flyonwall

Hello, I will be flying in to vancouver and meeting up with a friend from Australia, we have 14 days. I am wondering if we should do the drive to Banff, lake Louise area as I have been there before and it was amazing, I would want him to experience that or should I drive towards another equally amazing area in BC?i.e. Tofino, whistler or other? I don't know BC that much so I cannot compare the two. Thanks for your help.

xcountry

Personally I think the mountains on the Alberta side are a little more stunning than north of Vancouver and the west side of BC. But at the risk of being simplistic Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast on the BC mainland give you wonderful terrain and water.

If your Australian friend lives near water and isn't dying to see more I'd go to Alberta. If they want mountains and water I'd go to BC.

We just returned from Vancouver Island.

kgsneds

When is your trip? Timing make a huge difference in terms of recommendations...

catpm

I grew up in Alberta, but have lived in BC most of my adult life. And my partner is Australian so we've had lots of Australian visitors. My recommendation is to go to the Alberta rockies. They are really breathtaking (always a crowd pleaser to our Aussie visitors) and more dramatic than the mountains you will get in BC. However your question really depends on the time of year.

Banff to Jasper is very touristy in the summer (though if you decide to do a hike, or anything off the beaten path in these areas, you can always find a bit of quiet). Spring or fall would be ideal.

Travelling from BC to Alberta in the winter can be hellish even for those of us that are used to the drive. Tofino/Ucluelet in the winter is really spectacular for storm watching. It's a very different/more rugged landscape to the coast they have in Australia.

kgsneds

Note that spring and fall may be later/earlier in the Rockies than you might expect.

Seasonal roads can open as late as late June and close in early October. So the best time to visit is between early June and late September. If you are looking to hike, mid June to mid September.

Cldowsett

We live in the Rockies and used to live on Vancouver island. You could very easily drive from banff (land in calgary) through BC on the coquihalla highway with many fun stops along the way to tofino on your trip. Here we did it there and back in just over a week.. with 3 children under the age of 6. We felt well rested and enjoyed ourselves. It wasn't rushed.

https://www.hidenseekglobal.com/home...western-canada

BC_Robyn

The Rockies have more dramatic geological features, while the BC coast has more impressive biodiversity and ancient, old growth rainforests. They're both equally amazing for completely different reasons.