From Calgary to Jasper and Back Itineray Help
Sep 1st, 2006, 12:32 PM
#21
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Thanks Nancy. Some more background. We will be up early to fly to Calgary. My wife does not travel well- air and car sickness. Her idea of a fun vacation is just admiring the sights. She's not much into hiking
We will try to get as much traveling done as we can on day 1. Also want to see Sunwapta falls. Thanks for the suggestion on the maps. I need some good maps and driving distances.
Have a good day.
We will try to get as much traveling done as we can on day 1. Also want to see Sunwapta falls. Thanks for the suggestion on the maps. I need some good maps and driving distances.
Have a good day.
Sep 1st, 2006, 03:10 PM
#22
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Judy in Calgary - you give great advice! I wish I would have asked you many of these questions before we travelled out west this past July!
I know it sounds like you are always repeating yourself and that nobody is listening - but that is because a lot of us do not understand the vastness of the west! Our family found the views and sights awesome and truly unbelievable and the fact that there is nothing but wilderness is hard to understand when you have never seen it!
We could never have imagined the amount of driving it took for us to get from Vancouver to Calgary! We took 4 full days (and it is only 11 hours if you drove straight) and it was not enough! And the lack of places to stop for gas and food once you got into the mountains was something that us from Southwestern Ontario could not get used to!
We loved our time out west but until you actually experience it for yourself - you will never believe it!
I know it sounds like you are always repeating yourself and that nobody is listening - but that is because a lot of us do not understand the vastness of the west! Our family found the views and sights awesome and truly unbelievable and the fact that there is nothing but wilderness is hard to understand when you have never seen it!
We could never have imagined the amount of driving it took for us to get from Vancouver to Calgary! We took 4 full days (and it is only 11 hours if you drove straight) and it was not enough! And the lack of places to stop for gas and food once you got into the mountains was something that us from Southwestern Ontario could not get used to!
We loved our time out west but until you actually experience it for yourself - you will never believe it!
Sep 1st, 2006, 05:43 PM
#23
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I just returned from a 5 night trip. It was unreal! I wish I had 8 nights! We stayed in Canmore (just outside of Banff) which I would recommend, Jasper and Banff. In Jasper we stayed at Becker's and it was great. While in town we did check out Patricia Lake Lodge and we saw their accommodations. The new suites are gorgeous and if budget permits, I would stay there. When deciding on accommodations, check out tripadvisor.com.
Sep 2nd, 2006, 08:57 AM
#24
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Hi Mominburbs. I really enjoyed reading your trip report. Now I'm even more excited about our vacation next June. While you were in Jasper did you happen to notice the Pine Valley Chalets? I keep reading that Patricia Lake Lodge is great, but we can get a 2-bedroom cabin at Pine Valley for $175/night, which seems like a good deal. Any comments about Pine Valley cabins?
Sep 2nd, 2006, 11:58 AM
#25
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Devonmcj, I have done a Google search for Pine Valley Chalets, Pine Valley Cabins, etc., in Jasper, and have not been able to find anything called Pine Valley XXX.
However, Jasper does have some cabins called Pine Bungalows. I have not stayed in them myself. I've read on the Internet that Pine Bungalows is a pleasant property (which I can imagine, because I've driven past it many times). The cabins are said to be nice, but just a little more rustic than Becker's, etc.
Several of these chalet-style properties on the outskirts of Jasper townsite have loyal customers who return again and again. I've seen them on the travel discussion forums defeding their own favourite chalets tooth and nail (Alpine Village, Becker's Chalets, Jasper House Bungalows, Patricia Lake Bungalows, Pine Bungalows, etc.). To be honest, I think you would be okay if you stayed at any one of the properties on that list.
If your enquiry really was about Pine Valley Chalets / Cabins / whatever, perhaps you would be kind enough to provide a link.
However, Jasper does have some cabins called Pine Bungalows. I have not stayed in them myself. I've read on the Internet that Pine Bungalows is a pleasant property (which I can imagine, because I've driven past it many times). The cabins are said to be nice, but just a little more rustic than Becker's, etc.
Several of these chalet-style properties on the outskirts of Jasper townsite have loyal customers who return again and again. I've seen them on the travel discussion forums defeding their own favourite chalets tooth and nail (Alpine Village, Becker's Chalets, Jasper House Bungalows, Patricia Lake Bungalows, Pine Bungalows, etc.). To be honest, I think you would be okay if you stayed at any one of the properties on that list.
If your enquiry really was about Pine Valley Chalets / Cabins / whatever, perhaps you would be kind enough to provide a link.
Sep 2nd, 2006, 01:19 PM
#26
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Thanks, Judy. I did mean Pine Bungalows. I don't know why I was thinking Pine Valley. My main concern is location. You can't always tell by their internet sites whether a property sits 20 feet from a major highway or in a beautiful, quiet area. You're such a (patient) wealth of great information - if you say the bungalows are fine, we'll go with that.
Can you answer another question? I see a hotel in Calgary called the Wingate in the SE section of town. It has an indoor pool w/a water slide that my son would love. We will be leaving Canada on an early morning flight. Can you give me an idea of how much time would we need to get to the airport? I don't have a good feel for the traffic conditions in Calgary.
