Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper for three generations

1. Day 1: Calgary to Banff and the gondola

   Calgary airport to Banff, about 145 km and 1.5 hours

   • Drive about 1.5 h
   • Early welcome dinner
   • Stay in Banff
   Day 1 details

   Fly into Calgary International Airport (YYC), landing by about 11:30 am, and your See Sight Tours guide meets the family in the arrivals hall. We drive west on the Trans-Canada Highway, about 145 km and an hour and a half, with a comfort stop in Canmore so nobody sits too long, as the prairie turns to foothills and then to the grey wall of the Front Ranges. We reach Banff by about 2:30 pm, check in to the hotel, your base for three nights, and the children can stretch their legs on Banff Avenue. At about 4 pm, while everyone still has energy, we ride the Banff Gondola up Sulphur Mountain. A boardwalk with steps and benches runs along the summit ridge to a stone weather station built in 1903; grandparents can stay at the upper terminal building, which has the same view of the town, the Bow River and Mount Rundle. At about 5:30 pm we sit down together for an early welcome dinner, where the guide explains the week.

   Included

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

   Easier option: Stay at the gondola's upper terminal building, with the same view, instead of the summit boardwalk.

   More active option: Walk the full summit boardwalk to the old weather station on Sanson Peak.

   Free time: Free time in Banff before the gondola

   

2. Day 2: Johnston Canyon and the hot springs

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

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast
   • Stay in Banff
   Day 2 details

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

   Included

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

   Optional experiences

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

   Easier option: Walk part of the canyon path and wait at a viewpoint, or stay in Banff for a slow morning and join for the hot springs.

   More active option: Continue to the Upper Falls with the guide, about 5 km there and back from the car park.

   Free time: Lunch and an hour free in Banff

   

3. Day 3: 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

   • Drive about 1.5 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Banff
   Day 3 details

   Personal vehicles are barred from the Moraine Lake road, so we leave the hotel at about 6:45 am, drive 45 minutes to the Lake Louise Park and Ride and board a Parks Canada shuttle at about 7:30 am, booked for the group. 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. 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.

   Included

   • 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

   Optional experiences

   • Tea at the Lake Agnes Teahouse

   Easier option: Stroll the flat Lake Louise shoreline path, up to about 2 km each way, and stop wherever you like; skip the Rockpile steps at Moraine Lake.

   More active option: Hike to the Lake Agnes Teahouse with the guide: about 7 km there and back with about 400 m of climbing, 2.5 to 3 hours with tea. Bring some cash.

   Free time: Late afternoon free in Banff

   Activity: We leave the hotel at about 6:45 am. Shuttle seats are booked in advance for the group; a later shuttle depends on reservations, and the time is confirmed with your final itinerary.

   

4. Day 4: The Icefields Parkway and the glacier

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

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Jasper
   Day 4 details

   Today we drive the Icefields Parkway to Jasper, about 290 km and three and three-quarter hours at the wheel, spread across the whole day so no leg is longer than about an hour and a quarter. The first stop is Bow Lake, where the Crowfoot Glacier hangs above the water, then Bow Summit, where a short paved path leads to the viewpoint over the glacial blue of Peyto Lake. 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. Our last stop is Athabasca Falls, a few minutes from the car park, before Jasper, check-in and an early dinner together.

   Included

   • 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

   Easier option: Stay on the Ice Explorer platform close to the bus, and see the Skywalk from the solid walkway before the glass section.

   More active option: Walk further across the marked area of the glacier, and the full Peyto Lake viewpoint path.

   Activity: The drive time excludes stops; we stop at least every 75 minutes.

   

5. Day 5: Maligne Lake and a lakeside afternoon

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

   • Drive about 2 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Jasper
   Day 5 details

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

   Included

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

   Optional experiences

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

   Easier option: Stay on the boat's covered deck during the cruise, and spend the afternoon resting in Jasper.

   More active option: Walk the Mary Schäffer Loop at Maligne Lake before lunch, about 3 km on a good path.

   Free time: Afternoon free in Jasper

   

6. Day 6: Jasper to Edmonton airport

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

   • Drive about 4 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   Day 6 details

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

   Included

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

   Easier option: Stay near the start of the boardwalk, where there are benches.

   Activity: The one day at about 4 hours of driving, in legs of 1, 1 and 2 hours.

   

Wildlife and weather: July and August days in the valleys are often 20 to 25°C, but mornings are cool and it can be near freezing on the Athabasca Glacier, so pack layers for everyone. Afternoon showers are common, and smoke from distant wildfires can haze the views on some days. Elk are likely around Jasper; black bears, grizzly bears and bighorn sheep are possible but never guaranteed, and we watch from the vehicle when animals are close.

• Banff3 nights
• Jasper2 nights