7-10 Day BANFF Guide
This 7-10 day Banff trip is perfect for people who love to hike. My recommendation for every hike is that you start early. Starting early is always good for safety, and in a place as popular as Banff, going early is often the only way you can avoid some of the crowds.
​What to reserve in advance:​​
Campsites
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Do this as soon as reservations open if you can on the Canada Parks website - you can get beautiful sites for a fraction of the cost of staying in a hotel or cabin. Campgrounds with more sites (ex: Lake Louise campground) fill up a bit less quickly than smaller campgrounds (ex: Two Jack Lakeside). If you aren't able to reserve a site, there are also first come, first serve campgrounds.
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Shuttle tickets are reserved by day, time frame when you can get on, and destination (Moraine Lake or Lake Louise). Reserve shuttle tickets on the Canada Parks website right when they're made available if you want to be guaranteed a spot on a shuttle in the morning so accommodate longer hikes. ​There is a shuttle that goes in between the lakes that is free to use once you get a shuttle ticket to one of the lakes. There are also last-minute tickets that are reservable 2 days before you will be there. However, don't count on these, as they can get sold out in seconds on busy days.
​Shuttles to Lake Moraine and Lake Louise
Canoe Rental or Ferry Tickets at Maligne Lake
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If you want to canoe on Maligne Lake, I recommend Wild Current Outfitters (not sponsored, I just had a great experience with them). Many canoe rental companies will drive the canoe to the Maligne Lake the morning of your reservation. However, Wild Current keeps their canoes at the lake and the day before your reservation you can stop by the office in Jasper and pick up you lifejackets, paddles, dry bag, safety whistle and code to unlock your canoes. This allows you to then get to the lake as early as you want to the next morning and get out on the water before the ferries start running.
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​For ferry tickets there are a couple companies and they offer standard ferry rides or ones geared towards photography.
Day 1
Sunrise at Two Jack Lakeside
Morning: Arrive in Banff and enter the park*
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Afternoon: Walk the lakeshore at Lake Minnewanka
Two Jack Lakeside Campground**
tips:
*buy your Discovery Pass (Canada National Parks Pass) before driving into the park NOT at the park enterance, or you might get caught in a long line of cars waiting to buy their passes (I bought my pass in Calgary at the outdoors store Cabela's).
**reservations at Two Jack Lakeside fill up very quickly. Backup campsites include Two Jack Main Campground (reservations required) or Tunnel Mountain Village I or II (reservations required).
Day 2
Bourgeau Lake
Hike:
Bourgeau Lake and Harvey Pass (12.7 miles total out and back, 3527 ft elevation gain).
OR
Edith and Cory Pass Circuit (8.1 miles total loop, 3281 ft elevation gain). This is the more technically difficult of the two hikes, and people recommend going clockwise for better views.
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Two Jack Lakeside Campground
tip:
* These two hikes are beautiful, but in my opinion not quite as stunning as the hikes in the rest of the itinerary. A major pro of doing one of these hikes is that they are easy to get to from the absolutely gorgeous Two Jacks Lakeside campground (shorter drive, don't require shuttle reservations like the hikes at Moraine Lake and Lake Louise). If you're able to get a spot at Two Jacks Lakeside and love to hike, pick one of these hikes and go for it. However, if you only have 7 days for your trip, you don't get a spot at Two Jacks Lakeside, or you feel so-so about hiking, you can cut this day out of your itinerary.
Day 3
Moraine lake
Wenkchemna Pass
Eiffel Lake
In the morning, drive to the shuttle parking lot and take the shuttle in to Moraine Lake* (I recommend reserving shuttle tickets months in advance the day they become available, because morning slots fills up quickly)
Hike: Sentinel Pass via Larch Valley OR Wenkchemna Pass via Eiffel Lake. Both hikes are gorgeous. The pro of Wenkchemna Pass is that it will probably be less crowded, the pro of Sentinel Pass is that if you are there in larch season (usually late September), you will see incredible forests of yellow larches
Sentinel Pass via Larch Valley: 7.0 miles total (out and back), 2457 ft elevation gain
Wenkchemna Pass via Eiffel Lake: 11.4 miles total (out and back), 2890 ft elevation gain​​
Lake Louise Soft-Sided campground**
tip:
* Days 3 and 4 on this itinerary are interchangeable, and the shuttles to Moraine Lake and Lake Louise leave from the same place. There is also a shuttle that will take you in between lakes.
