If you want to stay at a hotel, lodge, cabin, or campsite inside Glacier National Park, you’ll need to book at least a year in advance. If you’re going to visit in the summer months, you’ll need to book tours and make park reservations (if required) a few months before your trip.

July and August are the peak travel months because temperatures are at their highest (the 70s in the day and 40s at night) and because all roads, trails, visitor centers, lodging, shuttle service, boat tours, ranger-led activities, and facilities should be open and running at full capacity. You’ll encounter the most visitors and the highest costs during these months, so you’ll want to book accommodation and tours early because some places fill up a year in advance.

Glacier’s fall foliage makes September and October beautiful months to visit. Most in-park restaurants and lodges close after Labor Day, so you’ll need to stay in gateway communities just outside the park. Campsites will still be open inside the park. Daytime temperatures will be in the 60s, and nighttime temperatures are in the low 40s. Most tour operators will have closed for the season, and the complimentary shuttle service will be on a modified schedule.

November to April is the offseason. Temperatures will be below freezing during the day and well below freezing at night. Road and trail closures are common, and most of the park’s services – including visitor centers – are closed. All in-park lodging will be closed, but gateway communities will have cheap lodging. You can auto-camp at the Apgar picnic area and the St. Mary Campground in the park, and there’s no charge for campsites inside the park during winter. Cross-country skiing and ice climbing are popular activities during these months, but be aware that avalanches are possible because the snowpack can reach almost 20 feet and blizzards are common.

Many roads and trails are still closed in May and June, including the Going-To-The-Sun Road, and shuttles run on a weather-permitting limited basis. Daytime temperatures will be in the 60s, and at night it will be in the high 30s. Lodging prices will still be relatively low, though most in-park accommodations won’t be open yet. Many guided tours won’t be available until July, so you’ll need to plan on doing self-guided activities.

Know Before You Go To Glacier National Park:

1. BRING BEAR SPRAY, and make sure you know how to use it. You could encounter a bear anytime, anywhere in the park.

2. Wear long pants. This is to keep you warm (it was in the 40s in the mornings and evenings for me in July) and to protect your legs because many of the trails are narrow, and you’ll need to step into the brush at times.

3. There’s no cell phone service in most of the park, so make sure you download any maps or trail guides off-line.

4. The mosquitos are relentless here in the warmer months, so bring non-toxic bug spray.

5. There are restaurants at Apgar, Lake McDonald, Many Glacier, and Rising Sun. But for all other parts of the park, you’ll need to pack out a lunch that’s stored in bear-proof containers.

6. There aren’t many driving roads in Glacier. The Going-To-The-Sun Road is the only road that goes the width of the park, and it’s one of the only paved roads in the park. Many hikes require you to hike to the trailhead, so make sure you plan for if and/or how you can drive places.

7. Because there are so few roads in the park, there’s also limited parking. In the peak summer months, all parking within the park can be full by mid-morning. So, you need to start your day early. You can also use Glacier’s shuttle system.