We had asked about this previously, and decided to go for it - free flights, plus the lure of the San Jose Sharks game in Edmonton, plus having a 4-day weekend (US Thanksgiving).....

A couple of questions:

1) The Oilers v. Sharks game starts at 7 p.m. (we'll be staying downtown). Do people eat early outside the arena (is there a special "game place" for dinner - local bar or casual dining? Or should we just eat at the arena?)

2) Is the Hardware Grill in Edmonton as good as the reviews suggest?

3) Any special place you would recommend to eat in Banff?

Edmonton is great! The average high temp for U.S. Thanksgiving there is 27 degrees F.

So be careful in what context you say "eat... outside"


I think you'll have a nice time, and let me recommend the "Muttart Conservatory" in Edmonton for a visit. It seems to be open every day until 5:30pm.

I'm sure that the conservatory is especially interesting when the harsh Canadian winter is all around outside, when you're mostly indoors and toasty.

Hopefully someone else will come along and answer your hockey-specific questions.

Oooo - I wouldn't eat at the arena - it's barely edible fast food.

We've had mixed experiences at Hardware Grill; there were times when the food was absolutely fabulous, and other times when it was just "OK". On the whole, there have been more of the fabulous times than the "OK" times.

Banff is a tourist destination so there are lots of places to eat - something for every taste. Our current favorite is a bistro-type restaurant called "the bison" (you can Google their website for more info).

I'm trying to think of a pub style restaurant in a downtown location convenient for you. Best might be Ceili's or Hudson's Taphouse, but both are west of Grant MacEwan University on 104th avenue. If you're staying right downtown (near the Westin for example) it would mean driving there and then driving back before taking the LRT to the game.

As for the weather - unpredictable this year. Don't bet on an "average" temperature - whatever that is - we haven't seen average for about 10 years!! In late November it could be above freezing with no snow, or could be very cold and snowy, or could be anything in between.

Have fun!!!

Thanks both of you. If you're still reading, how would you spend a full day in Edmonton on Saturday?

Borealis, we're staying at the Courtyard by Marriott on 99th and Jasper. Any other restaurant suggestions for Saturday night? -- we like almost all kinds of food, prefer to get a decent value (we'll spend good money on great food, but don't want to mortgage the house! In other words, we're never eating at the French Laundry or Per Se unless someone else is paying for it LOL). Our young adult daughter will be with us, and while she's less finicky than our son, a not-so-unusual steak or chicken (or pork tenderloin) type of dish would suit her just fine.

That's too bad about the food at the arena. The food at the Shark Tank is downright GOOD! (And there are 3 or 4 places in downtown San Jose, about 5-6 blocks from the arena, where everyone eats first if they don't want to eat at the arena)

If you've never been to Edmonton before, take the young adult daughter to the MALL, and cling to her, so that when you get lost, at least you'll be together.

Hopefully the harsh Canadian winter won't keep you from reaching the mall, but once you get there you'll have all the comforts of home (swimming too, if you like).


www.westedmall.com

We're definitely going to hit the mall, as a sightseeing adventure (although I'm sure we can be convinced to spend some money to support the Edmontonian economy LOL)

1. I wouldn't recommend eating at the arena (Rexall Place). Better to eat before, either downtown or out towards Rexall. You're taking the LRT to the game, right? The hotel restaurant has a wonderful view of the river valley; Sherlock Holmes pub is walking distance (provided it's not cold and blowing); Earl's is up in Clareview, past Rexall and a couple of blocks or so from the LRT station... again, it depends on the weather! And anything is possible on that front.

2. If you're going to spend the money, I would recommend either the Harvest Room at the Hotel Macdonald next door to your hotel. At least take a walk through there, maybe stop in the lounge for the experience. It's one of the old CN hotels so as far as this part of the world is concerned, it's historical. Another interesting option is the Madison Grill at the Union Bank Inn. Check out their web sites too.

You've asked about Banff, you're planning on driving down to Calgary and on to the mountains? or did you mean Jasper?? I'll assume you meant Banff, so...

3. Ah Banff. Touristy but great. Another old CN hotel there, the Banff Springs offers a number of restaurants, our favorite is Waldheim's. More removed from the town site, but so picturesque and along the Bow River. Melissa's is right in town, it's low key Banff. Don't overlook Canmore, a mountain town outside of Banff National Park, lots of shops and restaurants there too. I hope the weather stays nice, the drive to the Rockies is well worth it, Banff or Jasper!

