I just got back from my first trip to Jackson Hole, WY. I traveled with my Mother-in-law, Sister-in-law and niece to celebrate an 80th and 30th birthday! We traveled over Veterans Day weekend in November which meant we were in Jackson Hole during what they call their Shoulder or Mud season and what would be considered their off season too. I would say the bonus was that nothing was too crowded which was amazing, but it also never felt like a ghost town either. The weather was chilly; yet we were lucky to have sunshine every day we were there, so it was beautiful.
HOW TO GET TO JACKSON HOLE
We flew from Pensacola on a direct flight to Denver and then Denver to Jackson Hole. The Jackson Hole airport is the prettiest airport that I have ever been to. It was perfectly small and so mountain chic. We were greeted by their famous antler arch as we arrived and the wood work throughout the airport as well as the multiple gas fire places has the airport oozing with charm. We arrived late on a Friday evening around 8:30pm, so I had scheduled a car service to pick us up from the airport and bring us to our house. We used Vitalie (307) 690-3900. He was great and very knowledgeable as well as accommodating. Since we flew in pretty late, I ordered pizza from Pinky G’s online while we were waiting at baggage claim and he was kind enough to stop and run in and grab it for us before we headed to the house. It was perfect.
WHERE TO STAY IN JACKSON HOLE
We stayed in Downtown Jackson Hole which was absolutely perfect this time of year. The townhomes were called The Glenwood and they were beautiful. It was a 3 bedroom townhome and we loved everything about it, but I will warn you that they have TONS of stairs, ha! The location was amazing because we were able to walk to everything. We were surrounded by adorable shops, tons of restaurants, and several cute hotels. If you are looking for a hotel, the Cloudveil looked absolutely adorable and we were right across from the Hotel Jackson which was so cute too. One other spot I heard lots about but we didn’t make it to was the Snow King Resort and Spa.
A day or two before we arrived, I decided that it may be really nice to have a car. I had schedule airport transfers and for our half-day excursion we had scheduled through Teton National park, transportation was included; but I still felt like we might want a car to do some exploring, and I am SO happy we rented one. It was my first time renting through the TURO app which is like an Air BnB for cars, and I was able to rent a car for a few days that was walking distance from where we were staying in Jackson Hole. The whole process was so easy and we loved being able to get around places on our own. We ended up using the car quite a bit and I felt very comfortable driving the roads. Thankfully it didn’t snow while we were there. I probably would have felt different if it was winter and snowy.
WHAT WE DID IN JACKSON HOLE
Day 1, Friday:
Arrived at JAC at 830pm and we met our driver at the airport. We stopped at Pinky G’s pizza which I was able to order online, and we were able to swing by and grab it to bring to our house to eat. We were all exhausted.
Day 2, Saturday:
We slept in and had a slow morning before walking to breakfast at Persephone. I had heard lots of wonderful things about this quaint bakery and coffee shop and it did not disappoint. After breakfast, we walked to grab our car rental and then walked all around downtown to shop, shop, shop. They had so many cute shops. One of the Belle shops had just opened for their Christmas open house and everything was 10% off and was so adorable. I could have had a field day in there. We went in two cute hat shops, Beaver Creek Hat company and Kemo Sabe, a beautiful fur shop, and lots of little gift stores.
Once we worked up an appetite, we got in the car and drove about 20 minutes up to the Teton Village where the Jackson Hole ski mountain is as well as the Four Seasons hotel to have lunch. I had heard that the Handle Bar restaurant at the Four Seasons was a great lunch spot; but unfortunately it was closed when we were there, so we went to their other restaurant – Steadfire Grill. It was a pretty atmosphere and the food was fairly good. We walked outside to check out the ski slopes; but everything was closed this time of year. They are gearing up to try to have the mountain ready for Thanksgiving and were making some fake snow to get a head start. We explored Teton Village a little bit, but most things were closed while we were there.
We headed back home to relax a little bit and check out our roof top hot tub scene at our house. It was so pretty and relaxing up there. They had a gas fire pit and some great views of downtown. We were able to have a good look at the Snow King ski mountain as well which wasn’t open, but would be fun to check out in winter!
We showered up and got ready for dinner at Trio – an American Bistro – meaning 3 chefs, which we were able to walk to. The place was really cute and I loved the mussels I had. Half of our group was pretty tired at this point, so they walked home and my niece and I decided it was Saturday night and we wanted to go see what the town had to offer. The famous, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, was closed the week we were there for “off-season” which was so sad; but thankfully some locals had told us to make sure we check out the Silver Dollar Bar instead. Oh I am so glad that we did!! This was such a fun experience. They had a live country singer, Jessica Loobey Music, who was awesome and it was a great crowd. We loved talking to people visiting from all over plus locals and watching all the dancing was a true highlight. I swear people make line and swing dancing look so fun and cool out there!!
