Canadian Rockies – Banff/Lake Louise

Canada

Canadian Rockies – Banff/Lake Louise

As you can probably tell from the website, we’ve been to a lot of spectacular places. Mile for mile this may be the absolute best. Once in your life (if not more) you should visit here. Enjoy unparalleled scenery of towering mountains and turquoise lakes, hike along gorges, and revel in nature.

There is a fair amount of walking on this trip, but this can be done/modified at every activity level.

Length: 8 days

Transportation: This is a car based trip – you will need a car rental. No driving days are too intense and the scenery makes the miles fly by.

Best Guide Book: A Week or Two in the Canadian Rockies by Darren Critchley

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Day 8

  • Drive to Calgary (1h30 drive)
  • Fly home

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1

Depending on what time you arrive may change what you are able to do today. The easiest place to fly into is Calgary.

From the Calgary airport it is an easy 1.5 hour drive to the beautiful mountain town of Banff. Banff was put on the map when the Canadian Railroad started taking passengers to the hot springs there. The tourist traffic lead to the development of the iconic Banff Springs Hotel and really the development of Banff as a tourist destination. Today millions of people come to visit – in the summer for the gorgeous scenery, in the winter for the fantastic skiing.

Banff is a tourist town with lots of facilities for travelers. But being set in the Canadian Rockies, the views from town can be amazing. When you arrive, take some time to wander the downtown area, poking into shops. On Wednesdays in the summer and early fall there is a farmers market that takes place in the park.

As you wander, the first thing you’ll see is Cascade of Time Gardens. This is a free botanical park right across the river that you can wander.

“Downtown” Banff

Bow Falls is just a short distance from downtown and has a nice viewpoint. There are paved trails along the river to get there. Several classic Hollywood films of the 1950s depicted famous movie stars being swept over Bow Falls, including Marilyn Monroe, Robert Mitchum – even the Son of Lassie. If you have an extra day, some great whitewater rafting trips also leave from Bow Falls.

Bow Falls

Near Bow Falls the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel sits like a castle on the hill across the river from town. Even if you don’t stay here take some time to wander through the lobby, grab a drink or meal, or enjoy the phenomenal historic spa. From the Fairmont, head up to the very historic Cave and Basin Hot Springs Complex. This was Canada’s first national park and makes for an interesting tour. You can no longer soak here but the nearly as historic Upper Hot Springs are available for public use. From here, you can let the Banff Gondola whisk you all the way up the mountain for phenomenal views. It’s very expensive, but the views are lovely, there are nice trails (including one all the way down) and a dining at the top at Sky Bistro.

If you don’t want to go to the top, head back to town and either walk/drive over to Vermillion Lake for a chance to see wildlife or a lovely spot to watch the sunset or grab drinks at one of the many places in town. Our favorite is Sheepdog Brewing Company or Rundle Bar in the Fairmont. Other options include Banff Avenue Brewing Company, 3 Bears, or Banff’s own distillery Park.

For dinner the best restaurant in town is The Bison for Canadian farm to table dining. Another good farm to table option is Farm and Fire. Other good options are the Grizzly House (for fondue and to get your 70’s vibe on) or Bear Street Tavern for sourdough pizza. If you’re craving steak, head to Chuck’s Steakhouse. Block offers Asian inspired cuisine, Maple Leaf has Canadian cuisine, and Toolouloo’s has Cajun. If you’re staying at the Fairmont, there are plenty of dining choices there.

For lodging, you’ll have to decide if you want to stay in Banff proper for the whole trip or stay closer to Lake Louise and move around less. One option is to spend the first night in Banff (or nearby), then a few nights in Lake Louise, before moving onto Jasper and Emerald Lake. Or you could drive a bit more and not move around (barring Jasper).

A good choice for most of the trip is Storm Mountain Lodge which cuts the difference between the Lake Louise Area and Banff. If you prefer to stay in Banff the entire time, I highly recommend the historic Fairmont Banff Springs (if you can spring it). Other decent options are the centrally located Moose Hotel, Canalta Lodge, or Canoe Hotel. You could also spend most of your trip near Lake Louise. For this, we’d recommend the Post Hotel, Baker Creek Lodge, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, Cathedral Mountain Lodge.

Day 2

Today depends on when you plan on getting to Moraine Lake. You cannot access Moraine Lake anymore by car. You will require a shuttle to get there – this is new as of 2023. The shuttle leaves from near Lake Louise. This is not an easy process. In April every year at 8am MDT reservations are released for the shuttle. You need to be logged on before 8 am and click exactly at 8 if you have hope of securing a reservation. You MUST create an account before this time or you won’t be able to check out your cart. If you cannot secure a reservation (or you plan your trip after this deadline), they release more tickets at 8 am exactly 2 days before. Same process – the day we booked tickets sold out within 2 minutes. If you cannot secure this slot, you can pay more (like a lot more) to use the Moraine Lake Bus Company. This is a much easier process and they do not always sell out spots – we could have purchased same day in the height of fall color. A third option would be to do one of the wildly popular sunrise trips to Lake Moraine with a tour company. Our friends did this and said it was miserably crowded at sunrise, but it does look beautiful.

