Explore Apgar Village

Apgar Village sits on the scenic southern shores of Lake McDonald (famous for its rainbow rocks), and includes lake access for swimming and kayaking, a visitors center, shopping, and casual dining. It is the entrance to West Glacier.

Hike Avalanche Trail

The Avalanche Lake Trail in Glacier National Park is a popular six-mile there-and-back trail that takes hikers through a lush, old-growth cedar forest and along the cascades of Avalanche Creek to a breathtaking glacial lake. It is considered moderate in difficulty, and can be crowded, but moving down the shore and dipping your toes in (or whole body) is a great break before heading back.

Wild Goose Island Overlook

Sit and watch the sunset over this idyllic island on Lake McDonald, with views out of a storybook. But bring a jacket or blanket—it can be incredibly windy (aka chilly) even in summer.

Explore Lake McDonald Lodge

Situated on the north side of Lake McDonald in West Glacier, this landmark hotel features old-world charm in its impressive lobby, guest rooms, shopping, and dining. It offers lake access, is a major hub for the park's famous Red Bus Tours, and is the perfect spot to sip on a cocktail and enjoy a striking view.

St. Mary Lake boat tour

This boat tour offers scenic 1.5-hour cruises and 3.5-hour cruise/hike combinations (including a two-hour drop-off for a trek to St. Mary Falls) on a historic wooden boat with indoor and outdoor seating options. Tickets do sell out, so early reservations are recommended, but we were able to snag three tickets the morning of by lining up at the ticket kiosk about an hour before the first tour.

Hike Hidden Lake Trail

Hidden Lake Trail starts on a boardwalk behind the Logan Pass Visitor Center and winds through alpine meadows before revealing stunning views of Hidden Lake. You have a good chance to spot mountain goats, bighorn sheep, pika, and marmots. Note: Parking is terrible.

Hike Highline Trail

Known as one of the best hikes in North America, this 12-mile challenging hike traces a ledge carved into the "Garden Wall," offering staggering, panoramic views of valleys and glaciers. After the ledge, walk a beautiful shelf to Granite Park Chalet (very rustic amenities) before descending four miles of steep, dusty switchbacks to The Loop, where you will hop on a park shuttle to take you back to your car.

Explore Many Glacier Hotel

Marvel at this historic Swiss-style lodge on Swiftcurrent Lake in East Glacier with phenomenal views and access to the Grinnell Glacier trailhead. While not luxury in the modern sense, the hotel is beautiful and very comfortable, and the feeling of being transported back to another era combined with the camaraderie among fellow travelers creates an unmatched atmosphere.

Hike Grinnell Glacier

The iconic 11-mile round-trip trail features it all—stunning blue alpine lakes, waterfalls, and panoramic views. While a moderately busy trail, animal sightings are plentiful, and every time you pause to take it all in, you are struck with breathtaking views. The glacier itself is an awe-inspiring experience, and many dip their toes into the freezing water or have a long rest with lunch on its shores.

Many Glacier boat tour

Hop aboard vintage wooden boats in the Many Glacier boat tour, where you will cruise on Swiftcurrent Lake, take a brief walk, then navigate Lake Josephine—an easy way to shave 3.5 miles off the Grinnell Glacier hike. This tour is very popular, often selling out months in advance, but walk-up tickets are available and very competitive (get to the ticket booth early!). Alternatively, there is a one-way return option for half the price if you want to do the full hike to Grinnell Glacier but catch the boat on the way back.

* = Top recommendations

*Wally and Buck (Missoula, Montana)

Such a great place to eat after a long flight! We ate here on our way home, too. Focusing on burgers and fries, everything on this small menu is solid gold—especially its yellow curry dipping sauce. We ate the OG, the Wally (bacon jam and onions), and the Buck Buck, and everything rated a 5/5!

Eddie’s Café (Apgar Village in West Glacier)

Eddie’s Café offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but we were so full from our W&B burgers we opted for dessert only. We chose a slice of huckleberry pie, huckleberry ice cream, and peanut butter with chocolate chunks ice cream. Those who know me know I’m an ice cream snob, so while it was a nice treat, the flavors were underwhelming. I would still recommend it for the experience of eating ice cream while dipping your toes in Lake McDonald, but keep expectations moderate.

Russell’s Fireside Dining Room (Lake McDonald Lodge in West Glacier)

After a morning of exploring, we ate here for lunch. The tables are on a first-come basis, so we bought cocktails at Lucke’s Lounge to sip, then settled in rocking chairs on the back porch to wait (a huckleberry smash that was good but heavy on the lemon, and a Bear’s Delight honey wheat beer that was above average). Once seated, we ordered the smoked Columbian River steelhead trout starter, followed by the Trailhead Burger and spicy Southwest rotini skillet. The starter was good, the entrees not memorable, and I would recommend skipping this restaurant.

Two Dog Flats Restaurant (East Glacier)

This small, moderately busy restaurant is average, but convenient due to the close-by Rising Sun Motor Inn and Rising Sun Campground and popular St. Mary Lake trailheads across the street. For dinner, we chose the huckleberry pulled pork sandwich and the huckleberry pulled pork baked potato with a glass of chardonnay and Yaak Attack IPA. The sauce was not overly fruity—I don’t think I would have known there was huckleberry in it if it was not in the name. Everything met expectations—nothing to write home about, but convenient and hot!

Rising Sun Pizza (outside of East Glacier)

We ordered a pepperoni pizza from Rising Sun Pizza on our second night at Rising Sun Motor Inn. It is about 10 minutes each way, and we spotted abundant wildlife on the drive, including a bear. The pizza was good, not great, but a nice option after hiking all day. I would recommend it to anyone looking for an eat-in-your-room comfort meal.

Johnson’s of St. Mary (outside East Glacier)

This place has personality … for better or worse. It is cash only, has very rustic décor, and a "take it or leave it" personality from the employees, so it is not for everyone. For lunch, I had the buffalo barley soup and the buffalo meatloaf (special of the day), while my husband had the salad (upcharge) and the Jammer (bison burger with huckleberry-bacon jam). Everything was delicious—like "I want the recipe" delicious—but I would only recommend this restaurant to the adventurous eater who is not easily offended.

*Two Sisters Café (outside East Glacier)

We ate dinner at Two Sisters Café, a popular and eclectic restaurant that is on the way to Many Glacier. There was a 45-minute wait, so we sat at the outdoor picnic tables and chatted with fellow visitors while drinking a Big Sky IPA and a margarita. When seated, we ordered the fish and chips (above average) and the trout and waffles. The trout was a large, deep-fried serving of fresh trout, the liege waffles had the most delicious sugar crusting, and the huckleberry syrup was the perfect way to marry the two—one of the most novel dishes I’ve ever eaten, and one I think about often. This restaurant gets the second-place medal, and I would highly recommend it to everyone!

*Ptarmigan Dining Room (Many Glacier)

This is the nicest dining option in the Many Glacier Hotel, and offers beautiful Swiss architecture, a grand stone fireplace, and striking views of Swiftcurrent Lake and surrounding mountains. While the food our neighboring tables had looked wonderful, we settled on appetizers and the trio of desserts. The rainbow trout dip was perfect, and the duck wings very good. It was impossible to choose a favorite between the caramelized cheesecake with huckleberry topping, the chocolate torte with berries, and the cherry crisp with vanilla ice cream. I am giving this restaurant the first-place medal of the trip, with the caveat that we didn’t have an entree here, because of the combination of the amazing view, the indulgent if limited food, and the friendly service.

Swiss Lounge (Many Glacier)

This is the casual alternative to the Ptarmigan Dining Room at Many Glacier Hotel, and was by far the worst meal we ate. We sat down to a late lunch with a very rude, unhelpful waitress. The menu is small, and that is usually a good sign (do a few things really well!) but our experience was the opposite. The prime rib sliders had a laughably small amount of grey meat on them, the grilled chicken sandwich was a puck and missing the avocado, and the fries were old and cold. Please do yourself a favor and eat anywhere but here.

*Kyiyo Mercantile & Bakery (south of East Glacier)

This red-clad shop is easy to miss when driving toward Two Medicine, but is definitely worth the stop. We bought a huckleberry danish and a huckleberry bear claw (both fruity and sweet—the perfect side to a hot cup of coffee), coffee (but it made me sad, like every cup I had in Montana), and cookies. We meant to only get two, but the lovely lady behind the counter talked us into six … and the lemon one was out of this world! Highly recommend stopping in for an afternoon sugar fix.

Flathead Lake Brewing Co (Bigfork, Montana)

With great views of Flathead Lake and plenty of outdoor seating, we gave this place a try for lunch. We began with the Centennial IPA and the huckleberry white Russian—both were pleasant. We ate the chicken bacon ranch sandwich and the fish and chips—again good, but not great. The biggest standout for me was the apple coleslaw served with my fish and chips—truly a fresh, flavorful treat. I would recommend this place with a grain of salt: great views, easy location, and good service help elevate the middling food.