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**If you are camping at Lake Louise Soft-Sided campground I recommend trying to get a site in Loops L or M, as those loops are smaller loops near the building with showers. There are 206 campsites in the campground, all of which are off of different sized loops. All loops have covered shelters and no-frills bathrooms.
Day 4
Trail to Plain of Six Glacier
Big Beehive
Trail to Plain of Six Glaciers
Take morning shuttle to Lake Louise.
Hike: Lake Agnes teahouse* to Big Beehive to Plain of Six Glacier loop (11.3 miles, 3018 ft elevation gain)
Lake Louise Soft-Sided campground
tip:
* Getting a snack at Lake Agnes Teahouse is fun...in theory. In actuality the line to buy anything was crazy long when we got there and prices where way high. We brought our own snacks and I would recommend saving time, money and sanity by just bringing your own food.
Day 5
Peyto Lake
Waterfowl Lakes
Mistaya Canyon
Valley of the Five Lakes Trail
Morning: Drive Icefield Parkway from Banff to Jasper, stopping at lakes, glaciers and waterfalls along the way. See my Icefield Parkway Guide for the best stops! ​
Afternoon- stop by Wild Current Outfitters and pick up lifejackets, paddles and a dry bag, and confirm the canoe number and lock code for the next day. WCO is usually open from 9am - 5pm, so try to get into Jasper around 4pm to make sure you have time to pick up your gear.
Wapiti Campground in Jasper*
tip:
* Try to get a campsite near the river at Wapiti, as there are great spots for hammocking along the river and watching rafting groups go by.
Day 6
Drive to Maligne Lake in the morning and spend as long as you want canoeing on the lake*. If you are an overnight canoe-trip lover you can even reserve campsites on the lake and make Maligne lake a multi-day trip (these sites book up fast).
Wapiti Campground
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If you would rather not canoe, you can still see Maligne Lake from the water by booking a ticket on a ferry company that will take you out to Spirit Island and back. If you do this, make sure to stay in designated areas on Spirit Island, as the island is sacred to Indigenous communities in the area.
tip:
* If you are canoeing on the lake be careful to stay safe and only go as far as you feel comfortable. I recommend getting to the lake early (we got there around 6am) as we were able to paddle for a few hours before ferries started running. Usually people recommend against paddling all the way to Spirit Island and back in one day, but my two friends and I had great weather, started early and all have canoe experience. We paddled out past Spirit Island into Valley of the Gods, and then back. Round trip it was about 20 miles and it was gorgeous yet exhausting. Unless you love canoeing and feel safe, I don't recommend doing this. You will get just as beautiful views without going as far. Also, if you are canoeing make sure to respect local Indigenous communities and not actually stop and get off at Spirit Island.
Day 7
Hike: Mount Edith Cavell Trail (4.6 mile loop, 1214 ft elevation gain)​​
Lake Louise soft-sided campground
After the hike, drive back to Banff on Icefield Parkway. If you had bad weather on your drive from Banff to Jasper, or wanted to visit or re-visit any places along the route, this is the perfect chance to do that. ​​
Day 8
Hike: Emerald Lake
There is a beautiful path (3.2 mile loop) around the shoreline of the lake, and it is a flat trail with beautiful views. The beauty and accessibility of the lake makes it very popular so if you want a parking spot and some time with fewer people on the trail, go early. Also, going early gives you the best chance for reflections in the water before the wind picks up later in the day. ​​
Head to the airport for your flight home or start your drive home.
Day 9
&
Day 10
Want a longer trip? Here are some options:
Camp overnight on Maligne Lake (reservations required)
Explore Yoho National Park
Do a multi-day hike
Spend a night somewhere along Icefield Parkway (Waterfowl Lakes Campground is popular)
Stay an extra night at Two Jacks Lakeside or in Jasper and have a rest day, or go rafting