This is about a trip to Banff Alberta in September. It was a week of mountains and exceptional scenery.
Best Things Nearby:
What can I say besides the mountains . . . It was my first visit to the Candian Rockies, and I have to say that any pictures I have seen do not do it justice. You can go a few hours east to Drumheller to see the Royal Tryell Museum, which is well worth the time. The dinosaurs and the information is great. A drive to Lake Louise and Jasper is a must. And the Columbia Icefields are another must do.
Best Things About the Resort:
The location, as it was close to the national park. It was also close to Canmore for groceries and dinning. The indoor pool and the outdoor hot tub were a welcoming delight after a day of hiking or driving to see the sights.
Resort Experience:
These are two-bedroom ski chalets. The interior is all pine. The downstairs had a bedroom, a bath with a Jacuzzi, a kitchen, and the living room. There was a large deck off of the living room, with patio furniture for eating. The living room had a gas fireplace. There was a large mud room for skis and outdoor clothing as you entered the unit.
In the upstairs was another bedroom with an en-suite bath. These are older units and they were being updated. They were very clean and well kept.
There were no activities, as we were there during the off season. There is no restaurant or store, but the town of Canmore is only a 10-minute drive.
- Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
- Activities: Good
- Amenities: Good
- Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
- Family Friendliness: Very Good
- Service: Good
A car is a must in the area. We flew into Calgary and the Banff Park area is about an hour away.
There is so much to see-mountains, glaciers, and the dinosaur museum.
In Lake Louise there are tea rooms that you can hike to. It was a great long hike up (or so it seemed), and then we had a rest with tea, scones, and a sandwich. Everything is made here, and hiking in or on horseback is the only way to get there.
The tram ride in Jasper (a 3-hour drive from Banff) was well worth the time. You can see for miles, and the change in the terrain is remarkable. You can see 300-year-old trees that are only a few feet tall.
On the way back from Jasper we stopped at the Comumbia Icefields. The information on the fields was very good and the Snocoach ride out will be a memory forever.
In Banff there were lots of restaurants and gift shops selling everything from t-shirts to sweaters made with Musk Ox wool.
The Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller was a day well spent. The drive east gave us sights other then the mountains. We saw plains and flatlands. In Drumheller there were badlands that had many walking paths. The museum itself had a lot of information on the dinosaurs along with a show to watch as they work on bones.
The choices for dinning in the Banff area left us with places we did not get to enjoy. The Rocky Mountain cuisine is fabulous. We had two wonderful meals with wild game, and I would go back just for the food.
The only disappointing thing on the whole trip has turned into something we now joke about. Everywhere we went there were signs to watch for wild animals. It was a year where the bears were coming closer to get food. There were signs for caribou and elk. Our joke is that the closest we every got to any wild game was on our dinner plate. We did not see anything other then birds and a few squirrels.
It was a wonderful trip!