We did the Yellowstone trip in September of 2022.  My wife made all the arrangements and I didn't ask any questions.  I still don't know what the trip cost!  We stayed the first night in Scottsbluff, NE and then made the rest of the trip the next day.  We stayed at the Canyon Lodge for three nights and then spent a 4th night at Old Faithful Lodge.  I do know that those were not inexpensive places to stay but I would not do it any other way.  The alternative is staying outside the park, which means lots of extra drive time each day and dealing with traffic.  We were able to get up and be on our way each day.  The accommodations were very nice and clean, especially in the Canyon Lodge.  Everything we did was self guided but we purchased an app for our phones that used GPS and narrated everything and gave recommendations where to stop and spend time.  It was well worth it.  We spent a 5th night at Jackson Lodge in Grand Teton National Park.  Older place but also clean and well kept with an excellent restaurant/bar.

We did drive to West Yellowstone, Montana for supper one evening.  Its a small tourist trap town but we found some good pizza. It was our eye opener for why people recommend staying in the park. When we left a traffic jam was forming because people spotted a bear.........and when we returned two hours later there was still a traffic jam........and we did see two black bears that time.