Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper for three generations

Calgary to Banff and the gondola

Calgary airport to Banff, about 145 km and 1.5 hours

• Early welcome dinner
• Nuit : Banff
• Environ 1.5 h de route

Soir

At about 5:30 pm we sit down together for an early welcome dinner, where the guide explains the week.

Compris

• Pick-up at Calgary International Airport (YYC)
• Banff Gondola up Sulphur Mountain
• Welcome dinner at about 5:30 pm

Johnston Canyon and the hot springs

Banff to Johnston Canyon and back, then the Banff Upper Hot Springs

• Petit-déjeuner
• Nuit : Banff
• Environ 1 h de route

Matin

After breakfast we drive about 30 minutes up the Bow Valley to Johnston Canyon and start walking at about 8:30 am, before the car park fills. A paved path and steel catwalks fixed to the limestone walls climb gently about 1.1 km up the narrow canyon, with the creek racing below, to the Lower Falls, where a short tunnel through the rock brings you right up to the spray. Children love the catwalks; the path has railings the whole way, and the walk is about an hour there and back at an easy pace. Anyone keen can carry on with the guide to the taller Upper Falls.

Après-midi

We are back in Banff for lunch on your own along Banff Avenue, then in mid-afternoon we go up to the Banff Upper Hot Springs, an outdoor pool of warm mineral water facing the mountains, for an hour or two of soaking while the grandparents sit on the terrace or join in.

Soir

Dinner is on your own tonight, with suggestions from the guide.

Compris

• Guided walk to the Lower Falls of Johnston Canyon
• Entry to the Banff Upper Hot Springs

Activités en option

• Lake Minnewanka cruise
• One-hour trail ride with a Banff outfitter, for riders old enough

Moraine Lake and a canoe on Lake Louise

Banff to the Lake Louise Park and Ride, Moraine Lake and Lake Louise by Parks Canada shuttle, back to Banff

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Nuit : Banff
• Environ 1.5 h de route

Matin

It is still early, but nearly three hours later than the 4 am sunrise trips, and the lake is calm. A short walk along the shore gives the view of the Valley of the Ten Peaks; the climb up the Rockpile, with steps and a good trail, gives the famous one, and the guide waits at the bottom with anyone who prefers. The Lake Connector shuttle takes us on to Lake Louise, where families paddle out in canoes below the Victoria Glacier, with life jackets for everyone.

Après-midi

Lunch is a sit-down meal at the lake, then you choose: the flat shoreline path, or the climb to the Lake Agnes Teahouse with the guide. The shuttle returns us to the Park and Ride and we are back in Banff by about 4 pm, with time for a rest, or the hotel pool if there is one.

Compris

• Parks Canada shuttle to Moraine Lake and the Lake Connector to Lake Louise
• A canoe on Lake Louise, weather permitting
• Sit-down lunch at Lake Louise

Activités en option

• Tea at the Lake Agnes Teahouse

The Icefields Parkway and the glacier

Banff to Jasper on the Icefields Parkway, about 290 km, in five short legs

• Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
• Nuit : Jasper
• Environ 4 h de route

Après-midi

Lunch is a sit-down meal at the Columbia Icefield. Afterwards we join the Columbia Icefield Adventure: an Ice Explorer, a huge all-terrain bus with big windows, crawls down a steep moraine onto the Athabasca Glacier, and you step out to walk on the ice. It is cold, so everyone needs a warm layer and a hat. Next is the Glacier Skywalk, a glass-floored walkway out over the Sunwapta Valley, which grandparents can view from the solid path if they prefer.

Soir

Our last stop is Athabasca Falls, a few minutes from the car park, before Jasper, check-in and an early dinner together.

Compris

• Stops at Bow Lake and the Peyto Lake viewpoint
• Sit-down lunch at the Columbia Icefield
• Columbia Icefield Adventure: Ice Explorer onto the Athabasca Glacier and the Glacier Skywalk
• Athabasca Falls
• Dinner at about 5:30 pm in Jasper

Maligne Lake and a lakeside afternoon

Jasper to Maligne Lake and back, about 48 km and 1 hour each way

• Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
• Nuit : Jasper
• Environ 2 h de route

Matin

After breakfast we drive the Maligne Road into the valley east of Jasper, where elk often graze beside the road and the children can count them from the windows. We pause at Medicine Lake, which drains through sinkholes in its bed into an underground river, so by late summer it can shrink to mudflats; it makes a good story for the guide. At Maligne Lake, the largest natural lake in the Canadian Rockies, we board a morning cruise to Spirit Island, a small tree-covered island that is a sacred place for the Stoney Nakoda, with a short stop on shore for photos.

Après-midi

Lunch is a sit-down meal by the lake before we drive back to Jasper. The afternoon is free and close to town: the guide can take anyone who wants to the paved loop and small beach at Lake Annette, or to the town pool at the Jasper Activity Centre (entry paid on the day), while others rest at the hotel.

Soir

At about 5:30 pm we gather for a farewell dinner.

Compris

• Medicine Lake viewpoint
• Maligne Lake cruise to Spirit Island
• Sit-down lunch at Maligne Lake
• Farewell dinner at about 5:30 pm

Activités en option

• Jasper SkyTram up Whistlers Mountain
• Entry to the Jasper Activity Centre pool

Jasper to Edmonton airport

Jasper to Hinton, Edson and Edmonton International Airport, about 380 km and 4 hours

• Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
• Environ 4 h de route

Matin

A last breakfast in Jasper, then we leave at about 8:30 am on the Yellowhead Highway, following the Athabasca River out of the mountains past lakes and gravel flats where bighorn sheep and elk are sometimes seen near the road. This is the longest drive of the trip, about 380 km and four hours, so we break it into three legs. After about an hour we stop in Hinton to stretch on the Beaver Boardwalk, a flat wooden walkway over wetlands at the edge of town.

Après-midi

Another hour brings us to Edson for a sit-down lunch. The last leg, about two hours through the forest and farmland of central Alberta, reaches Edmonton International Airport (YEG) at about 2:45 pm, so please book a flight leaving after 4:30 pm. Finishing in Edmonton means we never drive the Icefields Parkway twice, and it is shorter than the run back to Calgary.

Soir

Families who want an extra night in Edmonton or the Rockies can ask us to arrange it.

Compris

• Stop at the Beaver Boardwalk in Hinton
• Sit-down lunch in Edson
• Drop-off at Edmonton International Airport (YEG)