Entering Glacier National Park at West Glacier, St. Mary, or the Camas Road
*This is based on 2021 information. Will be updated as GNP clarifies*

The Cottages at Glacier is not located on the Going to the Sun Corridor.  So, ticket is required for entry of that road.

Entering the Going-to-the-Sun Road at either West Glacier or St. Mary, or via the Camas Road, will require two things: a Park Pass plus a $2.00 Entry Reservation Ticket or a reservation for a service along the Going-to-the-Sun Road. See the following website for more information. https://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/gtsrticketedentry.htm
Entry Reservation Tickets are limited. Approximately 3/4 of the Entry Reservation Tickets will be available up to 120 days in advance with the remaining 1/4 of Entry Reservation Tickets being released two days in advance. Prior to the full opening of the Going-to-the-Sun Road there will be fewer tickets available each day.
The site/app to obtain the entry tickets is the following:  www.recreation.gov OR the app available on smart phones "recreation.gov" 

  • If you do not already have a park pass you can obtain it at the same site.
  • It seems that the site requires you to answer the question concerning how many entry tickets you want. However you only have a choice of zero or one.

What Will I Do If I Don’t Secure a Ticket?

For those of you who have never visited Glacier, it may seem so disappointing if you have not yet or were unable to acquire the ‘golden ticket’ to enter Going to the Sun Road between 6:00 AM and 5:00 PM during your stay at Glacier National Park.  Though Going to the Sun road is a beautiful corridor through Glacier National Park, Please keep the following in mind:
  • There are two ways to get to the Cottages and the East Side of Glacier from West Glacier. There is the Going to the Sun road and also Highway #2 that goes around the perimeter of Glacier. Both take almost the same driving time.
  • Once the free shuttles begin running on GTTS road this summer, you will be able to walk into Glacier and use the shuttles to access the GTTS Road and the hikes and sites along the way.  You can get  off and on as you wish at various spots. I have no idea how crowded the shuttles will be this summer or if they plan to have more shuttles than there were in the past. Once at The Cottages and St. Mary you are less than a quarter mile from the Park entrance and less than a half mile from the free shuttle from the St. Mary visitor center. Walking into the park does not require ticketed entry.
  • Once at the Cottages you are also only 18 miles from Logan Pass, the highest point of the GTTS road. After 5:00 PM there is still about 5 hours of daylight to enjoy the corridor! It stays light a long time.
  • From St Mary you can drive up GTTS highway at 5:00 PM. Drive past Logan Pass, turn around at the loop and head back toward the cottages with still enough light to take a short walk to one of the waterfalls or to the Hidden Lake overview and be back to the Cottages before dark.
  • Highway #2 is very scenic. It follows the Middle Fork of the Flathead River, enters GNP for a short distance (no pass required), passes Goat Lick where mountain goats can often be spotted, especially in May and June.  Soon after Goat Lick you see a lovely waterfall, then Marias Pass, followed by the village of East Glacier. Historic East Glacier Lodge is beautiful and is on highway #49, Looking Glass Pass, which is really a spectacular drive. The eight slow and curvy miles have lovely pull offs. Once you reach Highway 89, it is only about 10 miles until you drop down into the wonderful St Mary Valley with all the mountain views opening around you.  The total distance from East Glacier to St. Mary is only 32 miles, but takes about 45 minutes to drive.
  • There are many hikes and spectacular views that are not on the busy GTTS road. They will require a park pass but not the ticketed entry.  Check out the Glacier National Park webcams to get an idea. https://www.nps.gov/glac/learn/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm  We recommend that you plan at least one day in the Many Glacier Area, then another day or more in the Two Medicine and East Glacier area. Lovely hikes and sites are also available from the Cutbank Creek entrance and right at St Mary.
So if you can’t get a ticket, don’t despair, you will find plenty to do. I have spent a lifetime finding new and exciting places.
 

 Please Check Out the Wonderful Webcams at Glacier!
   https://www.nps.gov/glac/learn/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm​