I toured Yellowstone National Park on three separate days (12/17-12/19/2018) in snowcoaches provided by Alpen Guides. Since the cost of the tours was included in a vacation package provided by a travel company, I'm not sure about Alpen Guides' specific prices. This review is based on how much I appreciated the tour itself. I went on two tours to Old Faithful & one to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. The Grand Canyon tour included a box lunch. The Old Faithful tour didn't include a meal but you could purchase something to eat at the Old Faithful visitor's center restaurant if you wanted to. I was so excited about riding the snowcoaches! In Yellowstone, snowcoaches are a normal mode of transportation during the winter but I'd never ridden one or even seen one in person before. In lieu of regular tires, the back portion of a snowcoach has tracks like a tank & the front part has something that resembles skis so it can plow through the snow. The reason why I was so anxious to ride one is because the kid in me remembered the old "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" animation special where the narrator rode one. For each tour, I was picked up just before 8:30 am near the front of the motel where I was staying. We normally returned back from the tour around 4:30 pm. The tour groups are usually small (the ones I went on ranged from 4 to 8 tourists with either one or a couple of driver/tour guides). On the three days I went, I rode with customers from Ohio, Alabama, Maryland, Canada, Utah, and the Phillipines (among other places). We were told not to throw gum or candy wrappers on the ground inside the park because they want to keep Yellowstone as natural as possible. During the winter season when there's lots of snow, they only allow snowcoaches & snowmobiles in Yellowstone. Snowcoaches have a speed limit of 25 mph while snowmobiles have a speed limit of 35 mph. Because snowmobiles are allowed to go faster, snowcoach drivers are supposed to pull over to the side and let them pass. Snowmobile drivers usually travel in groups & from my observation behaved like groups of people in a motorcycle club; like they owned the road even though most of them were riding snowmobiles for the first time. The crowds in Yellowstone are small & spread out in December so even with the snowmobilers we felt like we almost had the park to ourselves. The worst thing about the snowmobilers is when we're quietly taking pictures of wildlife & then they drive up en masse & unintentionally scare the animals off. Our drivers/tour guides were excellent at their job. They had eyes like hawks, pointing out such sights as bald eagles nesting in the trees that most of us would've missed. They knew everything about the various types of trees and wildlife. My favorite part was other than seeing the wildlife was listening to the guides tell stories about their experiences in Yellowstone. One tour guide told us about when he was by himself in the park & a grizzly began approaching him. He had to use bear spray to temporarily slow it down so he could get in his vehicle & drive away. Another guide told us about how bald eagles mate for life & how they sometimes test the worthiness of a mate during courtship by doing a death spiral. A death spiral is when they lock talons high in the air, tumble towards the earth & then let go just before hitting the ground. That's how they decide whether their mate is a ride or die. If you're trying to decide which tour to choose, I'd recommend that you go on both. The Old Faithful tour has the best opportunity for souvenirs due to the two gift shops near the geyser. Also, there's a restaurant beside one of the souvenir shops. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone tour is popular too because tourists love taking selfies with the canyon waterfall in the distant background. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone tour includes a boxed lunch that consists of a cold sandwich (roast beef, turkey, etc.), small bag of chips & Oreo cookies. We ate the boxed lunch inside the Canyon Visitor Education Center (where you can see animal skulls & pelts). You'll see wildlife on both tours but I saw more bison on the Old Faithful tour. Every time you venture into Yellowstone it's likely you'll notice something you didn't see the day before. I enjoyed riding the snowcoaches but my favorite was the maroon bombardier that has been running since the 1950s that's nicknamed Chip. It also had a roof that the driver sometimes opened when Chip was parked. You could stand up, stick your head out & take pictures. The other snowcoaches were nice too, although they looked more modern. All of them were toasty inside but during the winter you should wear warm clothing because you will get out of the ride & walk some. The weather fluctuated from single digits to the twenties later in the afternoon. Alpen Guides is as good as it gets when it comes to sightseeing tours. Five stars! read more

