Glacier National Park may feel remote – located in northern Montana, over a 2 hour drive from Missoula – but it is actually very easy to visit and enjoy without a car. That is, if you’re up for a train ride! Combining a train journey to and from the park, with the free park shuttle and walk-in campsites, makes for a very affordable and low-stress way to explore nearly all the park has to offer. Here are my tips from a July 2022 trip for visiting Glacier National Park on a budget.
Budget for One Week in Glacier National Park
Here is a summary of my transportation, camping, and food costs to visit Glacier National Park on a budget; see the explanations below for more detail on each category.
- Train round-trip, Seattle to West Glacier: $200
- Private shuttles round-trip, train station to Apgar: $12
- Private shuttles – east side: $56 ($14×4)
- NPS shuttle: free!
- Camping (6 nights): $42
- Park pass: $20
- Food – restaurants: $70
- Food – groceries: $70
Total: $470
Itinerary for One Week in Glacier National Park
Here is a summary itinerary for a car-free week in Glacier; see the transportation, camping, food, and hiking sections below for more detailed explanations. Visiting without a car definitely helped me save money on transportation and camping, although food costs will of course vary depending on your preferences.
- Friday – catch train in Seattle around 5pm
- Saturday – arrive at West Glacier train station; private shuttle to Apgar Campground. Take NPS shuttle to Logan Pass and Hidden Lake Overlook hike (3 miles), then to Avalanche Creek stop for Avalanche Lake hike (6 miles). Dinner at campground.
- Sunday – Hike on west side, stay at Apgar Campground, dinner at Eddie’s.
- Monday – NPS + private shuttle to Many Glacier campground. Hike from Many Glacier, dinner at campground.
- Tuesday – Private + NPS shuttle to Going-to-the-Sun trailhead, stay at Many Glacier. Dinner at campground.
- Wednesday – Private + NPS shuttle to Going-to-the-Sun trailhead, stay at Many Glacier. Dinner at Swiftcurrent Inn/Nell’s.
- Thursday – Private + NPS shuttle to Going-to-the-Sun trailhead, stay at Many Glacier. Dinner at campground.
- Friday – Private + NPS shuttle to Going-to-the-Sun trailhead, stay at Many Glacier. Dinner at campground.
- Saturday – Private + NPS shuttle back to Apgar area (or, St. Mary – see below re: transportation.) Optional hiking before evening train.
- Sunday – arrive back in Seattle in the late morning.
Taking the train to Glacier National Park
If you’re not familiar with Amtrak… you’ll find plenty of less-than-great reviews online. And I’m not going to lie, my train from Seattle to Glacier was 7 hours late. But once you’re on board, coach seats are a dream compared to what you may be used to on planes, and you can book roomettes for added privacy, comfort and dining car privileges. The Empire Builder (okay, we don’t love the name) that goes between Seattle/Portland and Chicago has a combination observation/lounge car where coach passengers can buy food – and everyone can buy drinks.
My round trip coach ticket from Seattle to West Glacier was $200, so as long as I have some flexibility in my schedule to accommodate delays, I’ll take that over a plane ticket or the cost of gas or a rental car. Ideally you can leave Seattle in the late afternoon and arrive in Glacier the next morning, and then return overnight as well – catching the train around 8pm and arriving back in Seattle in the late morning.
Car-free Travel Within Glacier National Park
To get from the West Glacier train station into the park, I booked a ride on a private shuttle run by Xanterra, the company that operates many of the hotels within the park. Apparently there is also a shuttle from the East Glacier train station to park locations on the east side, but I personally have not tried it (yet!).
Within the park, the National Park Service operates a free shuttle service that takes you all the way across the park via the Going-to-the-Sun Road. There are some intricacies to the shuttle system that you can research ahead of time or learn from the visitor centers once you arrive, but here are the basics:
- There are different shuttles serving the east and west sides
- The most direct service across the park is first thing in the morning
- At any time of day, be prepared for lines.
However, as long as you have some flexibility in your schedule and a positive attitude, the park shuttle is an amazing option not only for reaching different destinations within the park, but also for doing one-way hikes from one shuttle stop to another.
During my trip in July 2022 I also used a private shuttle operated by Xanterra on the east side of the park, between Many Glacier/Swiftcurrent, St. Mary, and Rising Sun. I wasn’t able to make reservations for this shuttle but got information at the hotels run by Xanterra; also, the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn even gave me a printed schedule. The shuttle did several trips between Swiftcurrent/Many Glacier and St. Mary/Rising Sun in the morning, and then again in the evening; times could vary somewhat from the printed schedule so I always tried to confirm with the front desk staff at the closest hotel the day before I hoped to use the shuttle.
A note on departing the park – I left from the West Glacier train station, reached via private (reservable) Xanterra shuttle from Apgar Village. You could likely also depart from the East Glacier train station, reached via private Pursuit shuttle.