Out and About, yes, Banff, because we're actually flying into Calgary. We're going to be very flexible knowing the weather can turn at any time, but our plan is to drive from Calgary to Banff, then at least partway up the Icefields Parkway (again, weather-dependent). If the weather is great, we'll continue to Jasper, overnight, and on to Edmonton. If we can't go to Jasper, we'll go back to Calgary, and make our way to Edmonton from there.

Thanks for the hotel, lounge and restaurant tips!

Wow, all that in 4 days, plus travel time?!? You'll be going 24/7, but maybe that's what you had in mind? If not, I would cut the drive at Banff, Lake Louise at the absolute very most, Castle Mountain junction would be better. Then turn around and catch the views from the other direction, you'll have had lots of mountain scenery by then and you'll lose daylight anyway, around 5 or 6 pm (by Nov 27, it's less than a month from Winter Solstice). that will give you a bit of time to poke around Banff/Canmore if you want, maybe overnight there before taking the 4 hour drive to Edmonton for the game. Saturday will see you at the Mall, where you could also swim or go for a skate, but first you might like to take in the year round Sat morning Farmer's Market in Old Strathcona. Great area with lots of character. Muttart is nice, but you can get some of the same indoor garden experience at the downtown Citadel for free... where there's also live theater, but I think you'll be busy enough. Let me know if this is helpful... I can always make more suggestions!

Out_and_about, we're keeping our itinerary very flexible due to darkness and volatile weather conditions! We're flying into Calgary because we got frequent flyer tickets non-stop, and couldn't do that into Edmonton (waited too long, we are flying home non-stop from Edmonton).

We'll keep your suggestions with us, and pay very close attention. I think we will go for a swim or a skate (or both) at the mall, and definitely hit the Saturday Morning Farmer's Market in Old Strathcona.

One question - we actually arrive in Calgary Tuesday night. Would you suggest we poke around Calgary before heading to Banff on Wednesday? I'm trying to figure out your timing, i.e. what time are you suggesting we leave Calgary on Wednesday, assuming we plan to overnight on Wednesday in either Canmore or Banff? Then it would be Thursday, presumably, before we taken the "mountain scenery" portion of our drive. Are you suggesting we return to Banff Thursday night and then drive up to Edmonton (via Calgary?) Friday afternoon?

The driving times from Calgary to Banff, and Banff to Lake Louise are fairly short.
Calgary to Banff is only about an hour and a half drive (assuming that there are no snowstorms going on at that time); Banff to Lake Louise is only 40 to 45 minutes. Visiting Canmore, Banff and Lake Louise is easily done in a day, even in those short 9 hour days of late November.

You'll be entering Banff National Park two minutes west of Canmore - and there are park fees to be paid at the gate (I'm not sure that you know about that??).

Lake Louise is a very small village, with some shops at Samson Mall not far from the highway, and then the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise a short drive up to the lake itself.

It's up to you whether you spend some time in Calgary before heading to the mountains. It's a big city with big city traffic especially during rush hour (so you'll be spending part of your time just driving). If you want to see the city, a couple of hours won't be long enough counting in that driving.

It doesn't take four hours to drive Calgary to Edmonton, more like two and a half hours city limits to city limits, and extra time to get to and from where ever you are staying. Once in Edmonton it shouldn't take you more than 20 minutes to get downtown (just drive north on Gateway Blvd - that's the same road that enters the city - and follow the signs.)

By the way - in Edmonton the weather over the past two weeks has been warmer than average. With El Nino starting again, it probably means that it stays this way. . . . .

Forgot to mention, if you want to see what the weather is like in Banff, take a look at the webcam:

http://www.explorerockies.com/banff-webcam/

And Edmonton is here:

http://www.theweathernetwork.com/ind...mcode=CMAB0015

So, Borealis, would you suggest

1) we spend Wednesday driving Calgary-Banff-Lake Louise and spend the night in Banff, and then (since the weather might be okay) spend Thursday driving to Jasper and spend the night there and then Friday head to Edmonton from Jasper?
-OR-

2) spend Wednesday partly in Calgary and end up in Banff, then Thursday, Banff-Lake Louise - partway up the Icefields Parkway - back to Banff, and on Friday head to Edmonton from Banff?