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The good: Van was heated, lunch was good, everyone was safe. The bad: Don was like listening to Fox News. He talked over us (on a microphone blasting the van) while we were trying to have family time and a family conversation. He was the main attraction at the park that day! We asked him not to talk about politics because we weren't interested in his arm chair quarterbacking. He declined. He didn't ask much about our opinions about where to tour that day. We are locals from Wyoming. Last year a tour operator (at a different company) laid out options and she encouraged us to make our own decisions. If you like not making decisions or having input, listening to Yellowstone facts (sprinkled with politics) blasted into your ears while you drive through pristine Yellowstone, Don is for you! read more

The only reason holding back on the 5 Stars is the confusion regarding where to check in for the tour. That being said, once we got to Les, he made for an amazing day! The transportation is in a 1958 converted 'snow mobile' and perfect for the tour. Les is loaded with info and got us to all sorts of sites (bison, bald eagle, hit springs, mud baths, geysers, 'petrified forests', etc). Plenty of time to explore out of the vehicle while staying comfortable in the ride. Lunch at Old Faithful was not as expensive as I was anticipating and the food is was as expected at a tourist spot for burgers, dogs, fries. Pretty sure Les is really in the CIA and researching me as I type. Ha! He was awesome! read more

Yellowstone Alpen Guides Co - Tours Near Me - West Yellowstone, Montana

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Had a great tour to Grand Canyon of Yellowstone with Clark. We had one of the large van with the big tires which made to tour very quiet and comfortable. This guy was able to talk all day, and even the kids who initially had a moderate disinterest in the whole tour were mesmerized by his stories by the end of the tour. I would advise other to be ready for changing weather, there were some peeps on the tour who barely wanted to get out of the van because they were underdressed for wind and cold. This is Montana folks! Fun group as well as everyone began looking out for sign of wild life. Thanks Clark! read more

We took the full day tour yesterday with only two other couples. Our guide was Duke Tam. Duke is not only a wealth of information about Yellowstone and its wildlife, he's an accomplished storyteller and kept us entertained for a FULL DAY with stories about the people, places and events that made the Yellowstone Park we know today. A great day in the park with many thanks to Duke! Mike P. Rancho Mirage, CA read more

I had the opportunity to do a guided Snow Coach tour last week with Alpen Guides. Even though I live in Bozeman and frequent Yellowstone regularly, I learned and experienced more with in our one day with Alpen Guides than I have on all of my other visits combined. Our Guide, Alice, was incredibly knowledgable of everything in the Park- from the geology, history,to the animals, and even down to the bacteria. Being a big nerd myself, I couldn't find a single question to ask that stumped her. I cannot recommend Alpen Guides enough. If you are visiting Yellowstone, and have any interest in the natural world, do yourself a favor and book a trip. read more

Great adventure today with SeeYellowstone.com bus tour! Our guide Don McKenzie was over the top! Great story teller, amazing sense of humor, very attentive, awesome with children,loves what he does, and very knowledgeable. We saw people setting up to try and catch a glimpse of grizzly bears eating a bison carcass. We spotted a black bear and watched as he rambled along up through the trees. We had great fun following some of the Bison and were able to get up close and personal in the safety of our bus! Got a short video of a big male Bison talking right along side our bus. Saw a pair of Osprey in their nest so close you felt like you could touch them! We had an amazing dinner underneath the trees. Bison stew, salad, corn muffins, and double chocolate chip cookies for desert! So much to see and explore in Yellowstone! As we were heading back home we encountered a vehicle and Bison accident! No one was injured but unfortunately the Bison was. Mr McKenzie, being a tour guide , had the responsibility of contacting the park rangers to notify them of the incident and then secured the area until the rangers arrived! We were all saddened by the accident! Very proud of how well Mr McKenzie handled everything! He got us all back safe and sound! All in all it was another great adventure! read more

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We booked a winter vacation package filled with two days of tours via snow coach and snowmobiles. Our tour guide Les was incredibly knowledgeable and friendly. We are so grateful for this experience as he made it a great one! Our snowmobile tour guide Justin was very accommodating and kind to us as it was our first time on snowmobiles. We couldn't recommend them or the See Yellowstone Tour packages enough! read more

Awesome tour, four of us in our family along with another family of four. Great guide David M. Very knowledgeable and added a great deal to the tour. Would highly recommend. Riding in the old style tracks made it even more fun and fit eight of us comfortably. read more

