Banff, Jasper, L. Louise -- how far are they?

[snoopy_leogirl]

How far is Banff, Jasper, and Lake Louise from Vancouver B.C? I was told that the Canadian Rockies are a 'not to be missed' place.

[Urban trekker]

Lake Louise and Banff are about 50km apart while Jasper is some 200 kms to the north.

 

If you are driving from Vancouver it is a very long day - say 12 - 14 hours with only minimal time for stops etc plus you lose one time zone as you head east - with all the scenery along the way you will want to take two days to reach Banff - think about stopping over at either Salmon Arm or Revelstoke the first night - depending on the time of the year you will want to do the scenic Rogers and Kicking Horse Passes in daylight.

 

Jasper is accessible either by turning off at Lake Louise and heading up the Icefields highway - one of the most scenic mountain drives in the world - while the distance isn't great the speed limit is around 60 km and with all the stops for the views and possible wildlife sightings you will spend the better part of the full day during the trip.

You can also go directly to Jasper from Vancouver via Kamloops, Valemount and Mount Robson - this can also be done in a very long day but is not recommended - if doing in two days think of stopping in Clearwater and do a side trip into Wells Grey Park.

 

If you are thinking of doing a loop from Vancouver I would head for Jasper first, then down the Icefield highway into Lake Louise and on to Banff - after seeing Banff drive to Radium Hot Springs, then north to Golden and west to Revelstoke, Salmon Arm and back to Vancouver.

 

The Rockies are a must see and despite the large crowds in Banff the area has kept it beauty.

 

Hope this helps

 

Dennis

[snoopy_leogirl]

Thank you so much for the advice. It really helped!

[Host Caroline]

If you are doing the Rockies "independently" book early esp. if you want to stay in Banff proper and Lake Louise. Tour companies book many of the first-class hotels way way in advance.

 

I don't know what drop off fee would be but if you don't want to "do the loop" but do want to end up in (or start in Vancouver) you can always do the Vancouver-Jasper "leg" either way by train and then just use a car in the Jasper/Lake Louise/Banff area and leave at Calgary Airport. You didn't say if you were doing this in conjunction with a cruise...??

[RickT]

After our Alaska cruise we spent a week travelling from Vancouver to Banff and flew home out of Calgary (about 90 minutes from Banff). It was a great trip and we made it better by spending a couple days getting from Vancouver to banff. If you're going to do this you would need a few days. Places to consider stopping are Whistler and Kelowna. As far as car rentals go we managed to get a pretty good deal ($300 cdn for the week with no drop charge).

 

Hope you get to visit the Canadian Rockies, they are great!

[chrob]

We have booked on the Coral Princess 13th August 2005 going from Whittier to Vancouver but are planning to leave England around the 23rd/24th July. We will fly to Vancouver and then want to hire a car to drive to Jasper, Banff and Lake Louise and finally ending up at Calgary to fly to Fairbanks about a week before we board the ship on the 13th.

 

Any help or info on this itininary would be great.

 

e.g How long should we allow for the drive through the Rockies?

 

Any 'not to be missed' places or sites?

 

Good hotels?

 

How soon should I be looking to book car hire/hotels/flights excursions?

 

What is the weather likely to be in late July/early August?

 

Thanks

[EPD]

Hi chrob,

 

I am happy to hear that you are taking the time to see more of our beautiful country. For a wonderful hotel (its probably one of the most expensive but it is also the nicest chain) http://www.fairmont.com/ then go to the Resort and Hotel drop down menu and search both Banff and Lake Louise. Another nice hotel in Banff is the Rimrock, http://www.rimrockresort.com/

 

In Calgary there are tons of wonderful hotels. I recommend for the easiest driving experience to book one of the hotels out towards the airport or the 4 Points Sheraton which is located very close to the western edge of the city, right at the base of Canada Olympic Park.

 

Do you golf? If you do I can recommend some wonderful golf courses that are not to be missed.

 

Our weather in late July early August is usually at its best. Now I can not guarentee what our weather will be because in this area of Canada we have been known to get snow in July, nothing that stays around but it can be chilly. This is a rare occurance but something I should warn you about all the same, however last week we were 26-29 celcus and going down to mid teens during the night.

