Tenaya Lodge & Cabins

The style of Tenaya Lodge & Cabins is very much in keeping with the environment and adds to the experience of visiting Yosemite. It’s a fantastic place to stay with a great atmosphere, friendly staff, great facilities (great pool area and dining options), a snack shop, souvenir shop, and lovely rooms.

It's a traditional National Park hotel but at the top end and for me; better than any of the options on offer inside the park, despite the lower price point.

As the property is located five minutes from the south gate of Yosemite, it’s great to visit Mariposa Grove and the giant Sequoia trees, but is a good 45 minute drive from Yosemite Valley which is where most of the sights and activity is. Therefore, careful planning of timings and days is essential as you can't just nip back easily.

I have previously stayed by the west entrance and in the park itself, and would choose to stay at Tenaya again next time - a superb experience.

Top tip: Make sure you set off early for the valley - in busy times queues at the south entrance will form and then a 45 minute drive to the valley will mean that parking for the day is tricky, especially in US school holidays which end in the middle of August. We set off at 6.30am and got parked by 8am which was fine, but much later and it would have been difficult.