For breakfast, if you’re in Banff and not attempting to see Moraine Lake at sunrise, our absolute favorite is Wild Flour. It has phenomenal coffee and some of the best baked goods we’ve ever had. Other options include Bluebird, Evelyn’s, Good Earth, Whitebark, or Stock (in the Fairmont).

Next we recommend heading north into the heart of the Canadian Rockies. If open, drive along the Bow River Parkway – a slower but more scenic alternative to the highway to Lake Louise. It gives a much better chance to see wildlife and it is not far to your first stop – Johnston Canyon (28 minutes from Banff via Bow Valley Parkway). This is a beautiful hike to a couple of waterfalls along a canyon – with parts of the trail literally built into the canyon wall. If you’re planning to do the Larch Hike later at Moraine Lake, you may want to do this full hike another day or just hike the 1.5 miles up the canyon. But if you have time (or are an avid hiker) you can reach the Inkpots in 4 miles (pools of brightly colored green and blue water – and well worth the trek). It took us about 3 hours to complete the full hike.

Johnson Canyon

From here continue north to Moraine Lake. It’s sometimes easier to snag an afternoon slot. Park at the allotted shuttle parking and hop on a shuttle for the quick drive to the lake. While you can simply enjoy the lake from the rockpile to your right or from one of the beaches around the lake, we highly recommend the hike up to Sentinel Pass. While most stunning in fall as the larch trees turn, it’s pretty spectacular any time of the year. It’s about 7 miles round trip (you climb upwards via switchbacks). You can stop at Minnestimma Lake or push on to the pass itself. This is one of the most gorgeous hikes in Banff, so we highly recommend planning time to complete it.

Moraine Lake

If you’re staying at or near Lake Louise tonight, make your way to your lodging and check in. Great options again are Post Hotel, Baker Creek Lodge, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, or Cathedral Mountain Lodge. Even if you aren’t staying here, you may be ready for a drink or dinner. We recommend reservations at The Post Hotel, Fondue Stubli, or The Station Restaurant.

Lake Louise

Day 3

Today is a big hiking day – though you can determine how long you want it to be.

We strongly recommend getting to Lake Louise at sunrise. It’s less crowded than Moraine Lake, but incredibly beautiful. You can grab coffee or something to snack on and take with you at Trailhead Cafe which opens very early at the Fairmont. If you can get to the parking lot before sunrise, you will likely getting a parking spot. As an example, we arrived at 6:30 when sunrise was at 7:30 and had no problem. If you wait longer, you may not be able to get a spot – and then it’s problematic because you’ll need a shuttle, and as we discussed before, this had to be figured out ahead of time. In a pinch, you can use the Moraine Lake Bus Company. Or if you’re at a hotel nearby, there’s a chance they’ll offer a shuttle. This is another reason if you can swing it, staying at the Fairmont Lake Louise can be worth it.

Once the sun rises, you’ll hike. You have three options. The easiest (by far) is a simple hike along the right side of the lake. It’s flat and short, and while you won’t get high up views, you’ll have plenty of exposure to the lake itself. The second, is a hike up to Six Glaciers Tea House. This hike takes you along the lake, through alpine scenery, up to a valley of six glaciers (or what used to be six glaciers). This is a classic adventure and people have been taking this hike for nearly a hundred years. The tea house at the top is a lovely place for lunch (you must bring cash). The best (and hardest) hike is a loop. You’ll start by heading up Little Beehive, then down to Lake Agnes tea house, up Big Beehive, over to Six Glaciers Tea House, and back to Lake Louise. In total it’s about 13 miles, but the terrain is diverse, the views are unparalleled, and there are even built in bathrooms and breaks at the tea houses. It’s a really spectacular day.

Near the Teahouse
Six Glacier basin
Six Glaciers Teahouse

Once you return, you can opt for more adventure or have drinks on the terrace at the Lakeview Lounge or enjoy a high tea at the Fairmont (reservations necessary).

Lake Louise Chateau looking back from from head of Lake Louise

If you feel revitalized (or chose a shorter hike) and the gondola is open, the Lake Louise gondola and scenic walk are a lovely visit. Take the gondola up and watch for wildlife as you climb (the lower part of the mountain is a wildlife area and you can often see bears). At the top of the lift are several trails with spectacular views back over the valley to Lake Louise and the high peaks and glaciers.

View from Lake Louise Gondola walk

For dinner, we recommend Walliser Stube at the Fairmont. You must make reservations in advance. If you are dining at the fairmont, you can pull directly up and park – you will not have to figure out a shuttle.

Day 4

Today you are in for what many feel is the most beautiful mountain drive in the world. We cannot disagree. The Icefields Parkway drive is only 144 miles and the road is great. Google maps says you can make the trip in less than 3 hours – but plan for most of a day with stops. One option is to use the Gypsy App for recommended stops.

The first stop you’ll hit is the pretty little Herert Lake. Next is Waterfall Lake. Then you’ll come to the spectacularly colored Bow Lake and views of Crowfoot Glacier. From Bow Lake, you can opt to do a hike to Bow Glacier Falls (about 2-3 hours of hiking). Just a few miles after that you reach Bow summit. Be sure to park here and take the short walk to the view over Peyto Lake with it’s perfect turquoise color. You can see glacier water running into the lake and flowing out to the canyons below from this viewpoint.

