Golden, B.C.
 

I'd love to know more about this little town. It will be our base for the 12 nights that we will be staying in B.C. to explore Banff and YoHo.
Good choice?

I'm not that familiar with Golden. I've never stayed there, but have driven through it many times, and occasionally have stopped there for lunch.

From memory it seems to me it has motels and fast food places and family style restaurants. Well at least those are the types of facilities one passes if one is driving the TransCanada Highway. Perhaps Golden has more inspiring offerings than that if one just stops and looks.

A Google search tells me it has a population of 17,000, and that would suggest it's big enough to support restaurants beyond the fast food type.

The town is situated right in the mountains of course, and as such would be a good base for mountain hikes in all directions.

Still, 12 days sounds like a long time in one spot to me. Perhaps you might consider dividing your time between this and one other mountain destination.

I think you would get tired of Golden for that many days. It is not as close as you think-as it is slower driving in the mts.

We like the Quality Suites in Canmore when we were in the Banff area. And I think there was a BestWestern in Yoho on top of the pass.

We stayed in Golden only one night, maybe you could do 2 if you had to.

i have stayed in/near Golden on several occasions, anywhere from 1 - 3 nights. There is much to do in terms of hiking, biking, kayaking, river rafting, skiing etc.
There are also some excellent restaurants, the Kicking Horse Grill in town and the restaurant at the top of Kicking Horse Resort (billed as the highest elevation restaurant in Canada) are two that come to mind.
There is also an extensive choice of accomodations.
Here are some good-weather travel times by car from Golden to other areas: 1 hour to Field, 1.5 hours to Lake Louise, 2 hours to Banff, 1 hour to Radium and 2 hours to Revelstoke.
Unless you have a specific reason for staying in Golden, I would agree that your 12 days might be better shared with another location.

Appreciate the replies so far. I thank you.
We have booked our 12 night stay at the Beaverfoot Lodge in Golden. Will be traveling with my family, my parents, my brothers and their family's. It was very difficult to find accommodations closer to Banff and Lake Louise that could house us all under one roof. I just couldn't find anything large enough for the length of time we will be visiting. This is one of the reasons we are staying in Golden. The rate at Beaverfoot includes 3 meals as well as access to all the activities offered on site (horseback riding, fly fishing, hiking, canoing). Plenty to do right there at the lodge. However, we love packing a picnic and taking off for day trips to explore other areas. An hour or two drive isn't a problem as we are early risers and love exploring, and hiking. (who would know we were Floridians!)
We will be spending two weeks in Fairmont Hot Springs prior to our stay in Golden. Staying in a vacation home and taking off on day trips all around that area as well.
What a beautiful world!

Hi hibiscushouse. It sounds like you will have a lovely time with your family and get to know our beautful corner of the world very well.

My daughter spent last summer working in Fairmont Hot Springs and a co-worker owns a vacation home there. If you need more specific information for that area, I would be happy to ask them for details.
Barb

Golden is a pleasant enough place. It always seemed smaller to me than the listed population.

The good part is the central location of Golden if you don't mind driving to more fruitful destinations. It is a longish hike up the gorge to the flats of Yoho, and then about 14 more miles from Field over Kicking Horse Pass to Lake Louise.

(Be sure to stop and watch the trains go through the Spiral Tunnels, and visit Takkakaw Falls, and Emerald Lake, and some of the other interesting features of Yoho.)

Kootney Park is down the ways a bit from Golden at Radium Hot Springs.
I have never jumped in the pool there, but I have been told it is a nice, big hot tub. Glacier National Park is a few miles west. And the Bugaboo area is not too far away either, although the road to it is a little rough in spots. (Maybe a lot rough if no grading has been done before you are there.)

I think you can take many neat trips while you are there. Some of Yoho is marvellous, but you do need to hike to get to the best places like the Iceline Trail or, for a long hike, the Whaleback.

Kootney has some interesting places as well. I suggest you take a look at the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide by Brian Patton and Bart Robinson. It has long and short hikes, and some of the short ones are very interesting to take.

I know Marble Canyon in Kootney near the park boundary with Banff NP is very interesting and would be suitable for a family outing, if you keep a grip on the little ones!!

The canyon is a narrow trench cut by running water into limestone. At places it is about a meter wide and 100 meters deep. (That is why the above suggetion about keeping a grip on the little ones.)

The fact that you have all of the family under one roof so to speak, with meals included, sounds like a good approach.

I hope you all have wonderful time of it and all the cousins can get to know each other. I miss that type of gathering these days. We are all so far apart that even funerals don't get us together.

The downside is that you are a goodly drive away from Banff. But with any destination with a group there are going to be pluses and minuses. I think you will work out the logistics quite well.

Have a safe and good trip.

As you are staying at the Beaverfoot Lodge, you will be quite some distance to the east of Golden. However, as you have an all inclusive meal package, that should not be a concern.

You will be well situated for Yoho Park, and not really too far from Banff. In addition, to the west, Glacier and Revelstoke National Parks are well within range for day trips. At Revelstoke Park, you can drive to the top where a number of great hiking trails begin.

The town of Golden itself is unpretentious, and free from the tourist hordes of Banff. You'll find all the services that you may need there. You should take the gondola at Kicking Horse Resort. The views from the top are spectacular, and you can do some hiking from there as well. The restaurant at the top(Eagle's Eye) is first class.

With the activities are the lodge and attractions within an hour or so drive, you'll have no problem filling twelve days there.

Just dragging myself out of bed from the stomach flu. Wanted to thank you all for the responses. Sounds like we selected an area that suits our family just fine. And it's making me look forward to visiting that beautiful area that much more.
Laverendrye, are you familiar with the Beaverfoot Lodge? I haven't found anyone that knows anything about the lodge yet. Looks and sounds wonderful, but who knows.

hisbiscushouse: I don't know the Lodge personally, but I've been told that it is quite nice. It's just outside Yoho Park, so will be very convenient for your activities there. If you haven't done so, you should check the Parks Canada website for detailed information on Yoho and the other nearby parks.

Cheers!