Glacier National Park is located in northwestern Montana, along the Canadian border. This is one of my all-time favorite parks and I was lucky enough to visit for my second time in August 2025. 

The park is quite big, and there are five general regions. The popular Going-to-the-Sun Road cuts across the park from east to west. Here’s what to know about each of the park’s regions.

West Glacier

• West side of park
• Most popular area of the park and is easily accessible from nearby towns
• Lower elevation and easier hikes
• There are a few lodges here inside the park, as well as lots of lodging options in the nearby towns

Logan Pass

• In the center of the park, along Going-to-the-Sun Road
• One of the highest points accessible by car
• Starting point for two great hikes

East Glacier

• East side of park
• Less popular part of park due to remoteness
• More rugged and jagged peaks than West Glacier
• There is one hotel inside the park, and a few options in East Glacier Park Village. St. Mary Campground is also beautiful – I camped here when I visited in 2018

Many Glacier

• Northeastern part of park
• Popular area due to its gorgeousness!
• The road to Many Glacier area was closed to vehicles when we visited in summer 2025 due to construction. Construction is scheduled to continue through May 2026. Hikers can take a shuttle to access hikes. Read details on the construction here.
• There are a couple of hotels in this area.
• There are several longer, more challenging hikes here. We completed the hike to Cracker Lake on my trip in 2018.

Two Medicine

• Southeastern part of park
• Less crowded area because it’s a little out of the way
• Great spot for moderate hikes
• There aren’t any lodging options in the park, but East Glacier Village isn’t too far

Itinerary

After spending three full days here in August 2025, here is the itinerary I would recommend!

Day 1

Drive to Glacier

If you are flying in to visit Glacier, there are a few nearby airports that would be best. Glacier Park International Airport (in Kalispell) is only about 30 minutes to the west side of the park. I flew into this airport on my 2018 trip. You can also fly into Missoula, which is about 2.5 hours away. We were driving up from Yellowstone, so our drive was 6 hours. 

Two Medicine General Store

We arrived at Two Medicine Lake around 2pm and headed straight to the General Store. They have a little cafe with really good food and lots of souvenirs to choose from. Of all the Visitor Centers and souvenir shops we visited in Glacier, I thought this one had the best selection!

Boat Tour of Two Medicine Lake

We had a boat tour of Two Medicine Lake booked at 3pm. We popped over to the check in station 30 minutes early to grab our tickets and then hit the restrooms one more time before boarding the boat. The boats run the length of the lake and drop you off at the other side if you want to explore the hiking trails. 

About one minute after we’d pulled of the dock, the tour guide pointed out a grizzly mom and three cubs swimming near the shore of the lake! It was incredible that we got to see them!

The rest of the boat ride was really beautiful. They dropped us off at the dock on the other side of the lake and reminded us that the last boat leaves at 5:15pm. There were a ton of people waiting in line to get on the boat heading back to the other side.

Twin Falls Hike

We decided to do the short hike to Twin Falls, which is about 2.2 miles round trip. The hike was easy, with little elevation gain. We would’ve probably continued on to Upper Two Medicine Lake if we’d had more time, but the last return boat of the day was at 5:15pm, and we were worried we wouldn’t have time. Most of the hikers on the trail were in a big group or hiking with smaller children, so we were able to hike much more quickly than everyone and arrive at the falls about 20 minutes before anyone else. 

Twin Falls are two similar falls next to each other, and you’re able to climb up in the middle of them if you wish. We played around a bit until the next group arrived, and then we hike back to the boat. We ended up waiting for about 20 minutes, but we were one of the first people in lined, so we had no problem getting on. Not everyone waiting was able to get on the boat, but they sent another one to pick up the rest of the people.

Drive East Glacier Park

Once we arrived back at our car, we drove 25 minutes to East Glacier Park, where we were staying at an Airbnb for the night.

Dinner at Serrano’s

We ended our lovely day at Serrano’s, a delicious Mexican restaurant in town. This was the perfect stop to fuel us! We started with the guacamole, queso, and salsa board and huckleberry margaritas (a must-try in the area!). The tacos and burritos were awesome!

Stay in East Glacier Park

We stayed at an Airbnb in the town of East Glacier for that night. 

Day 2

The next day, we got going on the early side in hopes that we would beat some of the crowds. We got to the park entrance on the east side around 8:30am. We made sure to take a quick photo at the park entrance sign. Note that if you are entering the park from the east entrance, you will not need a timed entry ticket as of 2026!

St Mary Visitor Center

Next, we stopped at the Visitor Center to stamp our National Park Passports and check out the gift shop. They also have bathrooms here that are clean. 

Wild Goose Overlook

The first scenic stop is the iconic view of Wild Goose Overlook. Known for being featured in the opening scene of The Shining, it is a very recognized spot. If you can get here for sunrise, I recommend it! 

Sun Point Nature Trail 

The quick hike along the Sun Point Nature Trail takes you to a beautiful spot overlooking St. Mary Lake. It’s only about 0.3 miles round trip, but I do recommend at least sneakers, because the terrain is uneven in parts. The view to effort ratio is very high with this one!

Going-to-the-Sun Road

We drove from the east side of the park to the west side via the infamous Going-to-the-Sun Road. This road is one of the most scenic in the country and climbs over the Continental Divide at Logan Pass. Since the crowds were starting to accumulate and the lighting was harsh mid-day, we decided to drive straight through to the west side of the park and return to Logan Pass that evening for sunset. 

McDonald Falls

This is a quick photo stop on the side of the road. This is a great view of a waterfall with no hiking required!

Lake McDonald 

Lake McDonald is the largest lake in the park and is near the west entrance. It’s known for its rainbow-colored stones on the bottom that you can see through the clear water. There are lots of activities you can do here, including swimming, kayaking, boat tours, motorboat rentals, and walks around the shoreline. 

Lake McDonald Lodge

A beautiful place to stay inside the park is Lake McDonald Lodge, right along the shore of the lake. The lodge was built in 1913 and looks like a Swiss chalet. The interior is so photogenic! It is definitely worth walking through and visiting the gift shop if you are not staying here.

Huckleberry Hut

A cute little gift shop located just outside the park in West Glacier, called Huckleberry Hut, sells all things huckleberry. Huckleberries thrive in this region, so you’ll see them featured in ice cream, candy, margaritas (my fave), and many other treats. 

Have an early dinner & check into lodging on west side of park

At this point, we checked into our Airbnb in Columbia Falls, which is about 20 minutes outside of the park. We dropped our things, grabbed some groceries, made a quick early dinner, and headed back to the park. Note that a timed entry ticket is required to enter from the west entrance between 7am and 3pm. Since it was after 3pm, we were able to go in with no problems. The line at the entrance was not long either.  

Paradise Meadow

This is one of the most beautiful roadside stops with very little effort to get amazing photos. When we drove by earlier in the day, the lighting was not good. When we came back around 5:30pm, the lighting was perfect! There were several newlyweds here getting their photos taken. We didn’t stay for too long since we had a hike to get to!

Hidden Lake Overlook Hike

The hike to Hidden Lake Overlook starts at Logan Pass. We started this hike at 6:15pm, about 2.5 hours before sunset. This ended up being the perfect amount of time to complete the hike and have plenty of time for viewing wildlife and taking all the pictures we wanted.

This was my favorite hike of the trip. There was no shortage of wildlife sightings and gorgeous scenery! Read my blog post for more details on our hike here. There were also very few people here at this time of day.

We had a long 1.5-hour drive back to our Airbnb that night in the dark. However, the scenery for the first 30 minutes while the sun was still setting was absolutely gorgeous. I highly recommend completing this hike around sunset!

Day 3

Hike the Highline Trail

There are several route options for hiking the Highline Trail. Most hikers will start at Logan Pass (as opposed to the Loop trailhead), as the trail is more downhill in this direction. If you want to complete the full hike, you can hike from Logan Pass to the Loop and catch a park shuttle to bring you back to your car. Or you can hike to the Granite Park Chalet (which is most of the way, and the end of the good views) and then turn around and hike back to Logan Pass. 

We were originally planning to hike from Logan Pass to the Loop. However, we’d gotten back pretty late from our hike the night before and got up super early to get to Logan Pass before sunrise. We were tired, so we decided to just hike a few miles of the trail and then turn around. The good thing about this trail is that the views are incredible the entire way!

Read my detailed post on our hike here.

Pizza at Ranger Joes

We got back to our Airbnb around lunch time and were all craving pizza. We drove to Ranger Joes just outside of Columbia Falls. The pizza was amazing! We got the honey bear and meat lovers, and both were incredible.

Explore Whitefish

From lunch, we drove to the cute town of Whitefish to wander around the shops and get coffee at Montana Coffee Traders. 

Good Things to Know

To help with heavy congestion along this popular road, the park service has a timed entry from mid-June through mid-September. Vehicles entering the park from the west side between 7am and 3pm must have a timed entry vehicle reservation. If you do not have a reservation, make sure to enter before 7am or after 3pm, which is doable for these hikes! You can learn more about vehicle reservations here.

The highest part of Going-to-the-Sun Road (near Logan Pass) is typically closed between mid-October and mid-June, depending on the amount of snow. Make sure to check the road status before your visit. 

I highly recommend planning popular activities early in the morning or near sunset. During the middle of the day, lots more people are out and the park gets crowded. Wildlife is also much more active around sunrise and sunset. You can avoid having to get a timed entry vehicle reservation if you enter before 7am or after 3pm!

You can take the free park shuttle if parking is an issue. Park at a less-crowded parking lot and shuttle to your destination. See the shuttle schedule here.

You may also be interested in:

Hiking Hidden Lake Overlook and the Highline Trail in Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park Trip Logistics
Hiking Cracker Lake in Glacier National Park
Two Medicine in Glacier National Park
Avalanche Lake and Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park
Two-Day Yellowstone Itinerary: Must-See Stops In And Around the Park
How to Drive Yellowstone’s Grand Loop Road in One Day