This was such an amazing adventure. The staff is super friendly, social, and accommodating. Shout…read moreout to Michelle, Tessa, and Hillary! The site and the trails are so beautiful, and the horses are so well behaved. I highly recommend this to anyone in the area looking for a fun adventure.

So so fun! Amazing views, water crossings, and the horses were so so well behaved. I would…read moredefinitely recommend this place! We did the 2 hour tour and walked in with out a reservation luckily they had 2 spots left!

Always a must when visiting Yosemite we've been on the tour multiple times throughout the years and…read morelook forward to it every time. We always grab the latest tour once the sun and heat has cooled off and enjoy the views. We've had a different ranger explains things a little differently every time so it's nice to get point of views from different people and get a variety of information. I definitely recommend booking the tour.

Great way to see the valley floor, $40.per person for 2 hours, Ranger led tour in an open trailer…read more Takes you by all the major spots in the valley with a couple of short stops. Well worth the time especially if your only have one day in the park. Tickets, start and stop at Yosemite valley lodge.

We had an excellent day with David. We booked a private tour for my wife and me. We are not so…read moreyoung so David tailored it to our pace and abilities (still made it to the top of Sentinel Dome- well worth the effort!). Literally went from the valley floor to the peak of sentinel dome. His knowledge of the park is outstanding. He picked us up at our lodge and dropped us there at the end of the day- even gave us the picnic we couldn't eat during the trip because clouds blocked the astrophotography portion. He even apologized for the clouds! An all day adventure; we were happily exhausted when we got back to Evergreen Lodge. Highly recommend.

Dave is AMAZING! We had the best day with him on our private tour of Yosemite. He is so fun,…read moreknowledgeable, a great conversationalist and made the day fabulous. I had the best time and felt like we got to really see Yosemite and get to know the park. I would 100% recommend booking with him and his company. Hands down the BEST!!

Apple cider slushie was awesome. The little pizza place on site was amazing. Fresh wood fired pizza…read morefrom a food truck style setup. Beautiful location with the Apple orchard surrounded by pine trees and the patio for eating and hanging out. Definitely would come here again.

We stopped by Sierra Cider right at opening (12pm) as part of our day trip before heading into…read moreYosemite for my birthday, and it was such a fun and refreshing visit! The owner and staff were super welcoming and walked us through all their offerings, which made the experience even better. We kicked things off with a cider flight--our favorites were Early Harvest and Graveyard. Early Harvest was simple, crisp, and just sweet enough, while Graveyard reminded me of a Scottish smoky cider aged in whiskey barrels. I do wish there were a few more sweet options overall and possibly a current up to date list of what's on tap somewhere online, but everything was well-crafted and flavorful! To cool off, we grabbed a cider slushy (highly recommend!) and wandered the property. We visited the goats, strolled through the apple trees, and made friends with their big fluffy Pyrenees who was living his best life napping in the shade. I picked up a bottle of Early Harvest and a t-shirt to bring back to DFW. It was the perfect stop--relaxed, local, and a great way to start the afternoon before heading into Yosemite. After our tasting, we walked through some of the apple trees, visited the cutest goats, and made friends with their big, lazy Pyrenees dog who was living his best life soaking up attention. I picked up a bottle of Early Harvest and a t-shirt to bring back to DFW--both worth it! Such a charming little spot--relaxed, scenic, and just the right detour before Yosemite!

Sugar Pine Railroad was very fun and enjoyable, the staff are friendly and nice, highly recommend !read more

Do the moonlight dinner train! We chose the cuppola (second story of the caboose). If I did it…read moreagain I would just choose the caboose. Padded, forward facing seating and a private guide make it worth it. The price point is worth it when you consider dinner & dessert , beverages (including beer/wine), plus the train experience and campfire singers at the stop. We had an amazing 4 hours (5:30-9:30pm). Pre-dinner we strolled the grounds, gift shops & museums and watched some folks pan for gold. Dinner at 6:30 and then you're off by 7:15pm. The train ride and history lesson aboard the train plus a lively sing along at the campfire stop take you through to 9:30 return to the depot. Highly recommend!

