Compass American Guides: Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks, 1st Edition

by Fodor's Travel Publications Inc., Brian Kevin

Fodor’s. For Choice Travel Experiences.

Known for spectacular photography, warm, personal narrative, and detailed color maps , Fodor’s Compass American Guides have a fresh new design and the practical information you need to make the most of your visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Written by a longtime local resident, Compass American Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks provides a true immersion experience for the culture, character and history of America’s most spectacular destinations. Whether you’re traveling on the road or in your armchair, follow your Compass

•Discover must-have experiences from scenic drives to hiking and fishing to soaking in thermal springs. Plus, practical information to get you there.
•Learn about local culture from the popular hot spots to the remote backcountry.
•Enjoy personal recommendations from those who know — the best places to stay and eat.
•Have confidence with the easy-to-use practical information you need to get around and experience the best of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.

What the critics say about Compass American
“Lushly illustrated and intelligently written.” — National Geographic Traveler

“The most literate and elegant series of guides ever written about North America.” — Jan Morris

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Reference

356 pages, Paperback

First published April 28, 2009

About the author

Fodor's Travel Publications is a United States-based producer of English-language travel guides and online tourism information. It was founded by Hungarian Eugene Fodor in 1936.
Fodor’s was acquired by Random House in 1986 and sold to Internet Brands in 2016.

Reviews

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second edition was published in 2012. It didn't come up when I searched but it is the one I am reviewing.

With over 2,000,000 acres of park, Yellowstone keeps calling me back. I don’t think I can exhaust the things this park offers from its hot springs and geysers to the mountains and waterfalls to the plains and bison.

This is one of the best guidebooks available for hiking or sticking to the scenic drives. It gives enough information to make some judgments about your capabilities. For instance: “At the Brink of the Lower Falls, about half a mile west of Red Rock Point, experience he singular rush that comes from breathtaking scenery cut with impending doom. The easily tired and vertigo-prone might avoid the 600-foot descent (in less than a mile) that takes you within spitting distance of the falls’ lip. Gravity seems to tug a bit more insistently here, as you watch more than 37,000 gallons of water careen into the canyon each second.”

I have only been able to go in the summer so I would like to see some of the things the book speaks of in the other seasons.

The book is as happy in your backpack as it is on your nightstand. It reads well and makes Yellowstone (and Grand Teton) experiences very tempting.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

As travel guides go, it could use some improvement. More maps. Better maps (with more things labeled!). When you reference something in your text, the reader should be able to actually find that thing on the map you gave her. This book requires a lot of detective work to even figure out what the hell they are talking about and where it is in relation to the other things in that area. Plus I've run across at least one map where a lot of things are obscured because they didn't take into account the space where the pages meet. Very frustrating. I'm definitely going with a different series as soon as I can get my hands on one. I will say, the text and insights seem pretty good -- so if you don't mind having to cross-reference this book with other resources, it's not bad. But it is frustrating.

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I have a dozen guidebooks to Yellowstone and the grand Tetons but none of them have given me the information I’ve been looking for. I even accidentally bought one written by creationists, which was rather mine boggling, I’m still working my way through that one. This fodor’s book is the perfect guidebook to the two parks, it has all the information you would want including countless recommendations, the photography is beautiful and it’s small and easily packed. I love the book about my two favorite national parks, the grand Tetons a.k.a. heaven on earth and wonderland!

[Adonnica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read most of this before our trip and then took it along. It was a good reference to have for the sights and restaurants. Very useful and it has beautiful photographs!

[Swmartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

We recently returned from a fantastic trip where we visited both of these beautiful parks. I brought this book along and was grateful since cell service is very limited in both parks. The guides are helpful and the pictures are gorgeous. I loved "The Best"of section. We used it to find great hiking trails, waterfalls, etc. , and coupled with advice from Park Rangers.
The only downside of this book is that it was written in 2012 . We experienced a change in a restaurant, that was described as one thing but is now a pizza shop. This was a minimal issue!!

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great photos. More scientific and historical information than some other guides. Less specific information about hikes, etc than some other guides but a nice companion read to others.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a useful guide for first time visitors to the greater Yellowstone area. The text is well-researched; but what sets this guide apart from other recent works is the stunning photography and the very useful diagrams and maps. This guide is a highlight of the two national parks and the supporting areas, and is not comprehensive.

Written and photographed by two long time residents of the greater Yellowstone area, this Compass American Guide aims to present these national parks in the best light possible. The book is roughly divided into thirds: upper Yellowstone, lower Yellowstone and the Grand Teton National Park, with supporting chapters on lodging and the surrounding towns and wildlife.

Because this is a book of highlights of the region, and not a comprehensive guide, this book is ideal for the first time guest of the parks, who will not have time for extensive trekking into the backcountry of the region, or time to really explore all the restaurants or compare every lodging opportunity. There are other books, like the Moon guide, which are more comprehensive regarding the greater Yellowstone region.

What the reader will draw from this book is a real sense of the grandeur of the parks, and why people are drawn to them by the millions every year. The writer has created tight text, and the photography is appropriately captioned and nearly seamlessly placed. There are also helpful diagrams about the geothermal features of Yellowstone and general road maps of the area.

