Summer Bucket List Trip to Banff Alberta

My family recently took a summer bucket list trip to Banff National Park and surrounding areas.  The pictures and videos you see of this are so beautiful and don’t even do it justice.  Several people have reached out wanting to know our itinerary, so I will share that with you here.  Of course, I will share any money-saving or miles/points hacks here with you in another post. 

Since we left Tampa at 6 am and landed in Calgary at 6 pm ( 8 pm Eastern) we decided to spend our first night at the Calgary Airport Marriott. Staying at the interminal hotels has made long travel days easier for us.

In the morning we headed out to Jasper, a 4-hour drive with minimal stops. There are many wonderful spots to stop along the way. However, there are not a lot of places to stop along the way to grab a bite to eat. We did happen across a farmers market outside of Calgary and had the best cinnamon buns from the nicest people, Russell up Some Buns.

We were thankful we had picked up some groceries on our way out of town so we could make some roadside sandwiches.  Pack your reusable shopping bags or be prepared to pay for new ones when you arrive, No shops or stores in Canada use disposable bags.  

Also, the majority of rest stops along the way are equipped with toilets but they are all pit toilets. Pack some extra toilet paper and hand sanitizer!

On the way to Jaspar, we stopped to check out Sunwapta Falls. A short walk from the parking lot allows you to take a look at this beautiful waterfall. There is a bit more hike available but we just stopped to stretch our legs and check out the waterfall. This would also be a great spot to have a picnic lunch due to the plentiful picnic tables. 

First Stop Jaspar

We stayed at the Tekerra Lodge for three nights. We booked a two-bedroom ( Astoria Cabin) cabin which includes a full kitchen, fireplace, and grill. The property has a communal fire pit with nightly smores, a restaurant, a playground, and access to a variety of walking/hiking trails. You can also reach the small town of Jasper with a scenic 15-minute walk.  We walked into town and had dinner at a local brewery the first night.  ( We visited in the Summer of 2024 the Town of Jaspar and Tekerra Lodge sustained damage due to wildfires later that summer)

The first full day in Jaspar we hiked the Maligne Canyon trail. The path is partly paved and has some steps along the way.  You can hike various distances from the first to the sixth bridge. We hiked to the fifth bridge which was around 3 miles. 

That afternoon we took a rafting ride with Jaspar Rafting Adventures. We opted for the 3 pm tour as the water and temperature were quite chilly for our Floridian blood ( high 50s- min 60s). The tour takes you down the Athabasca River and is approximately 5 miles on some Class I and II rapids.  We had a wonderful time with our boys 10 and 12. This experience accommodates children as young as 5 years old. 

While in Jaspar we took the Jaspar Sky Tram and attempted to summit there until some snow blew in and we decided to head to the restaurant for some hot drinks and lunch.  This is a nice way to get a good view. The hike to the summit was moderately difficult and still covered in snow, mid-June, in some areas.  Without trekking poles and with more snow rolling in we were not able to complete the summit. 

We did more hikes around Jaspar including a visit to Pyramid Lake. and Several small hikes that were accessible from the Tekerra Lodge. We attempted Old Fort Point which is a steep but short hike, but had to turn away once again due to the weather. 

Second Stop Lake Louise

On our way back towards Banff we stopped for a few nights in Lake Louise. We splurged and stayed at the iconic Fairmont Lake Louise. More on how I did that here.  We drove towards the resort along the Icefields Parkway.  We made several stops along the way. 

We made a short stop to visit Athabasca Falls. It was a short walk from the parking lot.  Wandering along the falls took us about 20 minutes. 

We then stopped to visit the Columbia Ice Fields. You can check out the visitor center and hike up to the glacier that is across the street. You can pay for a tour that will take you to a glass bridge overlook and a giant red ice crawler. These extra tours allow you to hike on the glacier itself. Along the hike toward the glacier, they have markers that show how much the glacier has receded over the past hundred years.  This is a good spot to stop, grab a snack or coffee, and use a real toilet. 

The next spur-of-the-moment stop was to check out Peyto Lake.  This is a short ( .6 miles) uphill walk on a paved path. It was crowded mid-day but worth it. I would budget about an hour for this stop. Lake Peyto is iconic and worth a stop. Great picture opportunity. There may be some shorter nearby hikes but we were on a mission to make it to our next hike. 