Peyto Lake

Continue north stopping at Mistaya Canyon (well-worth the short hike to see the water flowing through the swoops of the canyon) and Sunwapta Falls. After Mistaya Canyon you’ll come to Parker Ridge which also has one of the prettiest hikes in Banff (again a 2-4 hour hike).

Along the Icefields Parkway
Along the Icefields Parkway looking up at the massive Columbia Icefield

At mile 82 from Lake Louise you reach the Athabasca Glacier / Icefields center. This glacier is radpidly recedeing. If you’ve never walked on a glacier before, you may want to opt for a ticket on a 6 wheel glacier “snowcoach” (special bus) with 10 foot tires that will drive you up and onto the glacier. As part of this, you climb out and walk around on the glacier. The best part of this is the view up to the enormous (125 square mile, up to 1000 foot deep) Columbia icefield which sits on top of the mountains. The Athabasca Glacier coming off of it is one of 6 “toes” of this massive ice sheet. If you’ve been on a glacier before (and want to save money) you can park for free at the base and walk up to the “toe” of the glacier. While you can’t get on the ice, you’ll still get a great view.

“Snowcoach”
Athabasca Glacier looking up at Columbia Icefield

After your icefield adventure continue north. Wilcox Pass is the next stop (and another hiking option). Athabasca falls is the next notable stop – the falls are not extremely high but there is a massive amount of water pouring through.

Finally, arrive at Jasper. The Alpine Village – a collection of cabins in a meadow near the river is a great spot, and you might get lucky (like we did) when a herd of Elk wandered through the cabins at night. Another great spot to stay is Pyramid Lake Lodge.

For dinner you can head into Jasper village and eat at The Maligne Range, Harvest Food and Drink, Terra, Aalto, or Jasper Brewing Company.

Note Jasper is a “dark sky preserve” – be sure and get out and look at the stars after dark.

Day 5

Today head out to Maligne Lake (47 minute drive) for a lovely 90 minute boat cruise. The whole cruise is very scenic but the highlight is at the end where you have a view of Spirit Island, one of the most photographed locations in Canada.

Heading back be sure and take the loop trails and four bridges across Maligne Canyon, a 150 foot deep slot canyon formed in the limestone.

If you still have energy, check out Jasper National Park. With tons of hiking options, you can choose one. You can also opt to take the Sky Tram if the weather is nice.

Tonight pick a restaurant you didn’t try the night before.

Day 6

Today you get a redo of the Icefields Parkway. It will probably go a lot faster as you will have done the stops on the way up.

Just before getting to Lake Louise you will turn right (west) on Highway 1 and enter British Columbia and Yoho National Park. Look for the turn for Takakkaw Falls, the second largest waterfall in Canada. It will take you about three hours to get here from Jasper if you drive straight through. Wind up the narrow mountain road to the parking area for the spectacular falls.

Takakkaw Falls

If you’re ready for lunch, stop at the Truffle Pig (you also may want to eat her instead of at Lake Emerald Lodge for dinner – the food is better). Head back down the road, turn right back on Highway 1, and drive to the Emerald Lake turn off. Here’s where you’ll stay. Get settled into your room then head off for a 3 mile loop around the lake. If you prefer, you can also rent canoe for a paddle. There are some additional longer hikes near Emerald Lake where you can climb upwards and get views over the lake. If you happen to be with more people you can actually do a car shuttle and hike from Takkakaw Falls to Emerald Lake (but you really do need a car shuttle for this).

Emerald Lake
Emerald Lake

Have dinner either at the Emerald lake lodge or Truffle Pig.

Day 7

Today is an easy day after the driving of the last few days. From Emerald Lake Lodge, it’s only just over an hour back to Banff. If you haven’t yet stayed at The Storm Mountain Lodge yet, this is a perfect chance to do so. Alternatively, you could also spend tonight splurging at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.

If you want another hike, the one at Sunshine Meadows ski area offers a nice gondola ride then a walk with views. Make sure the gondola is running or this hike involves a lot of uphill. Or, you could make this the day you do the Johnston Canyon (especially if you decided to do Lake Moraine at sunrise). Alternatively you may want to head back to the hot springs or spend time at the Fairmont spa.

Some other hikes you may want to consider include Healy Pass (one of the best hikes in all of Banff), Arnica Lake, Tunnel Mountain, Devil’s Thumb, and Cirque Peak. Lake O’Hara is an amazing hike but again requires a lottery for a permit (or an additional 6.8 miles of hiking).

If you like biking, you can rent bikes out of Banff and bike the Lake Minnewanka loop (20 miles) which takes you to Two Jack Lake, Lake Minnewanka and Cascade Ponds.

Have dinner at The Storm Mountain Lodge or pick a place in Banff you haven’t been to yet.

Day 8

Unfortunately, it’s time to leave the Rockies. Take the easy drive to Calgary airport and grab your flight home.

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