Sightseeing
- National Park may just have the most beautiful scenery on earth. Brewster Transportation and Discover Banff offer tours.
- Recommended
- Rocky Mountain Raft Tours offers a nice, easy float trip that starts 5 minutes from downtown Banff.
- Recommended
- Adventures Unlimited is a local activity broker. They offer wide variety of excursions.
- Banff Gondola
- The Banff Gondola is the Easiest way to get to the top of a mountain $26 adults, $13 ages 6-15. It's a quick drive or bus ride from downtown.
- Upper Hot Springs
- Next to the Gondola, the Upper Hot Springs is a nice place to relax in natural hot spring water. Sometimes they use town water when the springs don't run and they do add chorine. Adults $7.30
- Biking
- Although many trails are closed to bikes, there are still several options. The options around Banff are well explained on the Parks Canada biking page. You can rent bikes at Snowtips - Backtrax.
- Hiking
- Parks Canada Hiking Trails is a fantastic web site for maps and information on trails. If you want something close and easy, there is a nice little trail called the Fenland Trail which is about an hour stroll starting just across the train tracks from the hospital. If you want more of a walk than a hike, it’s nice. You can also follow trails along the river if you just want something short or hike to one of the local summits. Tunnel Mountain and Sulphur Mountain are easy and straightforward though never take a mountain lightly. Making it up Rundle or Cascade Mountain is a good challenge if you are fit. You should speak to Parks Canada staff in the information centre in downtown Banff to get maps and directions for your ascent.
- Warning
- Always take the same route down a mountain as you go up unless you really know what you are doing. It is easy to end up above a cliff and not find a way down. I leaned this lesson early on Grotto Mountain in Canmore at the age of 18.
- Recommended - Backcountry Backpacking
- To see the true beauty of the mountains, backpacking is really the best way. Most of the park is inaccessible by car. Backpacking is also the most affordable way to experience the park. Visit the Parks Canada Backcountry Trip Planner to plan and book your trip. You can also go to the information centre to speak a parks worker to decide which of the many routes you wish to take. When deciding how strenuous of hike you want, be sure to pay close attention to elevation gain which is at least as important as distance. Any gear you need for your trip can be found at Mountain Magic Equipment on Bear St. For less expensive alternatives cross the street to Home Hardware.
- Golfing
- For details and courses, visit the independent golf page
- Horseback Riding
- There are a wide variety of horseback trips offered by Holiday on Horseback or if you want to bring your own horses, visit Parks Canada Horseback Riding Page.
- Fishing - Click here for the independent fishing page
- Banff National Park has some fantastic fishing opportunities. Though park regulations prohibit guided fishing in the park except on Lake Minnewanka, guides can take you just outside the park. For guided trips, Banff Fishing Unlimited has ice fishing, lake fishing and river fly fishing. Monods Sports has great fly fishing gear and offers guiding fly fishing. Lake Minnewanka Boat Tours offers guided fishing on Lake Minnewanka. more
- Whitewater Rafting / Kayaking
- Although the waters within the park are pretty tame, there are two rivers with a couple of hours that offer fantastic white water. On the Alberta side, consider the Kananaskis River and in British Colombia, the Kicking Horse River. Chinook Rafting will take you on these rivers and more. Hydra, Glacier and Alpine run the Kicking Horse. If you want to go with your own gear, visit an office and talk to a guide about current conditions.
- Rock Climbing
- If you want a guided trip, check out Yamnuska Mountain Adventures or Adventures Unlimited. If you want to go on your own, go to Mountain Magic Equipment on Bear Street to get a guidebook and any equipment you may need.
- Paddling
- Rent Canoes to do an easy paddle up a gentle part of the Bow River and when the water is high enough, Forty Mile Creek to Vermillion Lakes at the canoe docks located behind the hospital. If you have a Canoe you can Paddle Lake Minnewanka, Two Jack Lake or Johnson Lake just north of Banff. The Bow River can be a nice river trip. Banff to Canmore is a nice 3 hour trip. You can do Lake Louise to Banff if you start early as it takes all day. There are also Canoe rentals at the Chateau Lake Louise.
- Helicopter Tours
- Visit Alpine Helicopters for tours or Canadian Mountain Holidays for a stay at a backcountry lodge with heli hiking.
- Diving
- Lake Minnewanka was was dammed in 1895 and the water covered some hotels, houses and a power plant. The cold, fresh waster preservers these structures remarkably well. Visit the Parks Canada Diving Page for more info.
- Caving
- The Rat's Nest Cave near Canmore is a 4km long cave. Wild Cave Tours can guide you though it.
