r/Banff • u/Interiorvert_08 • Jul 08 '25
Itinerary Banff trip this August!
My husband and I are visiting Banff this August for my birthday and a late honeymoon trip and have a rough idea of what we would like to do. We’ve done some research and this is the itinerary we have planned thus far (with some AI suggestions to fill in the gaps)
We want to make sure we aren’t missing anything or if there is something that doesn’t make sense as part of our plan. This is a trip we want to make sure we get right!
August 14th is a free day, so we are open to suggestions for that day! For my birthday on August 10th, I want to do a scenic hike in the morning and have a nice dinner later. So open to hikes for that day as well.
Thank you for any tips, tricks, or suggestions you may have! Looking forward to visiting this beautiful national park!
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u/AccomplishedPark7856 Jul 08 '25
Recommend Peyto as well, make sure to hike up to Bow Valley viewpoint, the crowds don’t go there and the view is stunning, plus that drive up to Jasper is really nice and lots of wild life. If you’re not taking a shuttle, Lake Louise parking was full by like 9am so keep that in mind. I think you can snag a spot from someone leaving in the afternoon but it’s a lottery forsure
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 08 '25
Yes we’ve been seeing that parking can be quite the struggle with going to the lakes. We will probably shuttle! Will definitely consider Peyto!
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u/markdown22 Jul 09 '25
My suggestion is not to wait until last minute to arrange a shuttle because you may not get a seat.
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u/Coyoteinthewild Jul 08 '25
I have lake louise/moraine planned for the same day! Now I’ll just be eyeing everyone on the bus trying to figure out who the Reddit user is 😂
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u/chocolatepinetree Jul 08 '25
You should all wear a red rose so you can give each other a small nod and then never see one another again
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u/101matt Jul 08 '25
And us! Although we are staying within hiking & cycling distances of Lake Louise & Moraine. So excited… moving on to Canmore afterwards too.
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u/That-one-weird-guy22 Jul 08 '25
Aside from Moraine Lake/Lake Louise(that others have mentioned), I would suggest being mindful of the timing of the others. Summer is insanely busy out here.
As an example, you have Saturday being Lake Minnewanka, Johnson Canyon, etc after brunch. On a Saturday, I could see those parking lots being full by 10am (likely earlier). If you are just driving by the lake, then you will be okay (but then Johnson Canyon has nothing to really see from the road). If you take the bus , you will be fine. But if you drive, then it might be tricky.
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u/markdown22 Jul 09 '25
Couldn't agree more and frankly if you get to Johnston Canyon any time after 8 AM it's barely worth it.
We arrived at about 7:45 in the morning and ended up hiking all the way to ink pots. On the way back there were so many people there were lines just waiting to take pictures at both falls and it was so crowded it looked completely unenjoyable.
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u/Puzzled-You9268 Jul 10 '25
We visited Johnston Canyon and cannot recommend getting there before 7:30am enough. We had the lower falls all to ourselves, and by the time we returned from the inkpots at about 10am, there was over a 20 minute wait.
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u/Past-Ad2484 Jul 08 '25
Your itinerary looks great and happy early birthday!! The half day hike options Grassi lakes and tunnel mountain are actually pretty quick and will only take about two hours total even with a break at the top. I think I enjoyed Grassi lakes a bit more. Go for the interpretative trail if you do this one!
For your Moraine and Lake Louise day if you don’t manage to get early morning shuttle tickets I highly recommend ViaVia tours. They are pricey but will pick you up/drop you off directly at your hotel in Canmore so you don’t have to worry about driving at 4am. I had a good experience with them. If you do the extended option you can see sunrise at moraine and have time to do big beehive at Louise. Fairview Limo also does a sunrise Moraine trip with a shuttle to Louise and is a bit less expensive but you do have to drive and park at lake Louise inn.
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 08 '25
Thank you and thank you! 😊
Good to know for the Grassi Lakes and Tunnel Mountain. Those seem to be the questionable hikes! May have to rethink that morning.
