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Yellowstone National Park: details

A final note about our Yellowstone Family trip by Austin-Lehman Adventures: sometimes excellence is in the details; and Austin-Lehman does the details well.

Each day or night when we first entered our hotel room (without the bother of checking in), not only did we find our luggage waiting, we also found a little gift. The first day brought useful items-- thermal coffee mug, lip balm, sunscreen on a velcro holder-- plus a coloring book and kids' stuff.  One night we found local-specialty sweets, and a puzzle; and on our last night, each family received a small album with photos that our guides had taken during the trip.   

After a morning spent rafting down the Yellowstone River, lunch was immediately served: right on the spot, when and where we needed it. When we finished our horseback ride, we were given cool moist facecloths. All during the trip, lemonade was on tap, snacks were nestled a basket in the van.... 

But the piece de resistance occurred on a great day we spent with a naturalist. After a fascinating hike that began with mudholes and passed through woods with ponds, suddenly we  emerged on the rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.  

Dazzled by the scenery, we hiked until both kids and grown-ups were thirsty and tired. At that moment, one of our three guides appeared on the trail ahead, holding a silver platter of fresh fruit, including a pineapple.

Now, that's a nice touch!

As was the can-do no-problem attitude of the guides, who stressed from the beginning, "This is your vacation."  Their aim was to make it outstanding; and they did.

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All Images (c) 2001 by Teresa Plowright.