Not enough superlatives to discuss this company. Travis was amazing in setting it all up, and Clark....what an incredible guide. He was friendly, knowledgeable, caring and had a great sense of humor. he was patient beyond words. If you want to know and understand Yellowstone....THIS is the company to choose. read more

We had an amazing experience touring Yellowstone in the dead of winter with Alpen Guides. Our guide Sam was a wealth of knowledge and experience which she never hesitated to share. The snowcoach (Chip) was in great condition, wasn't noisy and kept us warm even when the roof hatches were open. Yellowstone in the winter is a place few people get to experience, and Sam and Alpen Guides made it extra special. read more

Yellowstone Alpen Guides Co - 1950's Snowcoach named "Chip" - Tours Near Me - West Yellowstone, Montana

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Went on an amazing tour of Yellowstone with our guide Don yesterday. We rode in an old Bombardier and were able to take pictures from two hatches in the roof when we found Bison. Don was fun and very knowledgeable. He kept our group engaged with stories from his time in Yellowstone and by playing games to test our knowledge of the park. We saw many thermal features and made a stop at Old Faithful. The lunch provided was delicious and quite large! read more

Wonderful guide. The guide Gibb is so friendly and sharing the fun fact about Yellowstone. He stopped the car when people saw there's animal and let us took pictures. read more

It surprises me that nobody had reviewed these guys yet. I had an amazing experience with this tour group earlier this week during a solo 2 day trip to yellowstone. Having never been there, and only being in town for one full day, I can't imagine a better way to have seen everything I was hoping to see. It seems there are a few options for winter tour groups in West Yellowstone, and I ended up choosing these guys because it seemed like a more personal, less corporate tour and they would allow me to do some xc skiing in the park. The snowmobile option didn't seem better because a) It was really cold b) they can't talk to you while you're driving and c) the snowmobiles don't get to go anywhere the snowcoach can't. Our tour guide, Jake, was a great guide and helped our group see the park in a very personal way. Getting the chance to xc ski through the gysers without anyone else around was likely the most incredible natural experience I've ever had. The bombadier snow coachs are probably a bit less comfortable than those huge tour buses or vans on treads, but I found the vehicle to be perfect for what I was looking for. They're not drafty and you have the advantage of you being able to take pictures out of the opening in the roof. Anyway, I hope this rating helps indecisive travelers in a similar situation to me. read more

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My family went on a private upper loop wildlife tour today, we had the absolute most amazing time. Bob, was the very best tour guide we could ever have asked for. He's so knowledgeable about all things Yellowstone. He took us to all the best spots. We saw amazing things that we will remember for the rest of our lives. Thanks Bob!! read more

Did a tour of the Yellowstone lower loop with Adam Brubaker. It was great. Adam was very knowledgeable not only about the sights, but of the history of the area as well. Had a great lunch by Yellowstone Lake. We highly recommend this company and Adam read more

We spent three days with this outfit and highly recommend their service to everyone who visits Yellowstone. Door to door service and a great knowledge of the park. So much better than driving around yourself and seeing all the beauty but having no idea, other than name, what you are looking at. We had great experiences with both guides, and especially liked David, who has been living in the area for more than 30 years. read more

OK, we were due to visit Yellowstone National park in our rented RV, and decided that before we drive the big bus around the park looking for places to go and animals to see we would book a guide for the day to make sure we got the most of our visit. We looked at a couple of companies, however decided that these guys were the ones to go with, they were more expensive, however seemed to be more organised and could cater for 2 adults and 2 kids (boys with lots of energy). We have just finished a fantastic day with Brenda, who picked us up from our campsite (Madison Arm Resort) and showed us the park for a full day (and I mean full day). She listened to what we where after and we saw Bison, Grizzly Bears, Eagles, Marmot, Chipmunks and Ospreys. Additionally she showed us some places that we would not have ventured into and gave us great advice on where to go the next day with our RV. Overall I recommend this company as a pick in West Yellowstone. read more

