sacred Smoke sculpture near the entrance, referencing the site's significance to several Plains tribes · Belle Fourche River, which runs along the monument's access road and campground
Thermopolis Hot Springs from Lander
Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis sits around one of the largest mineral hot springs in the world, and the park itself is free to enter and walk, with paid swimming facilities built around the runoff. It's a relaxed day built around soaking rather than sightseeing, with a short walk across the mineral terraces as the main non-swimming activity.
Highlights: Big Spring and the mineral terraces - the source spring flows over a series of colorful travertine terraces you can walk alongside on boardwalks · State Bath House - a free indoor soaking pool fed by the spring, run by Wyoming State Parks · Star Plunge and Hellie's Tepee Pools - the two commercial water parks in the park with slides and outdoor soaking pools · The park's bison herd, kept in a fenced range within Hot Springs State Park
Beartooth Highway Scenic Drive from Cody
The Beartooth Highway climbs from forested canyon country to open alpine tundra above 10,000 feet, with switchbacks and pullouts that make it a drive best done slowly rather than as a point-to-point trip. It's typically only open from late May to mid-October due to snow, and it rewards travelers who plan the drive itself as the destination rather than a means to somewhere else.
Highlights: Beartooth Pass summit, at close to 11,000 feet, with tundra terrain and snow patches lingering into summer · Beartooth Lake, a roadside lake near the pass with pullouts for photos and a short walk to the shore · Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (WY-296), the approach route from Cody that adds its own switchbacks above the Clarks Fork Canyon · Clay Butte Lookout, a short side road off the highway with wide views over the Absaroka and Beartooth ranges
Fossil Butte National Monument from Kemmerer
Fossil Butte protects a section of the ancient Fossil Lake basin, known for exceptionally detailed fish fossils preserved in the butte's layered rock. It's a small, quiet monument built around a single visitor center and a couple of short trails, making it a half-day rather than full-day stop, easily combined with other things in the Kemmerer area.
Highlights: Fossil Butte Visitor Center - displays actual fossil fish and other specimens excavated from the monument's rock layers · Historic Quarry Trail - a moderate 2.5-mile round trip up to a former excavation site on the butte · Fossil Lake formation itself, the 50-million-year-old lakebed responsible for the area's fossil record
Wind River Canyon Scenic Drive from Thermopolis
Wind River Canyon carries US-20 through a steep-walled gorge cut by the Wind River, with rock formations along the road labeled by geologic age and a river popular for whitewater rafting. It's a short, direct drive rather than a full day out, and pairs naturally with Thermopolis Hot Springs on the same trip.
Highlights: Wedding of the Waters - the point where the Wind River is renamed the Bighorn River as it exits the canyon · Boysen Reservoir and Boysen State Park at the canyon's south end, with pullouts along the shoreline · The canyon's marked geologic formations, visible in the rock walls along the highway with roadside signage naming each layer · Whitewater rafting put-ins used by outfitters running the canyon's rapids
South Pass City Ghost Town from Lander
South Pass City State Historic Site preserves a cluster of original and reconstructed 1860s gold-rush buildings along the town's Main Street, kept largely unrestored rather than rebuilt as a tourist set. It's tied to Wyoming's early role in women's suffrage, since the territorial legislature that granted women the right to vote met not far from here. A visit is a slow walk through a small, real historic townsite rather than an active attraction.
Highlights: South Pass City Main Street buildings - original 1860s structures including the general store and hotel, furnished to the period · Carissa Mine, the gold mine on the edge of town that triggered the original settlement · The site's connection to Esther Hobart Morris and Wyoming's 1869 women's suffrage law, explained in the on-site exhibits
Grand Teton National Park from Jackson
Grand Teton is close enough to Jackson to visit without an early start, and the park's core sights sit along a single north-south road beneath the Teton Range, which rises directly from the valley floor with no foothills in between. A day here mixes short walks, lake views and wildlife-watching pullouts rather than committing to a single long hike.
Highlights: Jenny Lake, with a boat shuttle across to trails leading toward Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point · Mormon Row - a row of early homestead barns photographed against the Teton Range, especially the Moulton Barn · Oxbow Bend on the Snake River, a slow bend in the river reflecting the Tetons, popular at sunrise for wildlife · Jackson Lake, the park's largest lake, backed directly by the northern end of the Teton Range
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Multi-day tours from Wyoming
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Day trip tips
Make the most of your excursions.
Start early — most popular day-trip destinations get crowded by mid-morning.
Check return transport times before you leave — missing the last train or bus can be costly.
Carry water, snacks, and layers — weather and food options can be limited at smaller destinations.