Day 3, Sunday:
We were excited about this day because we had a 7am sunrise 4 hour van tour through the Teton National park scheduled with Buffalo Roam Tours. Matt, our guide, was wonderful and they picked us up right out our front door at 7am. His van was stocked with drinks, snacks, blankets and binoculars for everyone to use throughout the trip. The entrance to Teton National park was only about 20 minutes from our house and even though a lot of the park is closed this time of year; he guided us through plenty of the park to see beautiful wild life. This was a fun time to be there because the animals were migrating and we got to see an amazing moose sighting just yards away from us as they walked across the road. It was so much fun. We saw moose, bison, elk, mule deer and we were hoping to spot a grizzly bear from far away, but that never happened. Matt was super knowledgable and taught us things throughout the whole ride and took us to some gorgeous scenery. I would highly recommend this experience.
After our 4 hours were up, he took us back to downtown Jackson Hole and dropped us to brunch at Cafe Genevieve. This is a super cute spot in an old cabin and the owner is from Louisiana which I loved, so the menu represents some good cajun cuisine. I had the cajun eggs Benedict which was made with some homemade boudin and I highly recommend trying the “pig candy” which is the most delicious sweet and spicy crispy bacon.
Since we had an early wake up call, we were all a little tired; so we walked back to the house to regroup and the girls all wanted to go check out the “mountain” TJ Max store they saw and I was ready for a little snooze. I took a quick nap and then got dressed to do some more shopping downtown. I had my eye on going to make my own hat at Kemo Sabe which I’ve wanted to do for years. This was such a fun experience and highly recommend. I had the whole place to myself which was such a bonus and loved waking through all the steps. I will share a video highlight here for you. After that, I met up with my niece who was back downtown shopping and we hit a few more shops. We tried to go up to the cute rooftop at the Cloudveil hotel , but they were closed for a private event. We ended up walking to Hatch Mexican restaurant and had a margarita before heading home.
That night we had dinner scheduled at Gather which was another cute restaurant downtown. It was my nieces 30th birthday that night, so we celebrated her birthday! I had the truffle pasta which was rich, but so incredible. My SIL had the elk bolognese which everyone loved as well and the fried chicken was heavenly too. I also recommend the bao bun pork appetizer we had! So much good food.
Day 4, Monday:
On our last day, we were still able to pack a lot in which I am so happy we did! I wasn’t sure if we were going to get to it all, but we squeezed every ounce of fun in. We took a slow morning by not setting alarms and having to wake up too early and cooked a little breakfast right at our house.
By about 10am, we packed up and got dressed to driving back up to Teton National park and hike the Taggert Lake loop that I had been reading about and several people recommended. They call it an easy hike and the whole loop is right about 4miles. You can read more about it: Hikes at Taggart Lake. Since we were there in November, they definitely had snow at the higher elevations which meant several parts of the trail had turned to ice and lots of it was muddy. I loved the whole thing but was definitely glad we left my 80 year old MIL behind for this part because parts felt very slippery and too dangerous for her. We didn’t have the proper hiking boots which I would recommend although I saw plenty of people in tennis shoes like us! This was definitely a great experience and would highly suggest you fit this in during all non-winter months.
On our way home, we stopped at Snake River Brewery to grab some sandwiches and fries to bring home. The spicy chicken with grilled pineapple (which I totally would never order) wrap was absolutely incredible. You don’t even know the pineapple is in it, but it adds a little sweetness to the well-flavored chicken!
After we ate, we changed into our swimsuits and lounge clothes, grabbed some towels and hopped in the car to head about 20 minutes south to the Astoria Hot Springs. It started to get a little late on us, so I realized that the Astoria Hot Springs Park that you pay around $20 each to go to was going to be closing; but that I had read you could find the all-natural version of the hot springs just before the entrance to the hot springs park. This was WAY cooler and so much fun to find and experience. I have a video of it here explaining how to find it. You park at the Astoria boat ramp (the turn just before the entrance of the hot springs and park straight ahead by the river) and walk down a small trail to the hot springs. The hot springs do smell like sulfur or rotten eggs, but they are so cool and heated to about 100 degrees or enough to feel like a hot tub. The views are so pretty and it was fun to experience.
We headed home after a bit and got cleaned up and had to start packing. We dressed for dinner, but took a little time to play some rummikub around the fire since we had a late lunch. After a bit, we walked over to Hatch Mexican restaurant and had a margarita and some dinner. This was a cute spot for a casual dinner. The queso was great and I had the chicken tortilla soup which was delicious. I wanted to try to the elk quesadilla which I heard was awesome, but I just wasn’t hungry enough for it!
Day 5, Tuesday:
It’s time to go home and we have a 5:15am airport pickup from our house. Our flight is at 7am to Denver and then we were home by 2pm which was great! I felt like we were in Jackson for the perfect amount of time and then we were all ready to get back to our babies!! I hope this itinerary is helpful and shares plenty of fun things to do if you are in Jackson during the Fall or probably Spring months as well.