I'll let Borealis reply, seeing as you're asking, but to clarify, the 4 hour drive I was referring to is from Banff to Edmonton. That is indeed 4 hours.

Actually, I'd love your opinion on the itinerary choices, too, out_and_about.

Four hours from Banff to Edmonton seems easily doable on Friday (the game is at 7 p.m., so we'd likely eat around 5:30). Do you have to go back through Calgary?

Out_and_about, sorry, I misunderstood and thought you meant Calgary to Edmonton.

Yes, Banff to Edmonton is easily do-able, you'd need to leave Banff around 1 pm to be in Edmonton at around 5 pm - all of this of course depends on the weather conditions: wind and cold temps are not a problem but snow, blowing snow, or especially freezing rain can slow you down or stop you completely - so keep your eyes on the weather reports.

You don't have to drive through Calgary. You can turn from the Trans-Canada #1 to highway 22 and drive north through Cochrane and then turn east to Airdrie where you'll connect to QE II highway (highway #2) and continue to Edmonton.

I believe that they're building a new ring road on the north part of Calgary, but it isn't finished yet as far as I know.

Just beware that 5 pm to 6 pm is during the rush hour in Edmonton, and the traffic can be slow. Good idea to allow extra time.

I like your option number 1 better - you'll see more of the mountains that way. Just keep your eyes on the skies and be prepared to change your plans if the weather turns too wintery (and check the Icefield Parkway road conditions in the Park Information centre in Banff beore you set out).

The Jasper-Edmonton drive is shorter then Banff-Edmonton by about half an hour; the highway is divided and easy driving for most of the way. Watch out for the wildlife (on the highway) in Jasper National Park.
Jasper Park Lodge is the best place to stay when in Jasper.

Oh by the way - you shouldn't have any problems getting accommodation in the mountain parks in November, it's a bit early for the ski season, and too late for tourist traffic.

Thanks for the detailed reply! We know all about keeping an eye on the weather, because we go to Tahoe in the winter and have been stymied by more than one blizzard over the years.

As for the last comment, I know, the end of November is as off-season as you can get --- the tour operators don't even "start up" until December 1st (although snowy owl does run dog-sled tours in November if there's snow). I figure we won't have any problem getting into restaurants either (more likely the problem will be restaurants that are closed until December 1st -- wouldn't that be when restauranteurs take vacation?)

I can add a few comments if you like... it depends on how much driving you want to do. If enjoying the mountains from the car appeals to you, then go for the Calgary-Banff-Jasper-Edmonton route, pending reasonable road conditions. Interestingly, JPL that Borealis recommends is another old (in a good way) CN hotel, sister to the Hotel Mac and Banff Springs, already mentioned. Agreed, you want to check out the cost of the required Parks pass.

In our experience, summer conditions, no stops (except for fuel of course): Calgary to Banff townsite is about one hour. Banff to Jasper another 4 hours; Jasper into Edmonton, another 4 hours. You have to decide if you want that much driving in exchange for more mountain scenery, or if you want time for activities. If you opt to return back towards Calgary, Borealis's suggestion to take Hwy 22 is a good one, otherwise known as The Cowboy Trail. You could even take it further north and go across to the #2 Hwy at Olds, which gives a quieter hwy and better views of the foothills and its countryside. It all depends on what you enjoy. Another option (just to make it even more interesting choice-wise) would be to take the David Thompson Hwy #11 out at Saskatchewan River Crossing (before the Icefields), you would come out near Red Deer and catch the #2 Hwy on to Edmonton. Driving time for that from Banff is about 6.5 hours, no stops.
Another good place to catch sight of wildlife is along the Bow Valley Parkway, the old highway that runs between Banff and Lake Louise. It splits into single direction roads in some places, thus a much different feel to the Interstate-like Hwy #1. You can also move back to the #1 if you want to at Castle Junction (aka Eisenhower Junction at one time), about halfway to Lake Louise.
If you're foodies, restaurants will be best in Calgary, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and/or Edmonton. Not necessarily in that order. Happy planning!

Thank you both so much. I think we now know what we need to know --- and we'll just have to see if the weather cooperates!