Going to Banff/Lake Louise/Icefields in August
 

Would appreciate critique of our travel plan so far.

Plan to stay in Banff at Timberline Inn (want views, nice room and decent restaurant/bar). Renting car at Calgary airport. One day we will drive to Columbia Icefields and probably take the SnowBus tour while there. Also thinking of the Kicking Horse raft trip for another day. Will be there 4 full days but that is as far as we have planned. Comments/suggestions appreciated.

Lake Louise is a must--you can spend a whole day there if you like to hike. We love hiking up to one of the teahouses for lunch or a snack.
Moraine Lake is also very nice and you can rent canoes and paddle around which is fun.
THere are countless trails to hike.
Shopping in Banff is very good--I usually spend at least half a day doing that.
I would definitely recommend driving to the Columbia Icefields one day. The snowbus tour is a thing to do one time only in my opinion. Take really warm clothes.
This is one of my favorite areas--we go there every other year--so if you have any further questions, feel free to ask.

Thanks for the suggestions on hiking at the lakes. Do you know anything about the Timberline Lodge or have any suggestions about where to stay in Banff? We picked it because of the nice looking rooms, views and restaurant.

In Banff, I have stayed at Banff Springs Hotel (huge, lots of conventions, chaotic--they lost our reservation but thank heavens, I had a copy--and very expensive), and the Rimrock Hotel which is wonderful. Less expensive than Banff Springs and nicer in my opinion. I have see Timberline Inn from the outside--it looks fine--but have never stayed there. There are innumerable good places to eat and drink in Banff--just walk down the main street and you will find them in all price categories.

We stayed at Storm Mountain Cabins, about 20 minutes past Banff. Lovely old log cabins, that are completely refurbished, beautiful interiors with excellent views, owners really helpful, suggesting things to do and places to see. We enjoyed the hot springs, Columbia Icefields including the Snow bus, and Maligne Lake and especially the Canyon!!!

I have done the Kicking Horse rafting trip from Golden, BC (just across the BC line from Alberta). You will love it! The water is glacial melt and you will have to wear a wet suit. I am not overly fond of wet suits but the trip is great.

Sounds like you have done your homework in picking out some excellent things to do in the area.

We just returned from a week in Calgary, Lake Louise and Banff. The Kicking Horse rafting trip is the greatest. We did the half day Whitewater with Wild Water (info at wildwater.com) and had a great time. Stayed at Chateau Lake Louise with a lake view, enjoyed it immensely. Small but beautiful room.
Moraine Lake was pretty but so crowded, almost worth skipping it to avoid the mobs. The gondola to the top at the ski area offered beautiful views, and we saw grizzly cubs playing, a definite bonus! In Banff, we stayed at the Rimrock - excellent service, beautiful views, large room, highly recommended. Dine at the Maple Leaf in Banff - great food and service.

Cindy, I'm planning to spend a day at Moraine Lake to go hiking, but your report about the crowded conditions concerns me. Are the trails real crowded, or are the crowds primarily on the lake shore and perimeter?

Just returned from the Danadian Rockies. Lake Moraine was not that crowded when we were there; Banff was crowded. Had a wonderful dinner at The Station in Lake Louise.

I thinks how crowded Lake Moraine is depends on if a tour bus is there or not--no tour bus, no crowd. So go early or late and you will probably be safe. Personally, I have never noticed terrible crowds there, but this is our favorite place to rent a canoe and paddle around and I don't think a lot of tour bus people do that.

Also, my husband and sons had signed up for the Kicking Horse raft trip, but when they came to the hotel to pick them up, the raft trip people wanted him to sign a long waiver that basically said--if you are injured or killed, it is not our fault, even if we are negligent.

My husband, the attorney, didn't feel comfortable signing this. He said he would have in the US, because here, it would be unenforceable. But in Canada, he wasn't sure. So they didn't go on the trip.