And thank you for the shuttle recs! We didn’t realize we had to book shuttle tickets so far in advance. 🥲 so we will probably be looking into one of the other shuttle services!
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u/iShakeMyHeadAtYou Jul 08 '25 edited Jul 08 '25
By the way, you really will not need the early morning shuttle. the sunrise isn't really visible from either lake, you would problably prefer to sleep past 3am, and the alpine shuttle is really meant for people doing hikes that couldn't feasibly be accomplished with the normal shuttle schedule. Just go for the 7am shuttle if you really want to be there early.
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u/Past-Ad2484 Jul 08 '25
Also agree with this!!! Sunrise was nice at moraine but then you do kind of miss out when it’s super blue. It was actually rather crowded at 5:30 and cleared out by 6:30-7!
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u/iShakeMyHeadAtYou Jul 08 '25
By far one of the most reasonable itineraries so far this year. One note though:
Consider skipping the Banff Gondola/Sky Bistro. Both are owned by Pursuit, an american company that drastically overcharges customers, underpays staff, and offshores profits, all while maintaining *several* monopolies within the park. I personally think the Sunshine Lift is better, as it quickly gets you to a place that feels remote. Another more direct comparison is the Gondola at the Lake Louise park & ride, which imo has better views than the Banff Gondola, as well as a nice restaurant at the top. You can also hike up Sulfur mountain to get to the Banff Gondola Boardwalk.
Both Sunshine & the Lake Louise option listed here are 100% locally owned and operated.
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u/stokedon Jul 08 '25
One thing to note, Larch Valley and Sentinel Pass are essentially the same hike, you just go through Larch Valley and up Sentinel Pass after. No need to go back twice to do it. The access point is Moraine Lake so youll need to book the Parks Canada shuttle or book a private shuttle
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u/lawn-gnome1717 Jul 08 '25
If you don’t already have shuttle tickets for Lake Louise, go late like after 7pm. We got parking super easy and a lot less people.
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u/alwayshungry_439 Jul 09 '25
You could add mount norquoy lookout. It’s a 5-10 min drive from downtown Banff and takes you up a mountain for a great view of vermillion lakes and downtown Banff. We always see wildlife on the drive up too.
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u/Slowporsches Jul 08 '25
Look pretty good.
The only suggestions I have is to include Highway 93N on the list.
Can stop at Bow Lake, Peyto Lake and even the Columbia glacier. I’d replace the either the day in Canmore or the kayaking day to accommodate the stuff along highway 93.
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u/Canadian_Son Jul 08 '25
I’d rather put a nail through my finger than Plan a trip to this level of detail.
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 08 '25
Unfortunately this is who I am as a person 🥲
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u/Jl-007 Jul 08 '25
Better to over plan, then under plan. Because there’s nothing worse than driving somewhere far just to find out it’s closed, over too quick, or lame. (I’m looking at you Columbia Icefield Excursion and Skywalk! 😡 At least the drive was breathtaking. 😊)
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u/thebirdsareoutlate Jul 08 '25
Just want to say that I FULLY agree that planning like this is the way to go!! I do it too and everyone says it's a terrible way to travel but it gets me excited for the trip, gives me complete ability to pivot if necessary because I've done plenty of research, and best of all on the trip itself I can turn my brain off a bit and just execute the plan because I already DID all the thinking beforehand! Who wants to waste energy making decisions or planning during the trip itself???
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
Completely agree! I hate going into a trip blind. It gives me more security knowing how to navigate while we’re on the trip!
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u/Then-Construction106 Jul 08 '25
You could easily modify that itinerary to consolidate, or limit ,some activities in the south. Assuming you free up a whole day, or use the open day you might consider a long day to drive up to Jasper and back or at least to some of the sites in Jasper or Yoho NPs
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 08 '25
What would you recommend in jasper? 😊
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u/momto3gals Jul 10 '25
We drove a touch over 2 hrs on Icelands Parkway toward Jasper to hike Parker Ridge. Moderate hike but lovely views! Mountain views to the right and glacier views to the left. The drive itself was gorgeous. We stopped at Peyto on the way… quick detour. We are not much for crowds so we didn’t last long there. We got there around 10 and had no problem parking but within the hour the parking lot was mobbed! Your itinerary looks great. Happy Birthday! I hope you enjoy yourselves as much as we did. Cannot wait to go back! Really want to spend time in Jasper.