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Just returned from a Lower Loop day trip with our awesome guide Melanie. She knew how to navigate through every nook and cranny of the Lower Loop - bypassing a lot of the heavily congested and less interesting areas. Melanie has incredible knowledge of the Park and is incredible! We were able to see a large majority of the animals in this area thanks to her know-how and she even spotted a Grizzly with 2 cubs laying still from about 1/2 mile out at least & put us front and center. I definitely recommend any trail - upper or lower - with Melanie! read more

We took an amazing ride from West Yellowstone to Old Faithful. Beautiful scenery, rode in a 1953 bombardier & we could see everything! Windows are not tinted & 2 roof accesses for pictures. Our guide Les was awesome! He took us to watch wolves munching on a bison carcass, we saw 3 bald eagles, a bison bull chasing coyotes and an ermine! It was a magical day. read more

This was an amazing experience -- I highly recommend it. Yellowstone in winter is breathtakingly beautiful. Seeing the park via snow coach was a lot of fun, and it felt like a private tour, given that there were only four other people in the coach besides my family of four. Les was our guide for the day, and he was the perfect person to show us around the park as he had just recently retired from working as a park ranger in Yellowstone for 28 years! We saw bald eagles, male and female elk (the buck had a HUGE rack of antlers), trumpeter swans, and hundreds of bison. Les pointed out otter tracks in the snow and shared all kinds of other natural and historical facts about the park. He timed the stops just right so that we got a front-row seat to watch Old Faithful erupt, along with several other geysers throughout the area. The snow coach was a 1950s Bombardier that had seen better days (doors kept sticking, duct tape around part of a window) but was in pretty good shape overall. It also had two rooftop hatches that you could stand up and look through while stopped or while driving, which was really fun and convenient for taking pictures. There were plenty of opportunities to get out and walk around as well. We did several hikes around the thermal features of the park and pulled over regularly to get out and see animals. The reason I gave it 4 stars: the company offered boxed lunches for sale, and I placed the order a week in advance (booked the trip 3 months in advance and added the lunches later). However, when we arrived to check in, the clerk didn't have the lunches on our invoice.She added them at that moment and said our driver would have them and hand them out on the coach. However, when we stopped for lunch at Old Faithful, Les said they never gave him the lunches. We then had to wait in line for 20 minutes at the crowded lunch counter at the Old Faithful grill and order fast food. Rather than have a picnic lunch outside by the geyser, we had to eat inside and missed the eruption we had showed up for. Fortunately, Les was able to take us a little further into the park to see some other features and then back to Old Faithful in plenty of time to get good seats to see it erupt at the next interval. It was worth the wait! The company refunded our money for the lunches right away, and we all still had a really awesome day. It was an all-day trip we will remember forever. read more

Took two tours (Old Faithful and Canyon). Found Alpen Guides very responsive and easy to work with (unlike Xanterra). Our guide, John Cox was both very knowledgeable and tremendously enthusiastic about the park. The Bombardier snow coaches give a sensation of skiing, and, because they are small, group size is limited (8 max.). Particularly enjoyed the Old Faithful tour, including the optional 2 mi. cross country ski through Upper Geyser Basin. Easy to spot wildlife against the snow, and John pointed out others that we would have missed. An advantage of the Bombardier is that photographers can pop up through the "sunroof" for a quick shot. Great trip, highly recommend. read more

Took a private guided tour with Bob Hardy who was fantastic. He showed a wealth of knowledge of the area and the animals. Our tour was supposed to be of the upper loop but after having a little discussion about what we had already seen and what he thought would be best we visited a combination of the upper and lower loops. With his expertise we got to see a grizzly, wolves, elk, pronghorn deer and of course bison. He was able to speak with us about the formation of the park and the intricacies of the wildlife while incorporating his own experiences (including some massively entertaining stories) stemming from his 17 years as a back country park ranger. His passion for what he does and love of the park was infectious. read more

Our tour was fantastic. Les was informative and shared very interesting details. He was patient with the young kiddos and answered all our questions with enthusiasm. Not to mention flexible with our route. He was excellent with making sure we never felt like we were in a crowd Would strongly recommend requesting Les as your guide. Thank you Les for a trip to remember! read more