Hikes in Glacier National Park Using the Free Shuttle
As shown above, making the most of the free shuttle run by the NPS at Glacier requires some flexibility in your schedule and a positive attitude, but enables some incredible one-way hikes as well as access to many of the most popular locations in the park. The shuttle follows the Going-to-the-Sun Road, so you’ll mostly be looking for hikes that start and end along that main road, but I’ve also noted some that finish at Many Glacier where I camped. (From Many Glacier, I took a private shuttle to St. Mary, where you can get on the NPS shuttle at the east end of the road.) Here are some of my favorite hikes:
- Iceberg Lake (2 miles each way) – Avalanche Creek shuttle stop (use Avalanche Creek trailhead)
- Hidden Lake Overlook (1.3 miles each way) – Logan Pass shuttle stop
- Sperry Chalet + Lake Ellen Wilson (6.3 miles to Sperry Chalet) – Lake MacDonald Lodge shuttle stop (Sperry Trailhead)
- Highline Trail + Garden Wall + Grinnell Glacier Overlook + Granite Park Chalet (7.6 miles to Granite Park Chalet, plus 4.2 miles to The Loop; add another 2 miles or so for the spur up to the Grinnell Glacier Overlook and back) – start at Logan Pass shuttle stop, end at The Loop shuttle stop
- Siyeh Pass (about 10 miles) – start at Sunrift Gorge shuttle stop, finish at Siyeh Bend
- Piegan Pass (4.5 miles each way) – start and finish at Siyeh Bend shuttle stop
- Siyeh Pass + Piegan Pass (15+ miles one way, check the math before you start) – start at Sunrift Gorge shuttle stop, finish at Many Glacier.
Hikes from Many Glacier
If you get to the Many Glacier area by private shuttle, there are even more incredible hikes to enjoy.
- Cracker Lake (6.1 miles each way) – note this is also a great backpacking spot, permits required
- Ptarmigan Lake & Ptarmigan Tunnel (5.3 miles each way to the tunnel)
- Iceberg Lake (4.8 miles each way)
- Combine the last two – go to Ptarmigan Tunnel first, then turn off to Iceberg Lake on your way back
- Swiftcurrent Pass (6.9 miles each way)
Car-free Camping in Glacier National Park
Camping policies at Glacier seem to vary somewhat from year to year; in 2022, there were some campgrounds with first-come, first-served availability and some requiring reservations. Reservation campgrounds were booked out very quickly, and lines would form for the first-come, first-served campgrounds first thing in the morning. However, visiting Glacier without a car opens up another option – hiker/biker sites!
From the NPS website:
“A limited number of sites at Apgar, Fish Creek, Sprague Creek, and Two Medicine are usually set aside for those arriving by bicycle or on foot. Sites are shared, with a capacity of up to 8 people; larger groups must split up or use group sites where available. The fee is $5 per person per night for Apgar, Two Medicine, and Sprague Creek. In the reservation campground at Fish Creek, the fee is $8 for the first person and $5 for every individual beyond the first.”
I stayed at hiker/biker sites at Apgar, St. Mary, and Many Glacier, and saw a hiker/biker site at the Rising Sun campground as well. (Apgar, St. Mary, and Rising Sun campgrounds are accessible from the Going-to-the-Sun Road shuttle; I reached the Many Glacier campground via the Xanterra private shuttle on the east side (described above).
My subjective opinion on the campgrounds/sites I stayed at: Many Glacier was my favorite, Rising Sun looked second best, then Apgar, then St. Mary.
| Campground | Sites | Area | Food | Shuttle Access |
| Many Glacier | Fairly separate, shaded | Close to trails and both Swiftcurrent & Many Glacier hotel areas | Camp store, Nell’s, food at Many Glacier hotel | In 2022, private shuttle only |
| Rising Sun | Fairly separate, shaded | Lake access | Camp store, Two Dog Flats restaurant | NPS shuttle |
| Apgar | Less privacy, tall trees | Convenient to transit center, Apgar Village, lake | Apgar Village various options | NPS shuttle |
| St. Mary | One in sun, one in shade | Convenient to visitor center, stores | Outside park entrance, groceries and various options | NPS shuttle |
Food for One Week in Glacier National Park
There are a variety of restaurant and grocery options within and around Glacier National Park, and I also brought my own food to cook many meals in camp. As I was traveling by train, I didn’t bring a cooler – but I’m also personally okay with keeping some vegetables, and hard cheese, unrefrigerated for a couple of days. Bringing food definitely helped me visit Glacier National Park on a budget.
Food options:
- There is a restaurant at the West Glacier train station (as well as a gas station with similar grocery options to many of the camp stores).
- Apgar Village – Eddie’s restaurant and The Cedar Tree gift store with espresso, pastries and sandwiches. Eddie’s also has a camp store.
- Rising Sun – Two Dog Flats restaurant, camp store.
- St. Mary – Nothing actually in the park, but it’s a short walk outside of the park to an area with a grocery store, camp store, and Curly Bear Cafe. There are restaurants just down the road as well.
- Many Glacier – the Many Glacier hotel has both a restaurant and an espresso/snack bar (with some groceries/snacks too). At the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn there is a camp store, and Nell’s counter-service restaurant.
My estimated food budget of $70 for restaurants/takeout includes:
- $10 sandwich to bring on the train from Seattle
- $18 burger at Eddie’s
- $13 wrap at Nell’s
- $9 pizza (small) from espresso/snack bar in Many Glacier hotel
And my estimated grocery budget of $70 includes:
- $4 oats & oatmeal toppings
- $6 tortillas
- $4 peanut butter
- $3 dried mango
- $5 trail mix
- $5? peanut butter pretzels
- $10 salami
- $4 crackers
- $10 bars, energy chews
- $5 zucchini, carrot, red pepper
- $3 parmesan cheese, couscous
- $4 cherry tomatoes
- $4 mac and cheese x2
And there you have it, a car-free week in Glacier National Park for less than $500! Google probably wants me to remind you that this is a post about visiting Glacier National Park on a budget, and to make sure you know that you can find other national park guides here. Happy walking!