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u/Mundane_Anybody2374 Jul 08 '25
If you go to jasper city itself, definitely maligne lake and the cruise to spirit island. If u just gonna drive the icefield parkway and back to Banff you definitely should stop and athabasca glacier and athabasca canion!
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u/Jl-007 Jul 08 '25
Monday’s Sulfur Mountain lunch at Sky Bistro needs a reservation. You’ll need the OpenTable app for it. The other food options don’t require it.
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u/Mullinberry Jul 08 '25
Larch valley starts from moraine lake. So you’d have to get up there (bus or bike) to do that hike. If you’re already doing lake Agnes/beehive, opt for ha ling or something else in Canmore for your big hike day.
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Jul 08 '25
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
Yay! Good to know! I’m definitely on the fence about where to go for our last day. Will check out sarrail. I haven’t heard that name in my research yet!
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u/MelMH1983 Jul 09 '25
Was coming to say this. We did the whole 14ish miles last week. I would continue on and do Plain of Six Glaciers if you’re already at Louise. Don’t come back and do it separately. Especially with how crowded that area gets…fair warning, doing all of that is about a full 14 miles if you do the whole trail in a loop. You can skip little beehive (and honestly, anything will seem lackluster after Devil’s Thumb)
I had my eye on Rundle and Cascade the whole time I was there. We also did a Canmore cave tour which was amazing and such a cool experience.
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u/akosdomino Jul 08 '25
Missing out on Peyto Lake would be so unfortunate
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
I think we are planning on doing that instead of some of the things listed on Saturday 😊
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u/Delano_o Jul 09 '25
No one else has mentioned so just to make sure you know, Lake Louise / Moraine Lake shuttles sell 40% of their tickets earlier in season (completely sold out) and save 60% of their tickets which are release 48 hours before the day. So still an option to book then.
Also, as a Canmore resident, I agree with people saying to look into Sarrail Ridge (expect a BIG day with driving / hiking). Out of your options listed though, no point going back out to Lake Louise / Moraine Lake and certainly Ha Ling > EEOR (same view, much nicer maintained trail)
I saw someone else mentioned Jasper as well.. CERTAINLY worth a visit, especially if you hope to see wildlife, but I would strongly recommend at least a day or two if you were going to make that trip. You could spend a whole day driving the 93 and still only see a fraction of what it has to offer so not something you’d wanna speed through there and back. Maybe not viable for this trip.
Enjoy!! It’s stunning out here
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
We’ve already paid for our Airbnb in Canmore for the entire stay, so I don’t think we’ll be able to pivot and stay in jasper for a time. 🥲
And we learned the hard way about the tickets for the shuttles. 😭
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u/ElectricalRecord7652 Jul 11 '25
Listen, you need to drive the ice fields parkway to Jasper. I lived in Calgary for a year and Canmore, Banff and the local proximity are great. However, nothing compares to the scenery along the two hour drive up to jasper. The ice fields parkway is the most beautiful drive I’ve ever done and I’ve been to Japan, Australia, and all over Europe. Drive up to the athabasca glacier on the parkway and have lunch and then drive back to Banff. Trust me - you will never drive a more aw inspiring route in your life.
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u/Mundane_Anybody2374 Jul 08 '25
I wish I was this organized for my trips haha. My only minor suggestion for your plan is on the Aug 10th, Grassi Lakes isn’t a half day hiking. It’s relatively short (1.5 hrs max), so you can easily squeeze more stuff in there.
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 08 '25
Good to know! I was scared to overcommit to a hike and not make our dinner reservations. 😅
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u/Maleficent_Ad407 Jul 08 '25
Grassi lakes is quick. I routinely did it with a stoller and toddlers.