Finally, we made it to the big hike of the day Hector Lake. The trailhead for this hike starts at a very small car park with no markings. My husband downloaded the directions on the All Trails App before arriving in Canada so we would have all the directions we needed as cell service is sometimes spotty.  The hike down to the lake was about 3 miles round trip. You are meant to ford the river at one point but the river current was too strong and the water too deep so we hiked along the edge of the river. This hike was a challenging mix of lakeshore, muddy hills, and wooded trails. No facilities on this trail and very secluded. 

Eventually, we made it to the Fairmont Lake Louise. We were greeted by this room with a spectacular view. We cleaned the mud off our boots and headed to dinner in the hotel. 

The next morning we had Parks Canada shuttle reservations to visit Lake Moraine. These I booked far in advance. Check the website for when tickets are released. We got our in April for a June trip. $18 CAD for 2 adults ( kids free).  You can not take a private vehicle to this lake so you will need some sort of shuttle tickets.  The Fairmont at Lake Louise offered a similar shuttle for $35 pp. The parking lot where you board the shuttle is a very short walk from the resort.

You can take a short hike to the top of the “ Rock Pile” and take in the views or a stroll around the lake. When we visited in June the water was still too low for canoes. However, there is a little snack shop here and a place to sit outside. 

We took a hike to Consolation Lake. This took us about 2 hours round trip. This was a rocky hike with some hard paths and snow-covered spots. At the end of our hike, we were rewarded with a beautiful view of a frozen lake. 

After a short bus ride back to Lake Louise we took one of the famous red canoes out for a spin. Since our boys are not too heavy were were able to all fit in one canoe. Which is good since it was about $120 CAD for an hour. As a Fairmont guest, you get to cut the long line and get a small discount on the rental. Again, this was a bucket list activity for me and I thought it was totally worth it. The water was the most amazing shade of blue while being transparent at the same time! 

The day of check out we decided to hike the Little BeeHive. The Big Bee Hive is another hike but was still inaccessible due to snow cover. The little beehive hike will give you some fantastic views of Lake Louise from above. Along the way, you will hike past Mirror Lake, Lake Anges, and the Tea House and finally on up to the “Little Beehive”. I recommend lots of layers for this hike. At one point we were in tee shirts and at others winter hats and jackets due to the snow.  We took our time and stopped at the Lake Agnes Tea House for a snack and of course tea. 

The hike including a bit of a wait for tea, many photo stops, and a pit stop for a backpack lunch took us around 6 hours in total.  Be prepared to hike down any garbage you make visiting the tea house ( or bring your reusable cup as I did). Also, the only bathroom along with way is at the tea house. 

We learned that many resorts/hotels will let you borrow trekking poles, bear spray, and crampons if needed during your stay. 

Last Stop Canmore

After this hike, we continued to our final destination Canmore. Canmore is Banff’s neighbor city about 20 minutes away. We rented an Airbnb which gave us access to laundry and a kitchen once again.  In Canmore, we slowed down a bit and explored the town and Banff town for a change of pace. Be sure to grab a beaver tail or some poutine in town.

We visited Canada’s first National Park Cave and Basin as well as the Banff Park Museum National Historic Site. Both of these stops were included with our purchase of a yearly Parks Canada Pass. You need this Parks Pass to access the National Parks anyway so it was a nice perk.  Cave and Basin is the only home to an endangered species of snail! 

We also visited the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) Barracks. The boys enjoy military history so it was a must for them. I think you could skip this one.  We also hit up the Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum in Banff. This museum had a lot of exhibits and some nice videos with lots of interesting history. Depending on how much you enjoy reading in museums it could take you anywhere from 1-2 hours to explore here. 

We took the Norquay Chair lift while in this area. We took an early ride thinking we could hike on from this area. However, the hike was more of a steep scramble and it had started snowing that morning so it felt unsafe to attempt. We wanted to have lunch in the cafe but with no hike to occupy our morning, we headed back down the chair lift. If I had to do this over I would have picked one of the many other gondolas or chair lifts in the area.  If you are an adventure seeker or have older kids there is a ropes/ climbing course that you can do for an added charge that looks quite fun.

After a few days in Canmore, we headed back to Calgary. We popped into the Hangar Flight Museum to let my aspiring pilot check out some aviation history.  After that, we headed back to the airport hotel for a quick swim, early dinner, and nap before boarding a very late-night flight home.

 We packed a lot into 8-9 days on this trip but it was breathtaking. We loved all the hiking and sightseeing that we were able to fit in. We could see ourselves making a return trip with better equipment and when the boys were a little older to tackle some of the more difficult hikes.  Is Banff now on your summer bucket list? If so check out my other post on how points and miles made this trip possible.