Yosemite National Park South Side

Reservation is required to drive into or through the park on some dates/times through Oct 27. Check the website for more information. You can enter the park without a reservation before 5 am or after 4 pm. Reservations are required at any time in between. The YNP South Side is amazing! Breath breathtaking views, beautiful waterfalls (Vernal & Nevada Falls), and much to explore. It takes about 45mins-1hr to get from the South Entrance to Yosemite Valley. We stayed about 25 minutes from the South Side Entrance and arrived at YNP around 4:30 am. We did not have to pay entrance fees and could experience the beautiful sunrise. If you can do that, please don't hesitate; it's so worth it. Plus, if you start early, you avoid the crowds and see more of YNP!

Its breathtakingly beautiful!! I enjoyed seeing all of the granite and the food was excellent.

Breath taking and so many beautiful views!!! It was my first time visiting the park and will definitely be coming back!!!

Wow!!! This was one of the best outdoor trips I've ever experienced in my life so far!I can't wait to come back in the summer when the east part of Yosemite is open, which is where Glacier Point is located.I came here not knowing that Glacier Point would be closed in the winter... silly me, but I still enjoyed my visit here.Wow, wow, wow!!! I have no other words to describe how majestic this place is. I visited the area where all the ginormous trees are at and it was simply breathtaking.I hiked about 5-6 miles to where all the heavy fog was at, which is near the top of the hill and the hike was so worth it.A few important details for you future visitors is: The park charges $20 fee per car and they prefer credit/debit card.If you'll be hiking more than 1 hour you'll need to bring snacks in a light weight hiking pack if you need to eat often. Also make sure you have a few layers of clothes with you, because it gets super cold, especially after 4PM. If your going to hike any amount of time you should really consider bringing cross trainers with good support for your feet, because the terrain is very rugged. I wore jeans, a sweater and my cross trainers that I run and hike in and I did good. And for you pet lovers out there on this side of Yosemite DOGS ARE NOT ALLOWED.Yosemite is indeed pet friendly, but only in other parts of the park and for more information you can check on http://www.tenayalodge.com/Discover-Yosemite.aspx.Hope this review helps and if your in the area you have to make it a point to check this amazing place out! It'll blow your socks off!!!5 stars for Yosemite National Park!!!!

More quaint, more local, more quiet, more me. That's the south side of Yosemite. To be clear, when we're talking about the south side, we're talking about the Fish Camp, Wawona side. We're talking about the North Wawona and Chilnualna Falls part, the South Fork Merced River side. We're talking about the side that gets a lot of THROUGH traffic from Oakhurst and below, but not a lot of STAY traffic. I can hardly blame anyone for going to the main valley part. Yosemite Valley is insanely beautiful. You have to go there. I might sound like a broken record (and side note: I love records, I have a record player, and some of my happiest times are when I listen to decidedly unbroken records) but I think it bears repeating that when you get outside of the mainstream stuff, Yosemite gets really good. It's the same way I feel about ma and pa restaurants. It might take you out of your way, it might not be the thing everyone talks about, but if I'm going to go out, I'm going to go find the ma and pa restaurants. I can eat at chains in my own neighborhood, anytime I want. I'd much rather get to those deep cuts. I'd like to seek out the special, interesting, one-of-a-kind places. And so it is with my national park philosophy: hit the highlights, then dive in to get the real unique experiences. Make them your own.The south side of Yosemite (and the north, near Tioga Pass) are the deep cuts. Mariposa Grove is probably the most popular in this area, and it is about to re-open in a week, after a multi-year closure for restoration. You'll see crowds there, but nothing like the throngs of people in the valley proper. Still those giant sequoias are worth it. For my money, though, you're better off going to King's Canyon Sequoia NP. I've been a couple of times there, and it absolutely needs its own trip full of long, breathtaking hikes among the giant trees.My favorite hike here is indeed the Chilnualna Falls hike. It's more popular today than when I first hiked it 15 years ago, and probably one of the most popular on the south side. But you can still get away, and the reward on top is incredible. The falls! The view! It makes a great picnic spot, but even if you don't make it all the way up, you do follow a bit of the river and see delightful pools with little fish just waiting for you to throw them an ant.If you're into history, this is a great place to flex your history buff muscles. The historic Wawona Hotel is here, the Pioneer Yosemite History Center, and a few other historic sites dot this end. I can't really recommend lodging down here. I've eaten in Oakhurst a few times and there are some fun options, but the only time I've stayed down here was for a non-Yosemite venture and I didn't love the campground. But I've already made up my mind that the next time I come here, I'm going to spend a little cash and stay somewhere magical and charming. That may be just before I also then go backpacking and stay on the forest floor and listen to the rivers at night, but if you search your heart you'll know it's the right way to do things here, and you'll want to join me.John Muir said, "Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." Nature's heart. I love this. We live honestly in the woods, not afraid, where the light warms us from the outside in and back out again. I think in these quieter places, away from the loudness, if we listen closely we can hear that heartbeat that is calling for us. "Come to me," it says. Can you hear it?

Not as touristy and commercialized as Yellowstone. That being said, we only spent one day on the valley floor. Carefully hike/climb up to the lower portion of Yosemite Falls. If you're more courageous, ignore the warning signs about broken bones and traumatic brain injury and hike up to Bridal Veil falls as well. In the Tuoloumne Meadows area, find the John Muir Trailhead and take the short hike to Twin Bridges. Make sure you stop and swim in the Dana Fork of the Tuolumne River. Definitely have lunch at Big Trees Lodge (formerly Wawona Hotel). If you you want to brave the crowds and the $$$ visit the Yosemite Majestic Hotel (formerly Ahwahnee Hotel) and you can see the lawn on which Steve Jobs got married. Don't forget to take the Tioga Road to Olmstead Point and Lake Tanaya.

Love coming out here, past few years were brutal due to the drought. But this year everything has come back to life.

Went here with friends on July 4th getaway! This place is amazing with a breathtaking view! Definitely worth the drive!

Upon entering the South entrance of Yosemite National Park, you may come across a delay. Given that there were only where two lanes to enter and a required stop for the check point, traffic will begin to pick up. An entrance fee of $20 dollars is required. Payment options are by credit card or cash. Your entrance fee is valid for about a week that allow in and out privileges. I found the credit card option very convenient.If you are entering to visit Mariposa Grove, you will need to make an immediate right after the check point. Depending how busy it gets, you may be turned away to drive 4 miles away to the next parking area and take a shuttle back. This is due to traffic control. It is quite a pain, but on the bright side the shuttle is covered by your entrance fee. Yosemite is quite beautiful, but the over crowdedness is a turnoff. What can you do about that? Nothing!

Wawona Visitor Centre is no longer a visitor centre. Found this out from the obnoxious little park ranger gimp that was working there. He answered the door like I was disturbing and a nuisance to him. Retraining required.