Inviting Finds in Idaho Falls

Idaho Falls, Idaho

Wednesday, July 19, 2023 – Thursday, July 20, 2023

Written 11/18/25

Colorado to Montana to Idaho to Utah.

Traveling from Billings Montana approx. 5 ½ hours drive. Part of a longer road trip that included: Boulder, Colorado, Billings, Montana, Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Salt Lake City/Provo, Utah

Background

Idaho Falls was planned as a short overnight stay between our drive from Billings Montana to Salt Lake City, Utah. As I was planning the drive from Montana to Utah, I saw that we’d be going through Idaho, having not visited the state yet, I wanted to stop. Idaho Falls was close to our driving path, and it’s approximately an hour from one of the entrances of Yellowstone Park. I thought that would make it a good destination stop with a touristy vibe.

When selecting the hotel for this overnight stay, I deliberated for weeks. There were a couple that advertised that they were on the Snake River close to the Greenbelt Trail. But I couldn’t decide whether to be close to the river and trail or be further away. Reading through the reviews for the hotels and the area frustrated me, there were too many varied opinions and didn’t paint a clear picture for me.  I finally decided that being near the river could be exciting.

Arrival at Dusk

As we entered Idaho Falls and drove towards the hotel, the area made me nervous, it seemed somewhat industrial and very quiet. However, as we drove a little further down the road, the area changed from industrial to recreational.

Photo 1: Lindsay Blvd, Idaho Falls - where the hotel is near

Photo 2: Snake River Greenbelt taken from the balcony at Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

Photo 3: Idaho Falls Temple taken from the balcony at Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

We pulled into the parking lot of the Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls close to sunset (around 8:30PM). Parking for the hotel was directly in front and there were plenty of spots! (Always a plus when parking is made simple.) Check-in was quick and easy.

Our assigned room was on the second floor overlooking the Snake River. In the back of the hotel. There was a balcony which provided us with a nice view, and we took tons of photos. Beautiful sunset photos over the river and walkway. As we stood on the balcony taking photos, I saw people at different points along the trail, some with their dogs, others in a group. A road seemed to wind alongside the walk, so you can drive near to the river too. From the balcony I could see the hotel’s outside patio with a large stone grill and what looked like a small bandstand. There were several tables that overlooked the river walk. I wonder if they have parties out there for their hotel guests, or if it’s a space that you rent for a party. A small footbridge connects the hotel property to the river walk.

The room itself was cozy; with several small photos in frames for décor on the wall over the two beds. An easy chair with reading lamp was in front of the balcony door. The balcony door shared the same wall with the window. A wall air conditioner was under the window.  Everything fits nicely without feeling cramped at all. We were only staying for one night, but I could already tell that I’d be content with a longer stay in the hotel.

Photo 1: window side of room at Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

Photo 2: entrance side of room at Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

Photo 3: patio taken from the balcony at Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

As part of our unwinding time from being in the car a lot of the day, my partner started to seek out places on his phone to grab something for dinner that wasn’t too far away from the hotel. When planning the trip, I left this mealtime open because I was unsure of whether we’d eat on the road or wait until we arrived.  Since we were closing in on 9:00PM, there wasn’t much time to dillydally. We chose a Subway that wasn’t too far away. In the dark, I got turned around and we took quite a detour haha. Too bad it wasn’t during the day, could have been a perfect opportunity for photos. Luckily the Subway was still taking orders when we arrived. We took our subs to go and headed back to the hotel room.

Lots to See/What to Do

The next morning, we checked out of the hotel around 10:00AM and headed over to a placed called Shari’s for breakfast. It is a small local chain in Washington, Idaho and California. (As I was looking for the weblink for this post, I read that the Idaho Falls location closed in 2024. That’s surprising to me, I felt it was a hot spot to be near to the hotels. Maybe the summer months couldn’t sustain the winters.) On our visit, we were one of only maybe 2 other parties. (At the time I didn’t consider this unusual, because it was a weekday, but in retrospect, where were the summer tourists?) Our server wasn’t rushed, the booths were comfortable, and it was a casual experience. The restaurant reminded me of a Perkins; maybe it was because they sold baked goods at the counter. I would have liked to have bought a pie, but it didn’t seem practical. Plus, would a hotel fridge fit a pie tin?