Our tour guides were absolutely amazing (John and Mia) and they were very knowledgeable and helped…read moreanswer all of our questions (about Yosemite in general, specific famous features on our hike, and even random questions about birds and plant life). The hike is as advertised (in terms of ratings and what features you will see). They always put safety first and even offered to help carry our back packs when we got tired or were crossing a small stream! They treated us like close family/friends, were encouraging us along the way, and adapted to our pace and schedule. Our group ranged from age 6 to adult and we couldn't have made it to the end of the hike without them! Book them for your tours and have fun on your Yosemite Vacation!

Will definitely be booking again with John and Y Explore!!! Honestly when we booked the guided half…read moredome hike I went into it thinking we were just utilizing the purchased permits as hadn't won the lottery ourselves but as the day progressed I became more and more grateful for the wisdom and knowledge of our guide. From breathing techniques and tips for ascending and descending the cables to the order of of our group and perfectly timed rest breaks this was worth every penny as we had not only a successful summit but an overwhelming positive experience! Hubby and I are excited to travel again to more destination with Y Explore in the near future!

This is the perfect way to see the Yosemite sites in one day. Coach Bus (with Air) and a guide who…read moreexplains the valleys features as well as keeps you entertained along the way. Our guide, Sam, was great! Buy the lunch package. Lunch at Wawona Lodge was pretty good. This is an 8 hour tour, so plan for the whole day.

Pricey. Thought it would be a good way to see the special places in Yosemite plus get educated on…read morethe history. I would have give three stars for "just ok" but dropped it to two because of the following reasons: The provided lunch was mediocre. Lunchmeat on bread, bag of vinegar chips, apple, a large chocolate cookie and the tastiest bottle of water. Next, the amount of time spent at each stop should be adjusted. At Wawona, you got an hour. Barely enough time to look around and use one of the two toilets on site. We never got to look at the gift shop. At Glacier Point, which is such a magnificent place, a few minutes longer than the given hour would have been nice. We had hoped to buy an ice cream but It got so crowded in the store and we had such little time to look at the view, take photos and get to the bus on time. We were told that we'd have an hour and 50 minutes at Mariposa Grove, the last stop. It was disappointing because Yosemite had stopped the tram rides through the forest so you had to hike to see the trees. It was a very hot day, lots of people in the shade waiting for the shuttle back to their cars. No gift store, no place to buy gifts or something cold to drink/eat but there were clean bathrooms and a water fill station. I wish we had less time at this stop and extra time at the first two. Finally, our tour guide Bill was so knowledgeable, so full of fun facts and he made it a pleasurable journey. Our party agreed though that we would have preferred him to just tell us the history and not try to engage with the riders on the bus so much. Most of the questions he asked were rhetorical but he still expected us to answer yes or no or guess which historical figure he might be talking about. It got old after a while.

Attending Balanced Rocks "Summer Solstice" 6/22-25, 2017 was an amazing experience…read more Jana and JP were our guides and they are such talented individuals. They shared their knowledge of backpacking and roughing it in the great outdoors, preparing healthy gourmet food (beyond what I expected for a camping trip), practicing mindfulness. We had daily yoga morning and evening, free time to hike, climb, jump in the lake, journal, spend time together as a group. I will treasure the memories I made on this trip forever. Thank you for being such a one of a kind organization

Balanced Rock was everything I was searching for that I didn't know I needed. They created a…read morewonderful and personalized backpacking trip complete with gourmet meals, yoga, meditation, journaling and just the right amount of physical and mental challenge. So grateful to the team and my guide.

Best sight to see here just make sure you go early and find the right time for the waterfall which…read moreis in spring which is when the snow caps are melting. Hikes can range with difficulties but there are simple trails for kids

