Canadian Rockies as a honeymoon destination?
 

My fiancé and I are debating on the Canadian Rockies for our honeymoon. My fiancé is an avid hockey fan so we hope to catch a game one night! We are also considering Hawaii or a beach like trip. We are from Texas so we can really see the beach and the heat anytime!

Again we are from Texas so we don?t desire to ski while we are there (because we don?t know how!), but to mainly enjoy the mountains, wildlife and nature in general. All we see here is dead grass and cactus! We don?t hike but are pretty fit, so we may consider it. Of course wedding expenses can add up so we?ve decided to splurge a few nights on accommodations. I?ve heard great things about the Fairmonts and The Rimrock. And on the other nights we can stay in a reasonably priced location yet nice cozy hotel!

Like I said we are researching our options and I just wanted to know if you think the Canadian Rockies would be a good honeymoon destination? We?ve heard great things about Banff, Lake Louise, and Jasper and will defiantly include these locations in our trip. For hockey we?d like to visit Edmonton and Calgary. Out of the five cities, which city has the most things to do and see and which city has the least? And how much should I expect to spend (just average or an interval)? Less then 4K? More then 4K?

In my opinion you would not be disappointed coming to the Canadian Rockies. They are absolutely breathtaking, and the good thing in your particular case is that the exchange rate works to your advantage. I would think that in the long run you would spend less money coming here than you would in Hawaii.
You did not mention how long you would be staying here, a week, 2 weeks? Therefore it is hard to say how much money you would be spending. It also depends on the time of year, during peak season (May-September) accommodations are higher.
To give you an idea though, a nice room with fireplace and kitchen can run anywhere from $150 - $300 Canadian per night. Figure in the exchange rate and I think you will find it quite reasonable.
Enjoy your trip whatever your decision may be.

We will be coming in October and we will only be able to stay for 10 days. I'm willing to cut out a few cities if needed. I'm just trying to figure out which ones are the best.

Hello AustinBride,

If a hockey game is a "must see," then I think you need to build your trip around the National Hockey League schedule, i.e., see when there will be a home game in Calgary or Edmonton. I did a search for Calgary's 2004-2005 season NHL schedule, and found a page that said, "Coming Soon."

Luckily October is not a heavy month for tourism, so you easily can afford to wait a while before making your reservations.

The only two places you've mentioned that are cities are Calgary and Edmonton. I consider them to be of about equal interest.

Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper, on the other hand, are small ski resort towns, and they don't have professional hockey arenas. But, as Atilla mentioned, the Rocky Mountains in which those towns are situated are spectacular.

It will be a lot easier to suggest the rest of your itinerary once we know where and when you're going to watch that hockey game. Because of Calgary's and Edmonton's spatial relationship to the Rocky Mountains and the ski resort towns, it would be most convenient, IMO, if you could see the hockey game at the very beginning or very end of your trip.

Well we're not going to plan our trip around a hockey game. If we are there and a game happens to be going on then we will most definatly go! If not, we will just go by the stadium!

You may have trouble getting tickets to a hockey game if that is the case. If it's not a big deal though then c'est la vie!
Both Edmonton and Calgary have ample opportunity for various activities, ranging from great restaurants and theater to museums. It all depends on your taste. As far as the 3 towns you have mentioned goes, all 3 locals are beautiful and offer plenty of outdoor activities. Would you consider a helicopter ride in the mountains? Amazing!

AustinBride - just to give you some idea of distances and travelling time between the various places that you mentioned (to help with planning):

Edmonton to Calgary = about 3 hours driving on a good divided highway (35 - 40 minutes flying) - this takes you through rolling prairie.

Calgary to Banff = about 1 hour (on the divided Trans Canada highway) - you will be driving directly into the Rockies, if the weather is nice, the view is great.

Banff to Lake Louise = about 45 minutes through the Rockies. These two resorts are close enough together that if you make one you "home base", you can visit both easily.

Lake Louise to Jasper = about 2.5 to 3 hours, not including stops, on the spectacular Icefield Parkway. There are many viewpoints along the way, plus the Columbia Icefield (glacier) is at the halfway point (more or less), so you'll want to take your time doing the drive.

Jasper to Edmonton = about 4 hours, the highway is undivided until the eastern National Park gates, then it is divided all the way to Edmonton.

It is possible to take in a hockey game even when staying in Banff - just plan to drive into Calgary in the afternoon (just keep in mind that you will have to drive back at night, when it is dark, but this shouldn't be a problem, we have done it even in the winter).

Weather in October? - it all depends on when - beginning or end of the month. The beginning of October can still be beautiful and summer-like although the nights will be cool and even frosty; at the end of the month snow is not unusual in the mountains.

Congrats and good luck with your plans!!!

Oops - made a typo - that should read "your home base".

By the way AustinBride, my hubby and I spent our honeymoon in the Rockies many many years ago, and we loved it so much we go back every chance we get (luckily this is easy because we now live in Edmonton!!!). There is nothing so romantic as sipping wine in front of a roaring fire in the cool crisp air of the mountains in the fall ;-) !!

Borealis:

Thank you so much for the info!! We will most certainly utlize this when we make our decision!!

And you described our dream honeymoon perfectly!! Here in Texas fireplaces are not uncommon but we never get to light them!!

with only 10 days, i would consider skipping edmonton. fly in and out of calgary and try to catch a game there. tickets can be quite expensive $100+ and you should order them in advance. then after a night or two in calgary, head off to banff/lake louise for 5 nights and drive the parkway to jasper for 3 or so nights. the parkway is beautiful so you won't mind driving the same road back to calgary. consider the rimrock hotel in banff.

My parents honeymooned in the Banff/Lake Louise area and they are going to celebrate their 55 anniversary this summer so I'd have to say its a great place to spend your honeymoon! As for hockey, October is most likely still pre-season games, or at least very early in the season, so you should not have trouble getting tickets to a game.

AustinBride: We spent our 25th anniversary in the Canadian Rockies last summer & it beat the heck out of our beach honeymoon. Go for the Rockies! Good luck to you & I hope that you are as happy after 25 years as we are!

Holy smokes, some of the advice I have read here is whacked.

The Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames often hold training camps in Banff.

The problem after this season is the collective bargaining agreement. There might not be NHL hockey next year and nobody is showing their hand about a potential lock out.

Let's assume for a second that there isn't.

Tickets for the Flames start at $20. A major sporting good retailer sells tickets for less.

Almost any pub has a ticket, burger, beer package for $20 and I'll bet dollars to doughnut (Tim's of course) that you meet some great people that would almost immediately look after you while at the pub and the game and likely any other time you are here.


Fall in the Rockies is mind-blowing to the beach set just like a beach is to me, being a near mountain dweller.

My suggestion is come to Calgary, see the sites and consider using as your base for travel. For $200 canadian each you can fly to Vancouver for a weekend and then do banff for a couple of days, maybe even Jasper.

If your future hub is bent about hockey, there are bus packages for home and home games between Ed and Cal, one of the NHL's best and fiercest modern rivalries...... as long as Edmonton doesn't get their stick all twisted up in the hem of their skirts.......

Jerome Iginala for Prime Minister of Canada and hope to "h-e-double hockey sticks" you don't make him want to fight someone....

Go Flames Go!

A tip about the hotels. Ask everyone you know if they know someone that works for a major hotelier. If so, they often have a Friends and Family rate, like the Fairmont chain does and it is stoooooooopid cheap.