Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies

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Banff National Park is one of the two largest and most popular parks in the Canadian Rockies: Banff in the south and Jasper in the north, both located in the province of Alberta.

Banff National Park includes the scenic and touristy town of Banff, which offers a wealth of attractions and activities, as well as the spectacular lakes Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. It borders other successful parks already belonging to the province of British Columbia: Kootenay and Yoho.

The nearest international airport to the park is located in the city of Calgary, which is about 130 km east of the town of Banff (about a 1.5-hour drive).

Recommended hotels in Banff:

Fairmont Banff Springs
The highest quality and most famous hotel in the area: a historic building designed inspired by a Scottish castle and declared a National Historic Site. It is located in Banff National Park and offers 11 restaurants and 14 shops. The resort features two swimming pools (one of them indoor), a quality spa, tennis courts, bowling, golf, and other sports and recreation facilities. Spacious rooms with European design.

Delta Banff Royal Canadian Lodge
A four-star hotel in the town of Banff in the heart of the national park. The hotel has an indoor pool, fitness room, spa, and restaurant. Free internet in all rooms.
Rimrock Resort Hotel
A four-star resort in a convenient location 6 minutes from the center of Banff town, with an indoor pool, fitness room, spa, and restaurant.

Holiday Lodge Cabins
Attractively priced vacation cabins in the center of Banff town. Each cabin has a private entrance, equipped kitchen, dining area, and free internet.

You can also stay in the town of Canmore, located east of the park (about a quarter hour east of the town of Banff).

Recommended hotels in Canmore:

Falcon Crest Lodge
A successful 3-star suite hotel offering guest rooms with a kitchenette, washing and drying machine, and fireplace. Each room has a balcony or small garden. The hotel has two outdoor hot tubs overlooking the surrounding mountain scenery.

A Bear and Bison Country Inn
A quality guesthouse with 10 luxurious rooms including a double jacuzzi, fireplace, and rich breakfast. Free internet. The guesthouse has a lovely balcony with garden furniture facing the mountain scenery. Free internet in all rooms.

Spring Creek Vacations - Rundle Cliffs Lodge
A four-star suite hotel in the center of Canmore town. Each suite has an equipped kitchen and a balcony overlooking the mountain scenery. Free internet. The hotel has a large outdoor hot tub overlooking panoramic views and a billiard room.

CANADIAN ROCKY'S CHALET An apartment hotel featuring two- or three-bedroom apartments. Each apartment has a living room (where two additional people can sleep), attached toilet and bath (the larger apartments have two bathrooms), and a neat, equipped kitchen. Each apartment is suitable for 6-8 guests.

BARGNASCHT A B&B with a panoramic view of the "Three Sisters" mountains featuring two room types: "The Blue Room": a double room with a private bathroom and seating area (suitable for two people) and "The Green Room" featuring a double bed, living room with two single beds, private bathroom, and separate entrance (suitable for four people). Includes a gourmet Canadian-Swiss breakfast.

Bear & Bison Bed & Breakfast Ten designed rooms each featuring a luxurious double bed, fireplace, jetted tub, private balcony, and stunning views of the mountains surrounding Canmore. The B&B is located near Banff National Park, Lake Louise, the Columbia Icefield, and many other attractions. A stay at the B&B includes breakfast.

♦ Recommended guided tours from Banff to book from Viator:

Getting to the park:

From Canmore, you drive a few minutes and arrive at the park toll booth. The entrance fee to all the parks in the Rockies is about $10 per person per day or $20 per vehicle with 2-7 passengers. There is also an annual pass price (at the price of a week). Depending on the length of stay and number of people, you should decide whether it is worth getting an annual pass or buying a ticket for a certain number of days.

It is recommended to start the trip in the parks at the Banff Visitor Center. There you will receive recommendations on selected hiking trails in each park and be equipped with maps of the various parks.

Wildlife in the Canadian Rockies:

The Cable Car in Banff – Banff Gondola

A successful attraction to start your trip in Banff with is riding the Banff cable car: Banff Gondola. From the mountain, there is a very beautiful view of Banff and its surroundings.

♦ Booking tickets for the Banff cable car from Viator: Banff Gondola Ride Admission

At the peak, there is also a short trail leading to a nearby peak from which you can see the scenery from other directions. Try to time your cable car ride for a day when visibility is good and it is not raining.

Not far from the lower cable car station is the luxurious Fairmont Banff Spring Hotel.

♦ Booking a tour of the hotel including a food tour (to book from Viator): Banff Food Tour: Eat the Castle

It is worth touring the lobby and the floor above, and afterwards walking from there towards the waterfalls of the BOW River adjacent to the hotel. Next to the hotel there is also a horse corral called Trail Rides for riding in the forest, along the river, and to the waterfalls. On the paths leading to the waterfall, you can see many cute squirrels.

Vermilion Lakes

Near Banff, on the way to Lake Louise, you can tour the Vermilion Lakes located along the highway. At the first and second lake, there are viewpoints of the lakes from a short floating pier penetrating into each lake. The place is also suitable for bike rides.

Lake Minnewanka

Lake Minnewanka is located a few km north of Banff. In the park, there is a 13 km scenic loop driving route for cars that reaches the lake. Near the lake, it is worth stopping for a view of it, and for those interested, there are also rowboats for rent. There is also a 1.5 km walking trail in each direction. Continuing the car drive, you get on a road that is actually a dam for the lake. Further down the road, you reach a viewpoint of a lake adjacent to Lake Minnewanka called Two Jack Lake.

Johnston Canyon

♦ Booking a recommended electric bike tour in Johnston Canyon (from Viator):

eBike and Hike Banff to Johnston Canyon small group guided program

On the way from Banff towards Lake Louise, after 25 km on Highway No. 1, there is a turnoff to a side road that passes through the forests parallel to Highway 1 and leads to Johnston Canyon. There is a 2.4 km walking trail along the rushing river, featuring two large waterfalls and several small ones. Further along, there is another 3 km trail in each direction. The first trail is of easy difficulty without difficult ascents.

Additional attractions in Banff that are especially suitable for overcast and rainy weather are the Cave and Basin, an ancient cave and bathhouse where a fascinating tour is conducted, and the Banff Upper Hot Springs.