 

If you search the internet you can find all kinds of wonderful information about our area. As far as when to book, I have no great advice about that. I think you can still find rooms today for tomorow at both of the Fairmont hotels mind you this is mid-week, maby Budget Queen will have some advice about when to book.

 

Feel free to ask me additional questions. Or email me at epd1@hotmail.com just put in the RE: Line that you are Chrob from Cruise Critic so that I know to respond. Cheers and best luck with planning your holiday.

[jimcat]

From a tourist angle.. Canmore is a postcard area.. which is just south of Banff about 12 minutes . We stayed at the Douglas Fir in Banff. when we were there for a wedding that was held at the "castle" Farimont Springs hotel in banff.. that is pricey..

Take the old highway up to Lake Louise then on to Jaspar.. if you are r/v'rs they have rent canada rvs.. and then a lot of nice places to hook up to and enjoy.

 

we will return to that area one day.. I have taken tons of photos from there.. on the way from Banff to Lake Louise on the old highway is a nice restaurant cabin motel area that we had a wonderful breakfast at. There is a 2 mile walk to a neat waterfall area as well. You really can not miss it on the way to Lake Louise .. it will be on your right hand side as you head out. The name escapes me at this time.

 

Hope that helps some what

[Urban trekker]

Jimcat - the name of the waterfall area is johnston canyon - there is a small restaraunt and resort with cabins there and some more at the Castle Junction a short distance away - the Highway is Highway 1A or the Bow Valley Parkway - a slower 60 KMH road stretching from just outside Banff to Lake Louise - a further small section from Lake Louise to the Continental Divide is closed to cars but opened to walkers and cyclists -

 

I was there on Saturday - just finished a week long hiking trip in the area and ended up at the Canyon area after 7.5 hours and 18kms of hiking and the area is one of the top three congested area in the Banff/Lake Louise area.

 

The first waterfall is about a 1/2 mile from the resort and the upper fall about 1.5 miles.

 

Hope this helps and enjoy.

 

Dennis

[jimcat]

Jimcat - the name of the waterfall area is johnston canyon - there is a small restaraunt and resort with cabins there and some more at the Castle Junction a short distance away - the Highway is Highway 1A or the Bow Valley Parkway - a slower 60 KMH road stretching from just outside Banff to Lake Louise - a further small section from Lake Louise to the Continental Divide is closed to cars but opened to walkers and cyclists -

 

 

Dennis

Yep that was it.. Neat restaurant.. good food for breakfast etc.. the bow valley parkway.. I know our folks from England will want to know why we call it a parkway when we drive on it and why do we call it a drive way when we park on it.. anyhow.. that drive gives you a good chance to see wildlife.. and they do close that at a certain time of the year if I recall.

 

Thanks again

[Wolfpup]

We were at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise last week, and I would probably never stay there again. The weather was very hot - in the 90's and the rooms do not have A/C. Even though the room had a ceiling fan, it was so noisy, we couldn't sleep. The lake and glacier setting is beautiful and the boat rental on the lake is great. We spent the second night at the Rimrock, and I would return in a heartbeat. The setting was beyond words as our room looked over the Alpine meadow, which is subtly lighted at night, with spectacular views of the mountains. The Rimrock has great restaurants in varying price ranges. It also has a complimentary shuttle to Banff, which is a wonderful walking town full of restaurants and shopping.

 

Darcy

[Tania]

On the drive from Vancouver, a logical stop is Kelowna, especially if you are fans of good wine. The whites are made in a German style and are good, even if the vines are still young. Several wineries, including Mission Hill, Quail' gate and our favoritew, Grey Monk, have restaurants overlooking vines sloping down to Lake Okanagan. Very reasonably priced for lunch with superb service, breathtaking views.

 

Before Banff National Park, you drive through Yoho National Park which has two outstanding attractions: Takkakkaw Falls and Emerald Lake (nice outdoor café). Both are worth a stop.

 

On Bow Lake parkway, we saw elk, black bear, and deer at the end of the day. Lake Louise is crowded (parking horrendous but has a nice outdoor café): we preferred Emerald Lake.

