Banff & Jasper - A beginner's guide to Canadian Rockies

Hi guys, sharing our experience from our first trip to Alberta and Canadian Rockies. Banff, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Columbia Icefield Skywalk, Athabasca Glacier, Jasper, Maligne Lake, Spirit Island, Lake Minnewanka and many more places that you can explore. Hope you guys will like this video.
From AsWeTravel team
0:00 Introduction
0:30 Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel
1:25 Lake Louise
2:32 Big Beehive
3:05 Banff Gondola
4:08 Moraine Lake
4:57 Larch Valley
5:05 Sentinel Pass
5:59 Town of Banff
6:23 Icefields Parkway - Drive from Banff to Jasper
6:54 Athabasca Glacier
7:24 Columbia Icefield Skywalk
8:09 Town of Jasper
8:28 Maligne Lake and Spirit Island
9:41 Lake Minnewanka

[@canxplorer]

Thanks for the tour! It reminded me all the great memories from these magical and unique places!

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thanks for watching.

[@SiddharthMathur2k007]

Very Beautiful! Turquoise Lake ❤️

[@Israel123]

Thank you for this wonderfully presented video.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your kind words and supporting the channel.

[@jacklance6266]

Just a wonderful guided tour thanks for sharing your experience. Just visit .

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your kind words.

[@KhalisEscapades]

Amazing….so beautiful…lots of information. I’m looking forward to be there this summer. ❤

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your kind words. Hope you have a great time there this summer!

[@nicholasmaycock267]

Athabasca Falls near Jasper end of Icefields Parkway worth stopping at, right next to main road so minimal detour. Also when going to or from Lake Maligne a visit to Maligne Canyon is a must.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your wonderful suggestions. We’ll definitely check out these places on our next trip.

[@davidmarshall718]

I have studied the mountains of Western Canada for 50 years. This is an excellent introduction to the Rockies Range. As the narrator said, it is impossible to include everything, there is always more, to cover everything on just the roads in only the National Parks a video could be an hour long or more at the same pace as this one. I really liked the relaxed feel to this video, which is typical of the region.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your kind and encouraging words. It’s true that this place has so much to explore. Spending a few days here is barely scratching the surface.

[@poojithamahendra61]

This video is so wonderfully done.. Thank you..

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you for your kind comment and supporting the channel.

[@bonitacurtis8053]

Very nice photography. Thank you.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you!

[@rgchannel8398]

😍sooo stunning

[@harsimrankharoud]

Yes, the place is absolutely stunning. Thanks for supporting the channel. :)

[@vivek106]

Great video

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.

[@kknenglois9185]

Wow amazing place my dear ❤️🥰❤️🥰

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thanks! It’s really amazing! 😊

[@melsmidlifeadventures1364]

Beautiful

[@harsimrankharoud]

It is indeed beautiful!

[@melsmidlifeadventures1364]

I can’t wait to go will post my video too 👍

[@KhalisEscapades]

And you have a very beautiful model ..:that’s another plus.

[@Albert-fg4kj]

Thanks for the amazing video. As I am also planning a similar visiting and would like to know - your trip stayed in one location only, say Calgary downtown, or along the way in different towns. Thanks

[@harsimrankharoud]

Hi Albert, we stayed part of our trip in a small town called Cochrane outside Calgary, and stayed in Jasper for a couple of days. Where you plan to stay depends on what all you would want to cover. I will not recommend staying in Calgary downtown as you’ll have to spend 300-400 km (3-4 hours) every day back and forth. You can stay in Banff/Canmore or one of the smaller towns nearby. Hotels will be slightly expensive than Calgary, but you’ll save on a lot of time, hustle and gas. If you are planning to go to Jasper, then you should plan to stay in Jasper for a few days because Jasper itself is 4-5 hours drive one way from Banff. Let me know if you have any more questions.

[@entertainment2372]

Great video, well done. How many days did you do this trip? Love to know on what day you did each sight.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Hi, thanks for your feedback. We were there for 9 days, however, we were working on 3 of the days so were able to explore the rockies for only 6 days. This is how we did it: Day 1: Fairmont Banff Springs + Banff town Day 2: Lake Louise + Big Beehive Day 3: Banff Gondola + Banff town + Lake Minnewanka Day 4: Moraine Lake + Larch Valley and Sentinel Pass Day 5: Drive to Jasper (Bow Lake, Saskatchewan river crossing, Columbia Icewalk and Athabasca Glacier on the way) Day 6: Maligne Lake + explore Jasper Hope this helps.

[@kinggorf]

Great video! Would a trip like to this be feasible the last week of June? Or is that tok early?

[@harsimrankharoud]

End of June is a perfectly good time to visit Banff. It will be slightly colder than months of July and August, but the lakes would have melted by then and most of the hikes and locations will be open. You’ll be able to enjoy the pristine blue Color of the lakes and all the greenery and mountains.