Photo 1:Shari's Restaurant

Photo 2: plaque description of Idaho Falls Temple

Photo 3: stone seating area at Snake River Greenbelt

After breakfast we drove back to the hotel to park the car and walk some of the Greenbelt Trail. It was more crowded than it was the night before. More families with young children, large multigenerational families too. Mostly spending time near the ducks and over by the falls area.  There were other hotels along the riverwalk that also had entrances to the walking path, so lots of activity going on around us. We also walked past a few small parking areas where people could stop in and walk around.

Every couple of yards there were either benches, swings or placed rocks that overlooked the water or were in the shaded areas nearby. About halfway through my walk, I sat down on one of the tree swings that was empty to catch my breath and look at the water. We were lucky, it was a very sunny day, not too hot. My partner sat down next time me, and we discussed how to spend the rest of our time. He wanted to walk to the Japanese Friendship Garden which was on the way to the Museum of Idaho. I was concerned about leaving the rental car at the hotel too long because we had already checked out. So, I decided to walk back to get the car, and I’d meet him at the museum. The timing would probably work out well. I told him to take lots of photos!

Photo 1: river side view of Hilton Garden Inn Idaho Falls

Photo 2: bench overlooking Snake River Greenbelt

Photo 3: water falls at Snake River Greenbelt

As we soon discovered, the city area was under some road construction. While driving through it wasn’t too much of a hardship, it created a challenge to walk to the museum. My partner could not walk over to the museum as easily as he thought, plus we also realized that we were discussing two different museums! There were two nearby with similar names, he was walking towards a different one. So, some of our afternoon was spent trying to find each other so I could pick him up and take him to the museum with me. It was a frustrating 30-40 minutes. Between the road closures and not knowing the area very well, it was hard to find him. I finally gave up driving around and parked at the library. He was able to find me that way.

The bright side of driving around so much was that I was able to see parts of the city that I might not have seen otherwise. The road work was super extensive on popular streets, but still the roads weren’t congested. People were walking on the sidewalks, drivers were entering and leaving store parking lots, it for sure was an active place, but still relatively quiet.

Photo 1: street view of Idaho Falls taken from Museum of Idaho

Photo 2: part of an exhibit in Museum of Idaho

Photo 3: entrance to the Museum of Idaho

Once my partner and I reunited, he told me that he saw parking near the Garden, so he only briefly stopped so that he could meet up with me on time. He wanted us to go back before we left Idaho.

Back at the museum, due to the delay of our arrival, we were only able to spend about 40 minutes inside. It was enough to just get the taste of the exhibits, but I think dedicating 3 hours to the museum would be a good plan.  We did get through most of the rooms, but I think we skipped a couple too. We didn’t stop long in any of them. One of my memories from the museum was listening to recordings about how many appointed leaders of the newly forming Idaho area chose to quit the position prior to arrival or shortly afterwards. I think it was like 3-4 directly after each other who just refused to stay in the position. This was because the area was remote, dangerous, and far from the developed part of the country.

Our last stop of the day was the Friendship Garden. It was small, but worth the stop. As luck would have it, we were the only two people in the garden, this enhanced the experience as I was able to sit and enjoy the silence. While my partner was able to go near to the water and take photos. If others were around, the experience would have been much different. We didn’t stay long, maybe 20 minutes, but it was a nice break on an otherwise busy day.  Of note, the garden area has shaded seating but minimal.

Photo 1: long view of the Japanese Friendship Garden

Photo 2: entrance to the Japanese Friendship Garden

Photo 3: waterfalls from Japanese Friendship Garden

Things I learned from planning this trip: There wasn’t a lot of information about the Greenbelt Trail, Snake River or the hotels nearby when I was researching the area. A more dedicated website or even a more descriptive page on the government website would have made my decision easier.

Things I learned from attending this trip: Idaho Falls is a great home-base if you want to visit Yellowstone Park for the day but also have the comforts of a hotel and fast food.

Things I keep in mind when organizing a trip for myself: Go back for more. I’m not much of a park and recreation type of person, but I would go back to Idaho Falls. I want to stay for several days or a week though, travel to Yellowstone, and see some of the other areas around the city. I’d stay at the same hotel again; the view was worth it.   

Some information, such as baseball game information and directions were sought by using ChatGPT or Perplexity. Blog title brainstorming too!

🍂Happy Thanksgiving!!! 🍂

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