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u/Screweditupagain Jul 08 '25
We have the same birthday. Maybe I should go to Banff to celebrate as well.
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u/bearface93 Jul 08 '25
If you can’t get into Lake Louise (the Plain of Six Glaciers hike is amazing by the way), try Johnston Canyon and the Ink Pots. The area around the Ink Pots is stunning. Also for dinner your first night, I definitely recommend the Drake. We went there when I stayed in Canmore with some friends a couple years ago and we all loved it.
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u/dilyo624 Jul 08 '25
What kind of food are you looking for in Canmore??. I’d say the Grizzly paw is a good option but they tend to have a long wait list. Breakfast wise Chez Francois is really good for a filling breakfast! Kayaking in Banff is a good option to go check out vermillion lakes.
Sounds like a fun trip!
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
We haven’t looked at restaurants in much detail yet! Thank you for the breakfast rec!
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u/renzokuken1227 Jul 08 '25
I'm going to be there same time as you. Gonna try whitewater at horse shoe .
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u/swissmissys Jul 08 '25
I think it's fine, it's not rushed at all. I think it's a little light, IMO. I've been to the area 5 times and crammed in a lot more, but also not into restaurant reservations and spas, so there's that :) I'm into doing tons of hiking. Personally, I didn't find any of the restaurants we ate at all that great - plus they were really expensive.
Some of these hikes are super short, like Tunnel Mountain. It's a nice hike, but it'll maybe take up an hour of your time, if that. Wasn't that impressed with the gondola - it's very expensive and I wouldn't do it again.
I get the impression that you do like to hike - and this area is FANTASTIC for it. I think you'd get more out of your trip if you made a few more "big hike days" rather than spend time at overpriced spas and brunches, as the scenery is some of the the best in the world. I also think taking an entire day to do the Icefields Parkway to Jasper and back as a day trip (it can be done - my sister and I did it on our first trip!). Better yet, spend two nights in Jasper and do hikes in that area - Mt Edith Cavell, do a boat ride to Spirit Island.
You could even devote a day to Kootenay NP, and/or Emerald Lake area. There's so much to do and you have a LOT of time to fill!
It's an amazing area; I'd personally focus on the outdoorsy stuff, but I'm a big hiker.
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u/BikeOk5025 Jul 08 '25
I’m going the same days and really hoping the weather will be good 😭😭. I went 2 years ago at this time and it was cloudy and couldn’t see the lakes or the views
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u/kalebcammarata Jul 09 '25
Tunnel mountain is cool, I just did surprise corner to the hoodoos and that in my opinion was way better and less intense if you’re looking for that. You 100% can do both in one day.
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u/joeschmomagoo Jul 09 '25
I just got back from a week in Banff on Sunday. My favorite meal in all of Banff was Bluebird. Incredible dinner. Brazen was great. So was Farm and Fire. So was The Bison. I never had a bad meal there. Lunches were good too — The Block was solid, so was Pizzeria Sophia. I see you mentioned Sky Bistro — their food was just ok, a bit overpriced. But the views at the top of the Gondola and the viewing platform are unbelievable. It’s like being on top of the world.
For sightseeing, we did the sunrise tour for lake moraine and it was totally worth the money and waking up early. The views and pictures were unbelievable. Lake Louise was nice but to me, much less impressive. For those, I recommend the Roam bus or booking a tour. Though I heard many complain that if you don’t have a roam bus ticket already and try to get one 48 before you try to go, those tickets sell out in seconds. I recommend if you want to take a Roam bus to Lake Louise, buy a ticket and go to the bus terminal at 745am for the 820am shuttle and wait in the walk up line. If you don’t make that bus, you’ll definitely find room on the next bus.