[@mferraro8737]

What’s parking like in the places you mentioned? We are there Sept 20 for 5 nights

[@harsimrankharoud]

Parking availability varies by season and is different for each place. I would consider Sep 20-25 part of peak season, so you can expect huge crowds and vehicular traffic. Moraine Lake shore: Parking is extremely limited and is generally full by 5:15-5:20 am due to morning crowds, and it's all luck after that. Lake Louise shore: The parking here is bigger than Moraine Lake parking but it also fills up by 7-7:30 am. So, you have three options - 1) Park at Lake Louise overflow parking (Park and Ride) and take a Parks Canada Shuttle to the two lakes. The frequency is very good, so that gives you flexibility to spend as much time you want on each lake and connect between the two, 2) Park in Lake Louise village and take Roam public transit bus, and 3) Park in Banff town and take Roam public transit. The links with more information are below: www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/ab/banff/visit/parkbus/louise banff.ca/93/Parking Banff town: Free parking is limited downtown Banff, but there is ample paid parking within the town. There is also free parking available near train station which is 10-15 mins walk from the downtown. Please refer the link above. Banff Gondola: Limited parking on site. Reach early or park in Banff town and take a shuttle. Columbia Icefield Adventure: Ample parking on site. Jasper town: Because Jasper is not as crowded as Banff, finding parking is easy here. Also, if you're staying in a hotel then you can use hotel parking and walk around. Maligne Lake: Limited parking, but the crowds are not sticky and generally leave after their cruise/activity is over so you have a good chance to get the parking with a little wait. Hope this helps.

[@ohangkana1809]

Stunning views! What month did you go? I see the long line of cars.

[@harsimrankharoud]

The views were stunning indeed, and they look even better in person. We went there in August which is one of their peak months.

[@ohangkana1809]

@@harsimrankharoud thank you

[@kishoreponnaluri573]

Very well done. This helped a lot. To cover all these places, where do you suggest for our stay? one centrally located or suggest two places covering your Day 1 to Day 3/4 and Day 5 to 6 kind.

[@harsimrankharoud]

Thanks for the encouraging words. If you’re planning on covering both Banff and Jasper, then I would recommend splitting the stay between two places - you can stay in Banff or Canmore (another beautiful town 20 mins drive away from Banff) for 3-4 days, and then drive all the way to Jasper on day 4-5 and stay there for a couple of days. Any centrally located place will still be 200 km away from either and you’ll have to drive a lot back and forth every day, so it is not worth it.

[@kishoreponnaluri573]

thank you. we are planning for 5 days, 3 days in Banff and 2 days in Jasper. So to cover Banff then it’s ok to stay in Canmore as it’s economical compared to Banff town. For Jasper do you suggest any place/hotel? I see less accommodation options in jasper.

[@harsimrankharoud]

@@kishoreponnaluri573 Yes, Japser is a smaller town so you won’t have as many options as Banff or Canmore. We stayed at one of the hotels on the Main Street, it’s called Crimson Hotel. There are some Chalets right outside Jasper town - Becker’s chalets is very highly rated and you get to see wildlife.

[@kishoreponnaluri573]

Hi, planned this way. Less of hikes and more of site seeing. Is this looks ok or do your suggest anything? First 3 days stay in Canmore and Day 4 & Day 5 in Jasper Day 1 - Bow Falls Banff Gondola Banff Upper Hot Springs Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel Day 2 - Two Jack Lake Lake Minnewanka Johnson Lake Jonstons Canyon Day 3 - Morant's Curve Moraine Lake Lake Louise Day 4 - Ice Field Parkway The Crowfoot Glacier Peyto Lake Columbia Icefields Adventure, Skywalk Athabasca Glacier Day 5 - Edith Cavell Glacier Maligne Lake with Spirit Island Pyramid lake & Island Athabasca Falls Sunwapta Falls

[@harsimrankharoud]

@@kishoreponnaluri573 The itinerary looks great. I think there is no one perfect itinerary that would suit everyone. It ultimately boils down to one’s individual preferences. My only suggestion will be to keep it flexible. If you like a place, give enough time to yourself to slow down and enjoy to the fullest. It won’t matter if you miss going to a few places, what matters more is that you enjoy and make the most of it.

[@nicoqueijo]

What is that mountain called at the very beginning of the video?

[@nicoqueijo]

Found it! Castle Mountain for anyone wondering!

[@harsimrankharoud]

Yes, it’s Castle Mountain!

[@hamidnasir8353]

I have never done hike, do you recommend it for beginners?

[@harsimrankharoud]

Hi Hamid, thanks for your comment. The hikes that we've recommended in the video are not very difficult and are very popular among the beginners. But I think a lot depends on one's fitness level. May be a good idea will be to prime your body with regular walks or treadmill sessions for a month before your trip to build up the stamina. And you can always go at your own pace and take frequent rests in between. Wear proper hiking shoes or trail runners, carry snacks and water to energise yourself on your way and you'll be good. All the best for your trip and let us know how it goes.

[@rusnacdaniela]

how long was this trip?

[@harsimrankharoud]

Hi, it was spread across 9 days.