I never expected to love Yosemite. I've been fortunate enough to travel to different places and…read morehave seen some truly breathtaking natural wonders. And so when I stepped off the Yosemite Close Up Tours van as Ken (our guide and the tour owner) parked it beside a few rocks to test our climbing/walking ability, I wasn't expecting much. But it's pretty appropriate that this tour group has this name, because Ken gave us a close up and intimate glimpse into the beauty of Yosemite. They say mountaineering is a lonely experience and so it is a very close/tight-knit community. They also say that there is something about Yosemite that brings people together. We were fortunate enough to have Ken bring both these things to us, as he shared his decades of experience scaling Yosemite's mountains and hiking its trails; imparted his knowledge about the delicacy and power of the nature around us; and allowed us to experience his lifelong love story with this national park. In our one day tour on a bright spring day, Ken taught us: - Balance: He started the tour by asking our group of 10 to walk up and down a few rocks, just so he could see what level we were each at. The 5 year olds in our group loved this 'playtime' while the 60+ year olds in our group loved this proactive calibration of how much (or little) help was needed throughout the day. - To look up, out and inward: While Ken was great at picking spots for photo opportunities, I loved it most when he picked spots that were set-ups for stories. He would ask us to look up at specific sections on the mountains and talk about how climbers would tackle this crevice or that ridge. So as we looked up at El Capitan or the Half Dome, we not only saw the beautiful shots seen in pictures and screensavers, but also the solitary suffering and the exhilarating exhaustion of challenging oneself, of being one with that challenge, and of finally and triumphantly scaling the top (and getting down afterwards). - Respect for the danger/risk: Ken lightly but seriously talked about this book he had that detailed different ways people had died in Yosemite (e.g., there's a whole chapter on rivers). It wasn't meant to be morbid or macabre, but matter-of-fact. And it made us aware and respectful about what was around us. - Conservationism without the hard sell: In between the more tour guide-y stories, Ken made sure to drop some geological/biological knowledge on us. For example, he explained what meadows were and how they came to be (which was his thesis if I remember correctly) and talked about the regular volunteer work that climbers do to clean up the park. - The evolution of climbing: Mid-tour, Ken brought out his different hooks and clamps to show us how climbing gear has changed and become more sophisticated over the years. And this may sound like a boring history lesson but it actually helped us appreciate Yosemite's mountains - and the people who dream/do climb them - even more. - Picnics are the best: I'm not sure whether it was because we had been walking a lot, or because Ken's tour provides locally sourced food, but that picnic lunch of sandwich+chips+cookie+apple absolutely hit the spot. Ken ended our tour with a funny/folksy song about 2 climbers at Yosemite. And in a way, I thought that was a kinda perfect way to end the day. Because it was only later on when, through good ol' Google, that we found out Ken was a sort of mountaineering legend, with many initial ascents (i.e., first time anyone ever scales a mountain) credited to him. But at that moment, as he was singing his folksy song to bid us goodbye, he wasn't Ken Bouche, a known mountaineer. He was just another guy who was completely in love, and wanted to playfully share that love with the people he was entrusted with that day. 5 stars. Highly recommended.

Review for Lasting Adventures and Guide Isaac V…read more Backpacking Half Dome with Lasting Adventures was an unforgettable experience, made even better by our incredible guide, Isaac V. It was just my spouse and me on the trip, which made it feel really personal and special. Isaac was not only knowledgeable and professional but also had a great personality that made it easy to talk openly and honestly with him. He gave us the confidence we needed to take on this adventure and was encouraging every step of the way. Thanks to his guidance and support, this trip was a true success. We would absolutely recommend Lasting Adventures--and Isaac specifically--to anyone looking for a meaningful and empowering outdoor experience. We're already looking forward to doing another trip!

I did the guided 3-day yoga and backpacking retreat at May Lake/amount Hoffman in Yosemite and it…read morewas AMAZING. The location was so beautiful and serine, and not far enough to scare off an absolute backpacking beginner like me! I kinda pinched myself several times to make sure it was all real. The yoga instructor Britta was fabulous. She had amazing insight, knowledge, and overall her "do what your body tells you" guidance approach to yoga was above and beyond what I expected. She's also just such a warm and encouraging person, which helped me engage spiritually and openly in every practice. Also, I loved that she guided us how to use yoga in our hikes and various activities throughout the day (like breathing technique and TOE YOGA!) The guide Dawson was so chill, knowledgeable and an ASTONISHING cook! I went in expecting to eat nothing but berries and raw avocado, but he made delicious meals I'd gladly eat any day anywhere (like vegan French toast with berries, chia seeds and syrup...never would have thought that was do-able on a backpacking trip!). His mellow and trustworthy demeanor made everything feel so effortless and eased so much anxiety I had going into the whole thing. Overall, it was the trip of a lifetime in such a beautiful place. I made new friends, I saw new things, I never felt judgement, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat!