Skip to Main Content
Montana

The Best of Glacier National Park

Program No. 21016RJ
Discover Glacier National Park as you raft Flathead River, explore alpine trails, visit pristine lakes and learn how glaciers carved this stunning landscape eons ago.

Enroll with Confidence

We want your Road Scholar learning adventure to be something to look forward to—not worry about. Learn more

Protecting the Environment

We offset a portion of the emissions created by your travel. Learn more

Prefer to enroll or inquire by phone? 800-454-5768
Select your type of room
Price will update based on selection
Prices displayed below are based on per person,doubleoccupancy.
DATES & starting prices
PRICES
Jul 8 - Jul 13, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Jul 15 - Jul 20, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Jul 22 - Jul 27, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Jul 29 - Aug 3, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Aug 5 - Aug 10, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Aug 12 - Aug 17, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Aug 19 - Aug 24, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Filling Fast!
Aug 26 - Aug 31, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Sep 2 - Sep 7, 2024
Starting at
2,649
Jul 7 - Jul 12, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Jul 14 - Jul 19, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Jul 21 - Jul 26, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Full Inventory
Jul 28 - Aug 2, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Aug 4 - Aug 9, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Aug 11 - Aug 16, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Aug 18 - Aug 23, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Aug 25 - Aug 30, 2025
Starting at
2,899
Sep 1 - Sep 6, 2025
Starting at
2,899
DATES & starting prices
PRICES
Jul 8 - Jul 13, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Jul 15 - Jul 20, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Jul 22 - Jul 27, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Jul 29 - Aug 3, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Aug 5 - Aug 10, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Aug 12 - Aug 17, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Aug 19 - Aug 24, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Aug 26 - Aug 31, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Sep 2 - Sep 7, 2024
Starting at
3,459
Jul 7 - Jul 12, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Jul 14 - Jul 19, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Jul 21 - Jul 26, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Full Inventory
Jul 28 - Aug 2, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Aug 4 - Aug 9, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Aug 11 - Aug 16, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Aug 18 - Aug 23, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Filling Fast!
Aug 25 - Aug 30, 2025
Starting at
3,699
Filling Fast!
Sep 1 - Sep 6, 2025
Starting at
3,699
6 days
5 nights
13 meals
5B 4L 4D
View Full Itinerary

At a Glance

From our lodging inside Glacier National Park, explore different areas of the park daily and return to relax on cool summer evenings on spectacular Lake McDonald. Experience the grandeur of Glacier National Park — so named because its dramatic landscape was carved by glaciers eons ago. Encounter the wonder and splendor within this “Crown of the Continent” during daily field trips to the Lake McDonald Valley, Logan Pass and along the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Field trips are enhanced by instructors, naturalists and other experts detailing the variety of life, mammoth lakes and serrated peaks in one of nature’s greatest works of art.
Activity Level
Outdoor: No Sweat
Hiking two miles daily over varied terrain. Possible optional hikes up to five miles some days. Some stairs; getting in/out of vans, bus, and water raft. Elevations of 3,153-7,200 feet.

What You'll Learn

  • Travel the historic Going-to-the-Sun Road for spectacular views of rugged peaks, vast valleys and idyllic waterfalls.
  • Float down the scenic Middle Fork of the Flathead River.
  • Touch the Continental Divide.

General Notes

Participants split into smaller groups of about 10 for daily field trips and hikes.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Profile Image
Candi Naylor
Candi Naylor is a retired elementary school teacher with 36 years of experience. Being a Montana native from Townsend, she loves to ski, hike, fish, garden, kayak, and take her two dogs, Ginger and Hoss, for walks. She spends most of her time outside no matter what season, and she especially loves Glacier National Park. She and her husband, Craig, have built a home on 10 acres – a remnant of her great grandparents’ homestead. She and Craig have recently returned from nine years in Fredericksburg, Va., where she taught elementary school and her husband was a college music professor. Both are very happy to be back in Montana!

