Being a holiday the best time to arrive on Memorial Day weekend is Tuesday afternoon when all the weekenders have gone home
Hey now, monday evening may be nice too.
But seriously, the lulls can be weird. Super early saturday for sure or well into the evening and lose a day. This is doubly true for the parking lot.
I am pretty much doing that, I'm staying in the park Mon-Fri. And not looking forward to getting into the park that Monday.
6:30-7am at the gate
I would get there early, before 7:30am
Ideally before 7 am.
Wednesday! It will be crowded all weekend starting Thursday.
Go as early as you can. I would aim to be at the gates around 5AM.
Wed or Thurs
Thursday
Thursday before 12noon get a good parking space and then never move your car until your radio leave
Remember if you leave on Monday, there will be a lot of traffic leaving the park.
I would say around 9a or after 3p.
4am
I would say before 6-7am. Is the only guaranteed time to get a parking spot in the area you want. The place is bananas especially on holiday weekends.
I stayed at the Wawona for 6 days Sat-Fri over Memorial Day last year and when we arrived around 4pm Saturday there was no traffic entering the park. We did not go into the valley at that time, however.
Like the goodbad1 said, Tuesday afternoon should be perfect. BTW don't hate you, just feel sorry for you.
Being a holiday the best time to arrive on Memorial Day weekend is Tuesday afternoon when all the weekenders have gone home