 

You might want to consider going up the Icefields Parkway for Peyto lake, the Columbia Icefields, and Athabska Falls to Jasper. An easy drive to Edmonton brings you to the mall with its ice rink, wave pool and amusement park, etc. along with the Fantasyland hotel with its specially decorated rooms. Edmonton has an international airport.

[chrob]

Thanks everyone for your replies.

 

EPD.........I might take you up on the offer of help in the next few months when I start to plan the trip in detail. You might regret giving me your e-mail address!!

 

Thanks again and any other info or ideas are very welcome.

 

Chrob

[barbarat]

Hi,

I have done the Calgagry/Vancouver trip twice now, staying in what I thought was reasonable & central accomodation.

In Banff "most" of the hotels are on BanffAveue, this year we stayed at Caribou Lodge, which was nice, but almost at the end of the Avenue - about a 15 minute brisk walk to the town, although there was a free shuttle into & from town. We enjoyed eating at Mellissa - not upmarket but good food at a very reasonable price (especially with the £ $C exchange rate)

In Lake Louise we stayed atThe Lake Louise Inn - this is at the township not at Chateau LL. The hotel was good, & we had a lovely room with kitchenette. The pool was small & got very crowded. We ate at the Youth Hostel (it has a green roof) which was very very good.

In Jasper there are a number of quite similar hotels/motels in the town, I prefered Ptermigan Lodge - again about a 10 - 15 minute walk to town. We ate at Earls - a very good Canadian chain of eateries, with great food & cocktails.

This year we stopped/stayed at Sun Peaks a new ski resort about 30 - 40 miles outside Kamloops. I really enjoyed it there - quite different from the more touristy places in the Rockies. It was set out below the ski hills around a "village" square.

Just my thoughts/opinions, I can look up more details from my jounals if you want,

Barbara

[csk]

just in the early stages of planning a visit to the Canadian Rockies, first on a cruise that ends in Vancouver, what is the number of days we would need to take our time and enjoy the sites, we will be flying back from Calvary, BC, I was thinking four nights, would be interested in anyones input, thanks

[cruiseryyc]

Hey CSK - I think you are most likely flying back from Calgary, Alberta. If you're wanting to really see the mountains and Calgary, four nights would be the minimum.

[csk]

Thanks for your help, you are right, thanks

[csk]

It looks like Glacier National Park is west of Yoho , is it worth the trip? Thanks

[Urban trekker]

If you are driving to Banff via Highway #1 you will go over the Rogers Pass and this takes you through Glacier National Park - unless you are planning to go into the back country there is lots to see from the Highway - there are a number of nature stops along the way.

 

You will also drive through Mt Revelstoke Park when you leave the town by the same name - the real beauty of this park is in the Alpine which you can drive up to - if around late July- Early August the flowers can be spectacular.

 

If you only have four days to see everything i would suggest that you forego Jasper - a full day trip from Banff/Lake Louise area - refer to my earlier post on some route suggestions.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Happy ks]

Round trip from Vancouver to Banff is around 1200-1300 miles, plus you have a lot of driving to do once you get there. We did this once, from Northern Washington state and pretty much spent a week in the car. It is undoubtably one of the most beautiful drives we have ever taken. However, we have sworn if we do it again, we would fly to Calgary and rent a car from there. Since it took 2 days to get there and we knew it was going to be 2 days to drive back, we only had 3 days in the area. I had the most awesome views on the drive from Lake Louise to Jasper, my husband only remembers the back side of all the RVs, we had very little time to stop and enjoy.

 

I guess that is why we cruise, so no one has to drive!

[Urban trekker]

Reading back over some of the posts it appears that people will only be driving one way - from Vancouver to Banff/Calgary - while you can drive it in one day - 12- 14 hours - take two days - stop at either Salmon Arm or Revelstoke and then hit the Yoho Valley and Lake Louise and Moraine Lake - take the slower Bow Valley Parkway into Banff - if staying in Banff book your hotel well in advance - for slightly cheaper accomodation - consider Canmore - a few Kms from the east gate of Banff Park and an interesting town in itself.

 

Hope this helps

 

Dennis

[Seestor]

For those who don't wish to drive, there is travel by train. Check the Rocky Mountaineer.

 

http://www.rockymountaineer.com/

 

Either way, the route from Vancouver - Banff is not to be missed!