We just got back from a great winter mini vacation to Yellowstone. We took two tours by Yellowstone Alpen Guides and enjoyed both days. Chris and Adam were both good guides, and shared history and geology of the region. We saw bison, elk, coyote, fox, bald eagles, trumpeter swans and more. Thanks for helping make our vacation so fun! read more

During our trip to Yellowstone we booked snowcoach and snowmobile tours to visit all the points of interest in the part. We booked a snowcoach tour with Aplen Guides. We enjoyed our tour but it wasn't fantastic. To start the coaches are pretty and very cool looking; but they are also extremely noisy. I mean we weren't able to talk to each other inside without screaming! Think about what that does to the nature and the wild life in the park (one star off). Also our tour guide (a young lady bless her heart) was more interested in giving a lecture and pointing to the paper map than actually driving in the park. We stopped several times to hear her long speeches (or lectures) about the rivers and history etc. I love to know about these things but can you please drive and talk? (one star off) I came here to see the amazing Yellowstone in winter before it's gone; I came to see the nature......oh well we didn't see much wild animals except a coyote; I seriously believe it was the noise of the coach that made animals ran away; I think this company is organized and the prices are reasonable and the staff are nice. read more

As soon as I saw Mike B walking across the parking lot of our hotel, I looked over at my Dad and said "Not sure if this is our guide or not, but it sure looks like someone who should be." After quickly loading up in into "Kitty", the 1956 Bombardier Snow Coach, we were on our way. Mike was an excellent guide, driving the surprisingly quite coach through Yellowstone, and to our ultimate destination, Old Faithfull. Mike is part experienced guide, part story teller, part historian, part Botanist, part Geologist, part Ornithologist, part Wildlife Biologist, but 100% committed to making sure your tour of Yellowstone leaves you full of knowledge and great memories. We chose to take the 2.5 mile hiking option for the last part of the trip from Biscuit Basin to Old Faithfull. We were very fortunate as the weather was great, and the snow on the trail was packed. We navigated the trail with ease and with plenty of time to spare when we arrived at Old Faithfull. I would recommend Yellowstone Alpen Guides emphatically to anyone wanting to take a tour of Yellowstone during the winter. read more

Had an amazing tour of the northern loop. We saw almost every animal that we wanted to see. Grizzly bear, black bear, moose, buffalo, bald eagles, etc. Our guide was amazing- super friendly and extremely knowledgable. The tour was a little long to be in the car but it was beautiful. Would recommend this company for Yelliwstone tours! read more

Just finished a tour with Alpen. Professional operation, great service and fantastic guide. Had an all-day tour with Dave A. and he was exceptional. We toured sites he's seen hundreds of times yet his enthusiasm and love for the park and his job make it seem like it was his first time. His knowledge brought so much more depth, insight and enjoyment than we could have ever experienced alone. Highly recommend! read more

We went on a private day tour with Yellowstone Alpen Guides. Our guide David was exceptional! He had so much knowledge not just about the park but the geological significance of the area. It was a very enriching 8 hours and we covered a lot of ground. He was also very flexible and offered us options throughout the day. I would definitely recommend booking a tour with this company and asking for David. read more

VERY UNPROFESSIONAL! Called to book a snow coach tour for my 2 sons from the east coast and myself to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and was delighted they had availability the next day! Quickly booked a hotel and made the 3 hour drive to West Yellowstone, arriving at about 7:30 pm. As we were rolling onto town I received a call that we were being cancelled! Too late to call other companies and see if they had anything, too late to turn around and drive home. According to Charlie the manager, two groups booked the same trip at exactly the same time with two different staff members. In that case, I suggested they call the other group and see if they wouldn't mind bring bumped. She then stated that actually the other grouped booked earlier. She immediately said we had a bad connection and hung up. She didn't call me back, I called again about 5 minutes later. She said she could give us 10% off a different trip we didn't want to take. When I declined she said not to worry, she would give us a full refund as if she was doing me a favor! I'm out the 6 hour driving time and the cost of the motel due to their mistake and she's doing me a favor by not charging me! Very rude and unprofessional. read more

We toured both the upper tour and Grand Tetons. We had Duke on the upper tour and he was amazing!!! Make sure you get him! We got Scott on our Grand Teton tour and he was very quiet. But overall both tours were great! read more