Working for a Park Concessionaire

In the summer of 2005, I decided I wanted a break from the "real world" and headed out to Yellowstone National Park to work for the park concessionaire, Xanterra Parks & Resorts.  A concessionaire is a for-profit company that has an exclusive contract with the National Park Service to provide food, lodging, tours, entertainment, and so on to the visitors of the park.  Many of the National Park Service units have at least one concessionaire on their property (such as Eastern National, which runs many of the gift shops at other parks).  Xanterra is one of the larger companies, with several properties in Yellowstone as well as Zion National Park, Death Valley, the Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore and others.  Every season, they hire thousands of "seasonals;" workers interested in working for a particular heavy period of visitation.  In Yellowstone, the main season is summer; in other parks, it might be winter.  Xanterra also has several "permanents," who work both the summer and winter season in Yellowstone, or year-round at their headquarters in Gardiner, Montana.  Most of the seasonals are college kids on summer break, international workers who come for an experience or retirees.  Many seasonals come back year after year to work in the park.  It's relatively easy to get a job as a seasonal in Yellowstone or one of Xanterra's other properties.  Here, then, are the pros and cons of working for a park concessionaire.



Pros

• You get to spend a season living and working in one of the most beautiful places on earth.  What's more, most of the various units of the concessionaire are pretty good about giving you consistent days off every week, and letting you work early shift on your Friday and late shift on your Monday -- essentially giving you 2 full days and 2 half days every weekend to explore.
• It's easy to get a job.  Just go to the Xanterra website (www.xanterra.com) and fill out an application.  Assuming you aren't a criminal and are at least 18, chances are you'll get hired.
• There are many different types of jobs you could do.  I did Food & Beverage management.  Food & Beverage and Housekeeping tend to hire the most people, but you can also be a tour guide, a concierge, or plan employee trips.
• Speaking of employee trips, there are recreation centers and outings planned just for Xanterra employees. What's more, you get a discount on lodging, camping, stuff at the gift shops, restaurants, and so on.
• Food and lodging are easy.  Xanterra payroll-deducts a set amount each week to cover your lodging (dormitory-style, shared bedroom and bathroom) and meals.  To eat, you just show up at the right time at the Employee Dining Room and show your badge.  You can even get a sack lunch to go if you are going hiking.  There is also an employee pub.  Also, laundry is free.

Bitterroot Dorm at Old Faithful.  My window is on the second floor, second room from the right.

• You get to meet people from all over the world.  Many of the seasonals are from Asia, Eastern Europe and South America; they've come here on a working holiday to get an experience. I also met people from all over the United States.
• Many of the activities you can engage in are completely free, such as hiking and fishing (assuming you have the right gear/license/permit).

Cons

• It really doesn't pay very much.  After your room/board are taken out, you aren't left with much more than spending money.  If you don't have any bills or don't need to save up giant piles of cash, this is ok.  Probably not a good thing for someone with a mortgage at home. 
• You have to share a room with a stranger, and a bathroom with at least three other strangers.  This didn't really bother me as I have lived in college housing for several years, but there are times when privacy would have been nice.
• Some of the seasonals are "interesting," to say the least.  Some of the dorms can become quite frat-house-like in the evenings, and underage drinking/drug use happens quite frequently among the seasonals.  That's not my scene, so I list this under the cons.
• If you aren't bringing a car, you are at a major disadvantage, at least in Yellowstone.  There is no public transport in the park, and hitchhiking is unreliable.  You need a car, or a friend with a car.
• People tend to quit/get fired as the season goes along, so by the end of the season, you will probably be working a lot of hours.  This could be good for your bank account, however.  Also, if you complete the entire season, you get a money bonus.
• The work is not the most interesting thing in the world.  I worked in food service at a cafeteria, as a front of the house manager.  Most days it was fine....some days it was hell.  I was on my feet from 5:30 am until 2:30 pm every day.  
• There is very little internet/cell phone access in the park.  This bothered me a lot at first, but by the third or fourth week, I didn't really miss it.  There is a house phone in all the dorms so people can call you or you can call them using a phone card.

All in all, would I do it again?  Yeah, in a heartbeat.  I might have timed it a little differently, but it was worth it.  I got to know Yellowstone like it was my own backyard, and in a way, it will always be "my park."