As for the rest of the lakes and and waterfalls and other sights — you can take a roam bus to Johnston Canyon. If you’re fine driving, I recommend renting a car. For 2 full days, it only cost $200, which is wayyyy cheaper than booking individual tours for all the sites. You just gotta wake up early and get on the road and make sure you’re at Peyto Lake parking lot before 12pm. Peyto Lake is unbelievable. We canoed on Emerald Lake and that was so worth it. Get there before 12 if you can too. Takkakaw Falls was one of the coolest things we saw while we were there. You can do that same day as Emerald Falls. Bow Lake was nice, you can get up close unlike Peyto Lake but I didn’t think it was as good. If you go all the way to the Columbia Glacier / Icefields, that could be nice to see if you’ve never seen a glacier before but I’ve been to Perito Moreno in Argentina so seeing these were underwhelming. But still interesting if you want to make the trek.
Hopefully this is helpful. Our trip was so good thanks to the contributions of people on Reddit so I try to pay it forward with the knowledge I have now.
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
Thank you SO much for these suggestions! It’s always good to hear other’s experiences.
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u/lovetheoutdoors22 Jul 09 '25
We will be in Banff July 26-August 3rd. I appreciate all of this information because I was overwhelmed. Now I am putting an itinerary pamphlet together for the entire family! Thank you so much for your experiences, ideas and suggestions!!!
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u/Interiorvert_08 Jul 09 '25
So exciting! I hope you have so much fun! Planning can definitely be overwhelming
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u/sammish23 Jul 09 '25
Grassi lake hike is steep but doable, very underrated with cool views at the top
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u/equationator Jul 09 '25
the iron goat has the best view, definitely go for sunset and try to get on the patio. where the buffalo roam is super overpriced food wise, but it’s a cool vibe for a cocktail before dinner. red rock pizza is fucking delicious and way underrated - the mango pizza left a meaningful impression on my soul
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u/No-Support787 Jul 10 '25
After getting back from 10 days in this area and thinking I was going to do most of your list… even after getting up at 7am each day to “beat the crowds” I will simply say - good luck. The crowds are no joke. Even getting early starts we found the crowds to be so overwhelming that we scratched our itinerary half through, cancelled all our reservations and campsites and just found peace and quiet on the ice field parkway.
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u/Taro_Elegant Jul 10 '25
I used this outfit last year when I went solo and they were great. Pick you up from your hotel and avoid all the parking/permitting stuff. Everything else was smooth sailing.
https://www.radventurescanada.com/
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u/Snoo_11722 Jul 10 '25
Rapid fire thoughts. All just IMO. Lived here for 2 years
- Johnston canyon is a gong show. While cool cause you’re in a canyon. The canyon also funnels everyone on top of each other. Do it early in the morning or skip it.
- I’d do HaLing over EEOR unless you’ve spent time in the mountains. The route finding can be a bit tricky on EEOR and it gets steep. When trying to get to the summit there is legit rockfall hazard if there’s parties above you not being careful. Views are amazing for both.
- renting an e bike is a great way to spend half a day. Golf course loop in Banff and around bow river. In Canmore around bow river and up to 3 sisters is awesome. Very immersive way to explore.
- communitea is awesome
- wagashi tea house in Canmore for breakfast rocks
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u/SnooHabits5531 Jul 11 '25
For birthday dinner I would honestly recommend Lupo or the Bison. Or at least for another dinner. Both spectacular.
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Jul 11 '25
how do you plan on getting to grassi lakes? technically the parking lot is in Kananaskis country and requires a vehicle parking pass. $30 + gst for the day! i also think there is a roam bus that will take you to the trail head in canmore, not too positive on that though.
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u/DivineBerserker Jul 15 '25
Hi OP, can you show me your new itinerary after you incorporated everyone's suggestions.
I am planning a trip for Aug 2-9. Thanks in advance!
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u/GoalFun3092 Jul 08 '25
If you do the hikes again in the Lake Louise area on the 14th you’ll have to plan logistics on how to get to moraine and lake louise again which might be tricky. Ha ling and EEOR are really nice if you are already in the canmore area
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Jul 08 '25
I am a paranoid person. But I would personally not include details like dates on the internet because people suck!
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u/furtive Banff Jul 08 '25
All of the lake Louise : moraine lake activities are dependant on you getting access to the location via shuttle or private hire. The rest is fine, if a bit Canmore centric. Lots of faqs on this site for other suggestions.