I have to be honest: visiting Yosemite National Park was a bit daunting to me since I haven’t visited many parks before, and the place looked so huge, and I had no idea what to expect. Since I was with my family for the trip, and many of them have trouble walking, it was a trip where we tried to balance seeing what we could without putting so much on the itinerary that people wouldn’t enjoy it.

In the end, we enjoyed a lovely day and a half at the park and saw some wonderful things. We didn’t hike and stayed on the popular path, but were still able to fill up so much time and our visit was sufficient. This post is for those of you who want to have a more leisurely look at Yosemite, and also includes accessibility information.

Some Bits of Yosemite National Park’s History

The area that is now Yosemite National Park has been inhabited for thousands of years by many different tribes including the Southern Sierra Miwuk (or Miwok), Ahwahneechee, and Paiute. People thrived on the land here up until the Gold Rush, when the natives were violently kicked out. The “Yosemite” name is derived from the Miwuk language, but I’ve read different meanings: first, that the original word means “a band of killers” which other tribes used to describe the Miwok; and second, that it comes from the word for “bear” or “grizzly bear.”

Survivors of the local tribes still have great ties to the land, and you can see some of their presence throughout the park.

In the 19th century, a naturalist named John Muir advocated for the preservation of land, including Yosemite. Certain parts of the current Yosemite National Park first became a national park in 1890. In 1903, he took President Theodore Roosevelt on a tour of Yosemite, where the latter is famously quoted as saying,

“There can be nothing in the world more beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of the giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of the Colorado, the Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Three Tetons; and our people should see to it that they are preserved for their children and their children’s children forever, with their majestic beauty all unmarred.”

In 1906, the park was expanded to take on its current land coverage.

Tunnel View

Yosemite has a loop along the Yosemite Valley, and Tunnel View is one of the first stops you’ll see. It’s one of the most iconic views of the park, with Half Dome and El Capitan framing the tunnel. It feels like you’re on top of the park here!

Accessibility at Tunnel View: Easy! The parking lot is right at Tunnel View and you don’t need to even leave the car. There are a few handicap parking spaces.

Bridalveil Fall

Bridalveil Fall is one of Yosemite’s many waterfalls, about 620 feet high (though in comparison to the mountains, it looks like a little guy!) You can see it from Tunnel View and also drive and then walk to get up closer to it.

Accessibility at Bridalveil Fall: Decent! You can see the top of the fall, as pictured, from the parking lot. It is about a 5 minute, somewhat uphill walk to see the fall up close.

Stoneman Meadow

I love meadows, and they were my favorite part of the park. I loved the wildflowers and being next to the mountains, feeling myself as small and being able to appreciate their immense size. Stoneman Meadow really has it all, from the wildflowers to the small streams to the waterfall and the dome-shaped mountain. It was definitely one of my favorite stops.

Accessibility at Stoneman Meadow: Fair. You can drive around the meadow in a car, but to get out and visit it, it’s about a 10 or 15 minute walk around the main path. There are fences to lean against but no benches to sit on. However the terrain is completely flat and most parts of it are paved.

Yosemite Village & Museum

Yosemite Village is more of a stop for people to get food, buy souvenirs, go to the bathroom, etc. But I mention this spot specifically because they have two small museums: one is dedicated to the local Native tribes and has some beautiful handicraft work as well as a recreated village on what was once the town of Ahwahnee; the other is a geography museum that gives some insight on the science behind the landscape. Both are interesting and worth a short stop if you’re keen on taking a break in the air conditioning.

Accessibility at Yosemite Village: Good! The area is paved, though there is a bit of walking involved between buildings. Places to sit are available.

Cook’s Meadow, Leidig Meadow, & El Capitan Meadow

All three meadows are along the northern half of the loop in Yosemite Valley, and El Capitan Meadow is near the entrance of the loop. El Capitan is the imposing rock formation in the mountains. It’s kind of weird to say it’s “imposing” when all the mountains are quite substantial, and El Capitan doesn’t have a special shape. But in the park, I could just tell what was El Capitan without having to look at a map. It’s not really something I can explain but it has a presence.

Accessibility at the Meadows: These meadows have more limited parking on the side of the road. Like the other meadows, the terrain is flat but there are no places to sit. Unlike Stoneman meadow, the ground isn’t paved and there aren’t fences to lean up against. However you can easily see and enjoy them from the road.

Mariposa Grove (my favorite!)

The sites mentioned here on out are not in Yosemite Valley.

Mariposa Grove is one of the most iconic places in the whole country with its gigantic sequoia trees. These are several hundred, and some are even thousands, years old – which is completely mind-blowing to me. Photos don’t really do the sequoias justice; I’ve circled a human in yellow in one of my photos so you can see the sheer size of these giants. But to see them in person is a whole other level of awe. I particularly loved the gigantic pinecones!

Be sure to get there early or during the day. We got there during the evening and just caught the last shuttle to the Grove at 7:00pm. That also left us limited time to explore before heading back on the last shuttle at 8:30pm. There is a short trail (more details below) which takes about 10-15 minutes but then there are other parts of the trail up a small dirt incline that I wanted to see but we just didn’t have time for.

Accessibility at Mariposa Grove: There is a handicap parking lot but you need to bring your handicap ID placard with you for access. The gate is automatic where you scan your placard, so since my family left theirs behind at home, we couldn’t access the handicap parking lot.

In that event, there is a shuttle that’ll take you about a mile or two from the main center to the grove. At the grove, there are several trails to take, but one main trail is on a boardwalk. The boardwalk loop takes about 10-15 minutes to see. Note that half of it is a dirt path and it’s not completely flat. However the boardwalk part at least is accessible and gets you up close to the sequoias.

Washburn Point

To get to Washburn and Glacier Points, you’ll need to leave the Valley loop and go down a different road. About an hour of driving along this road will lead you to Washburn Point. Washburn Point is essentially the view of Glacier Point but from a different angle, and includes two waterfalls. You get sweeping views over the mountains at this stop and, just like Tunnel View, it feels like you’re on top of the world.

Accessibility at Washburn Point: Great! Like Tunnel View, the parking lot is right next to the point so you don’t even need to get out of the car. There are also handicap spots available so you can get out and walk along the paved walkway. However there are parts around here that involve stairs and are unpaved.

Glacier Point

Glacier Point is the very end of Glacier Point Road and it’s where you can see the stunning Half Dome. Half Dome is an unusual rock formation in the mountains that looks like a round sphere cut straight in half, thus the name. It’s quite a sight and is what I think of now when I think of Yosemite.

Accessibility at Glacier Point: Not great but doable for some. The parking lot is super hilly and to get to the view, you have to walk up a moderate incline. There is a paved sidewalk but a lot of the path is dirt. However, there are some places to sit. The view is very close and very similar to that of Washburn Point so don’t feel bad if you don’t think you can get up to see the view at Glacier Point.

These are just a few highlights to visit in Yosemite National Park. The park is huge and has several other places accessible mostly by hike, but of course we didn’t have as much time or the ability to see everything.

Planning Your Visit

I was overwhelmed planning our trip to Yosemite National Park, and a bit overwhelmed when we got to the park itself and I was trying to figure things out. I hope the information below will help you to have a smoother trip!

Leave No Trace: If you’re not familiar with Leave No Trace (LNT) then you should familiarise yourself with it. It’s the practice of making sure you don’t leave behind any items, don’t take anything from nature, don’t start forest fires, etc. It’s a practice in camping, regional parks, national parks, and just in general when you go into nature.

Yosemite National Park is equipped with many bear-proof trash cans. You need to use them to dispose of your trash and organic waste.

Reservations: Around May to September, you will need a reservation to enter the park at certain times. Secure your reservation online here. It costs about $2 per vehicle and is valid for three consecutive days. Note that you’ll need a reservation even if you have a Park Pass as it’s a separate entity from the entrance fee.

Food: There are several places to get food in and around Yosemite Village, and the gift shop has a small grocery store. However it can get crowded and my parents spent about half an hour getting their food. I brought my lunch and was finished eating in about 10 minutes, which I think saved a lot of time.

Cell Service: Cell service is sparse in some areas and nonexistent in most areas. It’s a nice way to disconnect but can be super stressful when you have two groups of people and you can’t get in touch with one another. Plan accordingly!

Yosemite National Park is not that difficult to navigate, but be sure to download an offline map (such as Maps.me) to be safe. The areas around Yosemite also don’t have cell service so it can also come in handy in getting to and from your accommodation.

Driving: I knew Yosemite was mountainous but I guess I thought you drove in the valley. To get to the valley, you drive over some very steep mountains. It is a long, windy road with some steep drops. Thankfully the speed limit is only 30mph but it’s very white-knuckle driving. We actually saw someone drive one tire off the road and so that he was headed towards a huge drop and just seeing that alone was terrifying!! Luckily he was driving slowly so he didn’t jettison off the mountain.

Shuttle Service: Yosemite does have a free and frequent shuttle service to use that I did not master. We started using the shuttle in Curry Village, which has shuttles going both ways, so I erroneously thought the shuttle was both ways. It is one way. Since parking can be difficult during the busier months, it may be easier to park your car in a lot and then take the shuttle around the rest of the park.

Wildlife: One of the wonderful things to witness in Yosemite National Park is the wildlife! Unfortunately I did not see any black bears (though my grandma did) but I did see a coyote – though it’s a bit less exciting.

Make sure you keep your food contained at all times and immediately throw your trash away in the bear-proof trashcans. Read more about food storage here. If a black bear approaches you, you should apparently make yourself look big and make loud noises to scare off the bears. There are no grizzly bears in Yosemite.

How much time do I need? To take a leisurely tour of Yosemite Valley and Glacier Point in the summer (ie when the sun sets at 8:30pm), it took a full day. This did not include Mariposa Grove, which we did on a separate day.

To drive around the Valley loop is about 20-30 minutes, so not that much time, but obviously you will want to make a few stops. To get to the valley from the north and south gates is about an hour. To get to Glacier Point from the main road is about an hour. You should reserve an hour minimum if you want to go to Mariposa Grove, and that’s just to take the shuttle and go around the boardwalk.

Valley Loop: About 20-30 minutes drive without stopping
Valley Loop from North/South Gates: About an hour drive
Glacier Point: About an hour drive from the main road

You can have a good visit of the Valley in a day, but keep sunset times in mind. During the winter, you’ll need more days to get more daylight. I’m also glad we got a day and a half in Yosemite since adding Mariposa Grove to the Valley and Glacier Point would’ve been chaotic.

Can I swim here? Yes! I didn’t realise you can swim in the waters at Yosemite. I totally would’ve packed my bathing suit because I love swimming in rivers and the water here is crystal clear. Many people also brought white water rafts.

As I mentioned, I was a bit stressed planning our trip to Yosemite National Park since there is so much to know. But I hope this guide I put together was helpful for you, and if you are hard of walking, that it was particularly helpful in planning your trip and what to expect when you visit.

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