A general reader and first time visitor of these parks should gladly appreciate this book for the attractive way that it is presented, not least of which is the images that at least get the spirit of the visual wonder of these parks. The photography alone is highly unusual for a guide book such as this, and is to be commended.

[Mike Kowis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just returned from a 5-day vacation trip to Montana where my wife and I spent 2 days in Yellowstone and 1 day in the Grant Tetons. This handy guide was extremely helpful, and I referred to it each night before our day trips and frequently while we were in the parks to find the best scenic spots, best hiking trails, and places to eat/shop. Having a printed guide like this is indispensable when you are in areas of the park with no cell phone service.

The ONLY COMPLAINT I have about this travel guide is that the font is EXTREMELY SMALL, which makes it difficult to read, especially after a long day of travel when my eyes are getting tired. Similarly, some pages have added info printed in yellow-ish ink, which is even harder to read than the black ink. Ugh.

I highly recommend this practical travel guide to anyone looking to make the most of their upcoming visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton Nat'l Parks.

[Sarah TheAromaofBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

If, like myself, you find the idea of planning a trip to Yellowstone/Grand Tetons to be incredibly overwhelming, this is a great place to start. Lots of color photos, a great overview of the two parks, information on the gateway towns, and basics on lodging, eating, and experiences. Reading through this guide has definitely helped me find a few key focus points that I can use to build the rest of our vacation plan. While this guide isn't incredibly in-depth, and definitely isn't the only book I would use to plan actual hikes and hour-by-hour schedules, that isn't it's goal. The goal of this book is to provide an overview and jumping point, and it does that fantastically. I really wish there was one of these Compass Guides for the other national park we're visiting this year!!

[Krin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This guide has beautiful pictures of the Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. I had already read some other travel information on Yellowstone, so I think that research along with this book gives me a pretty good idea of everything I want to see this summer on our trip. This guide did highlight some areas that I didn't get as much information on in my other research. If you were to read this, Frommer's online and look at the Yellowstone information on the NPS website, you'd probably know most of what you want to.

[Ping · Rating 3 out of 5]

This guidebook has gorgeous full-color photos. It inspired me to make extra stops on the road to see certain spots they had photos of. I liked the way it was organized with the recommendations of where to stay separate from the chapters about the parts of the park. Unfortunately, it was a little light on specifics and it could use a lot more reviews of restaurants and accommodations. But it was a great supplement to the Lonely Planet guidebook we used for our trip.

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used this book for my trip to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. I loved this book! It has great information and pictures - great hikes, places to eat, sites to see. This was the perfect book. It wasn't too overwhelming with information at any way. There was some history but again, not too much so you felt like you were reading a textbook. I would highly recommend this book and i looked at a whole lot of travel books for Yellowstone.

[Anuradha Baliga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book while planning a trip to Yellowstone . This book has all the details I was looking for.the book has stunning photos , details on what areas to cover and how to go about it . Of particular interest to me was the information on trails and difficulty level and how to chose them . Overall I would say this book greatly compliments the other book from fodors and do refer to both of them before planning a trip to the coveted yellow Stone and grand Teton park

[Rachelklara of YHVH · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the 2nd edition.
Wow! Besides the old earth worldview sprinkled here & there this is a FANTASTIC guide. There is A LOT of information, yet well written! There was not much that was left out: the few questions I had left were either answered on the parks websites or through friends who recently visited. This is a great resource & had AWESOME photos throughout the book!!!

[Lori Voshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the Compass Guides. They are always full of useful information and great pictures. I learned a lot about Yellowstone and the Tetons and can't wait to plan our trip around this fantastic book! Highly recommended.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the photography by Jeff Vanuga, and the writing of Brian Kevin. Both present the parks as beloved lands they are well acquainted with. I like the detailed maps, illustrated guide to flora and fauna, and the chapter describing how geysers work.

[Laura Beier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great information. Yellowstone is on my "bucket list" and this book reinforced the reasons why. I think it will be a great reference when that dream comes true. Liked the book so much that I ordered it on Amazon and now own it.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good little book that helped us tremendously with our trip to Teton and Yellowstone. Great insights, excellent pictures. Could use more maps and more detailed maps. However, we referenced this a lot during our week long stay.

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smartly written book. Great book for visiting either national park. Nice descriptions and tips. Beautiful pictures. Was really glad we had this book on our trip.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures, good information. Great book for before and after going to Yellowstone/Grand Tetons.

[Harold Crowder]

Worth looking at before you go.

[Karla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice little guide to the parks
Not as great as some others but worth a look before you hike for sure

[Laura]

my favorite guide so far--good descriptions and lots of photos, interesting sidebars. also best descriptions of park lodging and dining

[Laura at the Batavia Public Library]

my favorite guide so far--good descriptions and lots of photos, interesting sidebars. also best descriptions of park lodging and dining

[Joe T]

2021 edition

[Daniel Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive on accommodation, things to see, guides for walking and more. Also contains plenty on history, interviews with workers and some stunning images. Definitely makes me want to visit!

[Mandi MacDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guess we'll see if it's a 5 after we get there. Probably the best travel guide I have ever read.

[Linda Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible photography! Really useful in planning a trip to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons.

[Vanjr · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would not count this book, but i came up 3 books short of my goal last year. An easy read and as close as i will come to Yellowstone anytime soon.