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Profile Image of Candi Naylor
Candi Naylor View biography
Candi Naylor is a retired elementary school teacher with 36 years of experience. Being a Montana native from Townsend, she loves to ski, hike, fish, garden, kayak, and take her two dogs, Ginger and Hoss, for walks. She spends most of her time outside no matter what season, and she especially loves Glacier National Park. She and her husband, Craig, have built a home on 10 acres – a remnant of her great grandparents’ homestead. She and Craig have recently returned from nine years in Fredericksburg, Va., where she taught elementary school and her husband was a college music professor. Both are very happy to be back in Montana!
Profile Image of Ellen Horowitz
Ellen Horowitz View biography
Ellen Horowitz is a naturalist, writer, hiking leader, and Certified Nature & Forest Therapy Guide whose outdoor education career spans 40 years. Ellen teaches botany classes at Flathead Valley Community College, and she is a long-time field instructor for the Glacier Institute and Road Scholar. Her work has been recognized with numerous honors including Montana Audubon’s Educator of the Year Award, and magazine writing awards from the National Wildlife Federation. She is the author of the award-winning children’s book, “What I Saw in Glacier.”
Profile Image of Ashley Mason
Ashley Mason View biography
Ashley started her career at the North Carolina School of the Art but transferred to Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina to receive her B.S. in Geology with a minor in field biology. Ashley then came to Montana to teach for the Glacier Institute and then completed graduate work at The University of Montana – Missoula in Environmental Studies. A veteran naturalist and conservation educator Ashley is a former Ranger Naturalist for Glacier National Park. In 2012 she was voted Audubon Educator of the year.
Profile Image of Leila Robinson
Leila Robinson View biography
Throughout her lifetime, Leila Robinson has developed a great love of the outdoors and especially exploring it in hiking mode. Her love of travel and nature has taken her to every continent, and she is thrilled to see and experience each journey. She has been a high school and college educator in art and interdisciplinary studies and also a museum program developer for 13 years. Being able to live in Glacier for the past nine summers has given her a true appreciation of this incredible and favorite national park.
Profile Image of Dave Streeter
Dave Streeter View biography
Dave Streeter spent seven years traveling the world designing computer systems. Then he had a flat tire in Great Falls, Mont. Some 30 years later, he is still teaching at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell and exploring Montana’s wilds at every opportunity. He has been a favorite Road Scholar instructor for 25 years, imparting his knowledge of bears, mountain goats, wolves, weather, flowers, glaciation, winter ecology, backcountry skiing and healthy hiking. Dave also performs with the “Grin & Bear it String Clan.”
Profile Image of Marilyn Wood
Marilyn Wood View biography
Marilyn is a conservation biologist who has had the opportunity to work (and play!) in two iconic landscapes – the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and the Continental Divide Ecosystem. One of her favorite memories is following radioed collared grizzlies in Yellowstone in the late 1970s but balancing private land with sustaining wildlife populations is the most rewarding. Marilyn was the northwest program manager of the Montana Nature Conservancy for thirteen years. In her free time, you’ll find her hiking or horseback riding the dynamic landscapes.
Profile Image of Al Koss
Al Koss has lived and worked in the Glacier Park area for over 30 years. His love for the out-of-doors and passion for hiking was well represented in his career with the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service. Al taught environmental education and is a Master Trainer for the Leave No Trace Program. His experience as a Park Naturalist has given him extensive experience and knowledge of the flora and fauna of the park. He enjoys sharing his passion for natural areas with others.
Profile Image of Elise Van Valkenburg
Elise Van Valkenburg View biography
Elise grew up in Spokane, Washington and enjoyed camping and fishing with her family. It was not until college that Elise fell in love with the Rocky Mountains and began hiking and backpacking with her husband and their goldendoodles. She is currently a middle school science teacher in Bigfork, Montana and recently earned an MS in science education. When she is not teaching, you will find her exploring the trails of Glacier National Park, the Flathead National Forest and the Bob Marshall Wilderness!
Profile Image of Lisa Flowers
Lisa Flowers View biography
Lisa Flowers received her Ph.D. in Forestry & Conservation from the University of Montana while working as the Director of Conservation Education for the Boone and Crockett Club on the Rocky Mountain Front. Her work has focused on K-12 science, conservation, and wildlife education, primarily in the outdoors. She has coordinated regional and collaborative entities including Crown of the Continent Ecosystem Education Consortium, Roundtable of Crown of the Continent, and Front Range Conservation Education Consortium. When not working, Lisa can be found enjoying the outdoors.
Profile Image of Susan Atkinson
Susan Atkinson View biography
Susan Atkinson is an award-winning architect and professor of environmental design at the University of Colorado Boulder. She has traveled the world researching how people design and build in response to culture and climate. Susan grew up in the Flathead Valley, learning about wildflowers, and spotting grizzlies in Glacier National Park every summer since 1980. She is an avid trail runner who loves fly fishing, spending time with her rescue dog, Clover, and reading about wolverines. She has backpacked around the world.
Profile Image of Lynda Saul
Lynda Saul View biography
Lynda Saul recently retired from a 30-year career protecting Montana wetlands and rivers. During graduate school in forest hydrology, she lived on a llama ranch taking care of 50 llamas, resulting in leading llama pack trips in Yellowstone National Park. She loves exploring Montana’s wild places and sharing her enthusiasm for the wild, magical beauty of nature. She recently moved to the Flathead valley and is now a citizen scientist monitoring water quality, recording bird observations, and learning about her new habitat.
Profile Image of Rob Quist
Rob Quist View biography
Rob Quist is an award-winning American singer, songwriter, and published poet. He has toured nationally and internationally for more than five decades. As a Boy Scout, he participated in countless hikes and campouts in Glacier Park that included trail work and campground maintenance. His love of Montana's wild lands is reflected in his original poems and songs, including a song and video written and performed with Jack Gladstone titled “America...Pass It On” that won a finalist award at the National Geographic Wildlife Film Festival.
Profile Image of Richard Moore
Richard Moore View biography
Rick Moore is a forester with a distinct interest in forest ecology, wild and prescribed fire effects, and plant identification. He has much experience in the Rocky Mountain West, having lived and practiced forestry in five different states. He has also hiked in many of the national parks and Forest Service wilderness areas, preferring those located in the higher elevations. Rick has degrees in forestry and outdoor recreation. His interests include hiking, rafting, fishing, exploring, and photography.
Profile Image of Lori Ortley
Lori Ortley View biography
Lori Ortley, an enthusiast of Glacier National Park, was raised in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where she graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a B.S. in biology and a minor in earth science, certified to teach 7th through 12th grades. She spent nearly two decades teaching courses in the Kalispell area. Her students participated in Glacier National Park’s Citizens Science program. After retiring from teaching in 2019, Lori enjoys hiking with participants in the International Peace Park in both Montana and Canada.
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.





Recommended For You

loading spinner