Can you answer another question? I see a hotel in Calgary called the Wingate in the SE section of town. It has an indoor pool w/a water slide that my son would love. We will be leaving Canada on an early morning flight. Can you give me an idea of how much time would we need to get to the airport? I don't have a good feel for the traffic conditions in Calgary.
Sep 2nd, 2006, 01:53 PM
#27
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>>>>>>Can you answer another question? I see a hotel in Calgary called the Wingate in the SE section of town. It has an indoor pool w/a water slide that my son would love. We will be leaving Canada on an early morning flight. Can you give me an idea of how much time would we need to get to the airport? I don't have a good feel for the traffic conditions in Calgary.<<<<<<
The Wingate would be in a poor location from a couple of points of view. It's located in a neighbourhood called Midnapore, in the <b>far</b> southeast quadrant of Calgary. The airport, on the other hand, is located in the northeast quadrant of the city.
Google Maps states that the distance from the Wingate to the airport is 36 minutes. That looks plausible to me, in off peak hours. From about 6.00 a.m. to about 9.00 a.m., however, that driving time might be doubled.
Another reason that the Wingate is in a bad location for you is that if you were returning from the mountains to Calgary on the TransCanada Highway (Hwy 1), which enters Calgary in the northwest quadrant, the Wingate would be seriously out of your way.
The only way the Wingate would be convenient to your approach to Calgary is if you were coming back the long way round, through Kananaskis Country (Hwy #40) and the Highwood Pass to Longview. In that case you would skirt the southern boundary of Calgary on Hwy #22X and come up Macleod Trail to the Wingate. But that still would not solve the challenge of accessing the airport the next morning.
If you are looking for a hotel with a waterslide, I think you would be better off staying at the Sheraton Cavalier, which is in the northeast quadrant and <b>much</b> closer to the airport than the Wingate.
<b>If you want to use mapping software to calculate the driving time from any hotel to the airport, use your hotel's address as the starting point and use 100 Airport Road NE, Calgary, Alberta, Canada as the destination point.</b>
The mapping websites all give driving times that are more or less accurate in off peak hours. If a hotel is in a different quadrant from the airport, assume that the driving time will be longer (up to double the stated time) during morning rush hour. If the hotel is in the same quadrant as the airport, rush hour traffic will affect the journey only a little. Add, say, 5 minutes to the nominal driving time.
You can tell a hotel's quadrant from the ending of its street address. If the street address ends in NW, the property is in the northwest quadrant, and so on. You seem to be aware of that, because you know that the Wingate is in the SE. However, I'm also mentioning it for the benefit of anyone else who may read this message.
Google Maps says that it's 9 minutes from the Sheraton Cavalier to the airport. Even in morning rush hour traffic, that would be no more than 15 minutes at the outside.
For a US-bound flight you must check in two hours ahead of take off. That's because you clear US immigration and customs at Calgary Airport.
The Wingate would be in a poor location from a couple of points of view. It's located in a neighbourhood called Midnapore, in the <b>far</b> southeast quadrant of Calgary. The airport, on the other hand, is located in the northeast quadrant of the city.
Google Maps states that the distance from the Wingate to the airport is 36 minutes. That looks plausible to me, in off peak hours. From about 6.00 a.m. to about 9.00 a.m., however, that driving time might be doubled.
Another reason that the Wingate is in a bad location for you is that if you were returning from the mountains to Calgary on the TransCanada Highway (Hwy 1), which enters Calgary in the northwest quadrant, the Wingate would be seriously out of your way.
The only way the Wingate would be convenient to your approach to Calgary is if you were coming back the long way round, through Kananaskis Country (Hwy #40) and the Highwood Pass to Longview. In that case you would skirt the southern boundary of Calgary on Hwy #22X and come up Macleod Trail to the Wingate. But that still would not solve the challenge of accessing the airport the next morning.
If you are looking for a hotel with a waterslide, I think you would be better off staying at the Sheraton Cavalier, which is in the northeast quadrant and <b>much</b> closer to the airport than the Wingate.
<b>If you want to use mapping software to calculate the driving time from any hotel to the airport, use your hotel's address as the starting point and use 100 Airport Road NE, Calgary, Alberta, Canada as the destination point.</b>
The mapping websites all give driving times that are more or less accurate in off peak hours. If a hotel is in a different quadrant from the airport, assume that the driving time will be longer (up to double the stated time) during morning rush hour. If the hotel is in the same quadrant as the airport, rush hour traffic will affect the journey only a little. Add, say, 5 minutes to the nominal driving time.
You can tell a hotel's quadrant from the ending of its street address. If the street address ends in NW, the property is in the northwest quadrant, and so on. You seem to be aware of that, because you know that the Wingate is in the SE. However, I'm also mentioning it for the benefit of anyone else who may read this message.
Google Maps says that it's 9 minutes from the Sheraton Cavalier to the airport. Even in morning rush hour traffic, that would be no more than 15 minutes at the outside.
For a US-bound flight you must check in two hours ahead of take off. That's because you clear US immigration and customs at Calgary Airport.
