Grand Prismatic Spring

Grand Prismatic Spring is an outdoor activity in Yellowstone National Park, WY, part of the Yellowstone Country guide. Cost: $25 to $50. Most park roads are closed to regular vehicles from early November to late April.

Midway Geyser Basin · Yellowstone National Park, WY

Why you should go…

Grand Prismatic Spring is Yellowstone's largest hot spring, 200 to 330 feet across and more than 121 feet deep, set in Midway Geyser Basin. The center is deep blue, and the bands of yellow, orange, brown and green around it are masses of heat-loving microorganisms called thermophiles, each color growing at a different water temperature. You see it from a boardwalk, and you must stay on it because the water can cause severe burns. Parking at the basin is limited.

#hot spring
#yellowstone
#boardwalk
#geyser basin
#national park

What's around here?

The closest stops to Grand Prismatic Spring, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

Sightseeing
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Old Faithful
$25–$50
Watch Yellowstone's signature geyser shoot water more than 100 feet high from the surrounding boardwalks.
4.5 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing
Attractions
Family Favorite
Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center
Under $25
Nonprofit wildlife park near Yellowstone's west entrance, home to rescued grizzly bears, gray wolves and other native species.
16 mi awaySwitch it up: Attractions
Sport & Outdoor
History Buff
Nez Perce National Historic Trail
Free
A 1,170-mile historic trail across five states retracing the Nez Perce people's 1877 flight from the U.S. Army.
16 mi awayMore like this
Tours
Outdoor Adventure
Yellowstone Helicopters
$50+
Helicopter sightseeing flights from West Yellowstone Airport over Hebgen Lake, Two Top and Earthquake Country, from 20-minute hops to a 60-minute wilderness explorer.
17 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours
Sport & Outdoor
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Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
$25–$50
Stand at Artist Point and look up a yellow-walled canyon to the 308-foot Lower Falls.
22 mi awayMore like this
Sport & Outdoor
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Yellowstone Lake
$25–$50
Look out over North America's largest high-elevation lake, with geysers on its shore at West Thumb and trout below Fishing Bridge.
24 mi awayMore like this