WHERE TO STAY

If you are looking for a more budget friendly accommodation, I would recommend staying in Canmore. It is such a cute little resort town and to get to Banff and Lake Louise it was no longer of a drive than 40 mins!

Staying in Banff, Alberta can be beneficial as you are a lot closer to destinations, but you will also pay almost double or triple the price as you would in Canmore! Yikes…

Solara Resort & Spa (Canmore): $$$
This was the hotel we stayed at. The resort was absolutely beautiful – the rooms were like apartments with a full kitchen, full living room and a full size bathroom. We also had a cute balcony with a table and chairs, to enjoy a nice cup of coffee in the morning OR a nice glass of wine in the evening. The views from the rooms were beautiful, as we had a view of the Three Sisters Mountains from the balcony.

Falcon Crest Lodge:  $$
This is where I would like to stay next time we travel out west. This lodge is rated the #1 hotel to stay in Canmore. Their rooms look very spacious and clean. They have a hot tub/ pool available on the property and the views look AMAZING from the rooms. You can supposedly see the Three Sisters from the bedroom windows! This hotel has awesome reviews!

WHERE TO EAT

The Grizzly Paw Pub and Brewing Company (Canmore): $$
This was easily our favourite spot to eat in Canmore – Vinny got a burger and fries and I got the Granny B’s Mountain Green’s salad and HOLY MOLY was the salad ever delicious! I am not a huge fan of Craft Beer but Vinny said their IPA was bomb! And if you are into Caesars, they make the BEST!

The Wood Restaurant and Lounge (Canmore):  $$
We went here for dinner one night. The view from sitting on the patio was beautiful! (see picture below). I had the salmon, the salmon I had is no longer on the menu but I am sure the new plated one is just as delicious!

Blondies Cafe (Canmore): $
[Coffee Shop] We stopped in here on our way out of Canmore when we were heading to Lake Louise. We grabbed a latte each, it was such a cute coffee shop. Everything they have on their menu is from local shops which is awesome! Always support local!

The Grizzly House (Banff): $$$
THIS PLACE IS A MUST!! This restaurant is located in Banff, Alberta.  It is a fondue & exotic meats; like alligator & rattlesnake in a lodgelike setting. We had a few friends recommend that we go and it was not a disappointment. There is a cool history of this place – it use to be a swinger bar back in the day and the new owners turned it into this restaurant. They kept all the swinger phones at each of the tables to experience the setting while having your dinner.

HIKES

I used the AllTrail app to find hikes for us to do!

Upper Grassi Lakes: (Easy/Moderate)
Length: 4.3km
Elevation: 233 m
Route Type: Loop
There is an easy trail and a moderate trail. We took the moderate as we figure it would have been more scenic! It also would not have taken that long but we stopped a lot along the way to take photos and to enjoy the crystal clear lakes along the way. About half way up we found a waterfall – it was a bit off the hiking trail but we climbed our way down to get to it. We sat there for about a half hour until we continued our way up again. This hike is great for families with young children!

Plain of Six Glaciers: (Moderate)
Length: 13.8 km
Elevation: 587 m
Route Type: Out & Back
This hike took us about 6-7 hours total and that was including stopping at the Tea House to have some tea and coffee (also a bite to eat). I recommend if you do this hike to continue up the trail passed the tea house for about another 20 minutes – 30 minutes. The views at the end of the hike are breathtaking! And, you may just get to hear some ice calving’s.

We did this hike at the beginning of June and there was so much snow still that the majority of the time we were walking through snow.

Lake Agnes Tea House: (Moderate)
Length: 7.6 km
Elevation: 433 m
Route Type: Out & Back
This is a VERY heavily trafficked hike located at Lake Louise. Along the hike you will pass Mirror lake as well a waterfall! The hike is fairly short but a pretty steady incline the entire way up! Once you reach Lake Agnes enjoy a nice cup of tea and a snack at the Teahouse. Ensure if you are planning on stopping at the Teahouse to start the hike early. It fills up quick and you may find yourself waiting over a half hour to get a seat.

Big Beehive: (Moderate)
Length: 103 km
Elevation: 647 m
Route Type: Loop
Up to Lake Agnes is the moderate section of this trail. Once you continue onwards to the Big Beehive please know you do have to scale the mountain which gets pretty tricky. It does get pretty steep at points. We did not go to the look out but the views are amazing! Please know this hike does have very steep switchbacks I would recommend only doing this hike if you are an experienced hiker.

Devils Thumb Via Lake Agnes: (Hard)
Length: 119 km
Elevation: 883 m
Route Type: Out & Back
To get to the devils thumb you continue passed Lake Agnes up towards the Big Beehive. Once you scale the switchbacks up the mountain you turn right instead of left toward the BB. We did this hike early June and there was an avalanche a couple days prior so the entire trail was covered in snow. We unfortunately could not make it to the top as we were walking in waist deep snow. But, we still got some beautiful photos at the spot we made it to. If you do make it to the top you can see both Lake Agnes and Lake Louise.

TIP: I would recommend doing this hike with someone who has completed this already. As it is quite hard to find! you also have to climb up 

Johnston Canyon:
Length: 5.0 km
Elevation: 236 m
Route Type: Out & Back
This trail as well is VERY busy. This is one of the most popular attractions in Banff. It is a quick trail with gorgeous views. There are two hikes the upper and the lower falls. When we stopped here we only went to the upper falls. The entire walk you’re walking over the falls. It is amazing to see such powerfall water.