This is absolutely a place that I would love to experience again in both Summer as well as Winter for ski season.
JACKSON HOLE RECAP
What We Did:
Buffalo Roam Tours – 4 hour Wildlife Tour through Teton National Park
Hikes at Taggart Lake – This is where we hiked the 4mi Taggert Lake loop
Astoria Hot Springs – We didn’t make it inside to the park, but walked to the natural Astorial hot springs just before the entrance to the park.
Museum of Wildlife Art – We didn’t make it inside here, but it looked very beautiful.
Four Seasons Jackson Hole Spa – We went to lunch at the Four Seasons and never made it to the spa, but this would be a fun activity this time of year. You could also check out the Grand View Spa at Snow King Resort — a 9,000 sq ft luxurious spa space.
Hikes:
- Taggart Lake – The hike we did and is considered a kid-friendly hike and takes you to a pretty lake.
- Jenny Lake to Inspiration Point: We didn’t get to do this hike because it’s closed in the Fall/Winter. This is probably the busiest hike in Grand Teton in the summer, so if you don’t like hiking in crowds I would recommend going early to get a parking spot and avoid the crowds.
Tips for Hiking:
- Download and check AllTrails for reviews if you are going to hike. You can check before hikes because people review recent conditions of the trail. It was also handy to have during the hike for directions. You can download the 7day free trial and then just delete.
Shopping:
- Kemo Sabe
- Made
- Pendleton
- Beaver Creek Hat Company
- Belle Shops
- Sitka Fur Gallery
WHERE TO EAT IN JACKSON HOLE
Where We Ate:
- Trio Bistro – I only tried the mussels here and really enjoyed them – cute atmosphere.
- Gather – delicious dinner – fried chicken, truffle pasta and elk bolognese were all fab.
- Hatch Mexican – great margaritas and casual Mexican
- Persephone Bakery – coffee and bakery – highly recommend the breakfast croissant
- Cafe Genevieve – a delicious brunch with a Louisiana flare
- Pinky G’s Pizza – grabbed pizza to go and it was great
- Snake River Brewery – sandwiches and wraps to-go
- Steadfire Grill at Four Seasons – I had the quinoa and farro bowl with salmon that was healthy and yummy for lunch.
Places We Didn’t Make it To But Recommended:
- Stillwest Brewery
- Bin 22
- The Kitchen – This spot was right by our house and looked cute but we didn’t make it here. I don’t know much about it.
- Blue Lion
- Local Restaurant – this is a spot that comes recommended by a lot of people, but I also heard one review that wasn’t great by a friend; so I would say give it a shot for yourself! We didn’t make it here.
- Snake River Gril
- The Handle Bar at the Four Seasons – heard this was great for lunch.
- Cowboy Bar Steak Restaurant – downstairs restaurant at the famous Cowboy Bar.
- King Sushi – Wish this had been open when we were there! This unique and cozy cabin was originally a blacksmith shop and you can feel the history in its log walls and hear the laughter and fun pouring out of the tiny windows.
- Kampai Sushi – Japanese cuisine brought to Wyoming to showcase elevated versions of new and familiar sushi preparations. Experience their beautiful rooftop in the warmer months.
- Figs Restaurant and Wine Bar – Lebanese – Mediterranean cuisine open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I found this cute itinerary template on Etsy for a couple of bucks and downloaded it to Canva. I was able to type up the itinerary and share it with my in-laws for the trip which was really cute.
I found this map below helpful when trying to get the lay of the land of how the area of Jackson was laid out. We stayed in the town of Jackson which I would recommend during all months except ski season. If I was there to ski, then I would want to stay over in Teton Village next to the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
Photo courtesy of Jacksonhole.com
WHAT TO PACK FOR DEER VALLEY
You can find a whole post of outfits and items that I packed for Jackson Hole in the Fall here. I was definitely leaning into the Western attire and had fun packing and dressing for this vacation.
FINAL THOUGHTS FOR OUR STAY IN JACKSON HOLE
I really enjoyed our stay here and loved exploring this town with hopes to bring my family back here sometime soon. I think it would be a fabulous adventure one summer to take the kids and also hopefully add in Yellowstone Park and then also would like to take them skiing here in a few years. I have always heard this was a more advanced ski mountain and it would probably be best to wait to the kids are little older and a little better skiers before we tackle this mountain.
I also want to state that I would absolutely come back to this spot again in November during their off season. I really enjoyed our 4 night stay here and still found that there was plenty to do. It was also really nice not having to fight for reservations or having to weave through people in the streets or the shops. We were definitely lucky with the weather and loved experiencing the cooler temps, yet still having sunshine!!
I hope you find all of this helpful! Phew, thank you if you made it to the end. I know this is a lot of information; but if you are planning a trip here, it should be informative. I was scouring the internet for information about Jackson during the off months when I was planning our trip and only came across a few articles.
