The Best Guide to Banff National Park (November)

sierra — Wed, 08 Nov 2023 14:35:00 +0000

Here is the Best Guide to Banff National Park (November)! Banff is a bucket list destination for many, with good reason…it’s an incredible place to see! The Canadian Rockies, dramatic landscapes, stunning lakes, fun mountain villages, hikes, breweries, waterfalls and more. My family and I spent six days exploring this amazing area of Western Canada. Banff is absolutely stunning. There is so much to do/see and being there when everything is snow covered makes it even more special. November felt like the perfect time to visit in the winter months. No large crowds for Christmas, access to all the ski resorts that are quiet since it’s the early season. The towns and major sightseeing attractions have much more of a local feel which is really nice. Are you interested in traveling to Banff in November? Here, I have created a guide of everything you want to do, see, know, stay, eat, drink in Banff and the surrounding area. I had the best time exploring this destination, now I want to share everything with you so you can also experience it in the best way possible! Let’s get into it- The Best Guide to Banff National Park (November): Getting there Fly into Calgary International Airport. This airport is only a little over an hour from the mountains! We flew Air Canada from Boston, we found most of the flights to Calgary were on Air Canada. Coming from the US East Coast we couldn’t find any one way tickets to Calgary but there are plenty of options with only one layover. If you are visiting from outside of Canada, don’t forget your passport! Accommodations Initially, I had planned on booking something in downtown Banff but after doing some research, I booked an Airbnb in Canmore instead and I’m glad I did! The town of Canmore is only 15-20 minutes away from Banff. The vibe in Canmore is a lot more local and less touristy. Canmore has a great downtown and amazing 360 views of the Canadian Rockies, especially Three Sisters Mountain. Canmore has dozens of different hotels, hostels, resorts and airbnbs to pick from. Generally a lot cheaper than Banff’s prices. Rental car I highly recommend renting a car for your stay in Banff. There is so much to see and do…without having your own vehicle you will have a hard time/might not be able to fit in everything. When visiting in the winter, make sure you rent an all-wheel-drive vehicle that has snow tires (you can ask for this when booking). You want something you will feel comfortable driving in the snow. We rented a Ford Expedition from enterprise. There were five of us, we had skis plus all our luggage. This vehicle was perfect. Picking up the rental car at Calgary International Airport was a breeze. No long lines, enterprise got us in our car quickly and easily. Just know icy roads and heavy snowfall are common in the mountains. Things to do The adventures, activities and sightseeing are endless…Bundle up and get ready for days full of exploring! Banff National Park Banff National Park was Canada’s first ever National Park. Dramatic mountains, bright lakes, tall trees, all with a sense of remoteness. Give yourself a couple hours to explore the park. If you like to take photos…you will want to pull over pretty often. Be sure to get a park pass! You can do so right as you pull into the National Park or ahead of time online. Drive the Bow Valley Parkway The scenic drive between Banff and Lake Louise offers amazing views and many photo opportunities. The original highway in Banff National Park, the best way to see views that everyone goes to Banff for. Make it a point to do this while in Banff! If you are heading to Lake Louise take this route instead of the regular highway. Morant’s Curve A viewpoint in the Canadian Rockies with a dramatic bend that a railroad bed follows along the river, making for the most picturesque photo when they train comes by. Absolutely stunning to see in person! People wait hours to get the shot. Make sure to pullover and check it out while in the area. If there are photographers around, ask them when the next train is coming! We stopped at Morant’s Curve for some photos and met a photographer there who told us he’d been waiting over an hour for the train to come to get the perfect picture and another guy had been waiting for over three. Just minutes after talking with him, we all heard the train coming off in the distance!! We were so lucky the timing worked out for us to see one of the most scenic views in Banff in all its glory. Morant’s Curve is located on Bow Valley Parkway closer to the Lake Louise side. Enter: Morant’s Curve Viewpoint into your GPS so you don’t miss it! Explore the town of Banff Be sure to visit the iconic town of Banff! The charming downtown with Sulphur Mountain sitting perfectly in the background. You can find lots of shopping, restaurants, breweries and bars downtown. Spend an afternoon here exploring the town center. Ride the Banff Gondola Take the gondola up Sulphur Mountain for some of the best views in Banff! It costs $60 CAD for a ticket that brings you up and back down. At the top you will see 360 mountain views! It’s breathtaking. At the summit there is dining as well as a museum. You also have the option to hike up which is free! Just know in the winter you will need the proper gear, it’s a good size hike. Roughly two hours total is a good amount of time to spend here. The ride up the gondola is a little under 10 minutes. There is a lot to explore at the top! Be sure to walk around the main lodge area for all the views then take the stairway/pathway up to the lookout point. Visit on a clear day to get your money’s worth. I recommend going a little before sunset, the colors of the sky turn into oranges, pinks and purples with the mountains in all directions…it’s just amazing! Visit Lake Minnewanka A beautiful, giant, blue/green glacial lake located in the mountains with spectacular views. Most lakes we visited in Banff were frozen over in November. Lake Minnewanka stood out to us when we were up on Sulphur Mountain, we realized it wasn’t 100% frozen over! Once arriving down at the lake, we realized the first half was frozen. The further down we drove the lake eventually opened up with some really great views. Be sure to check it out! Visit Cascades Ponds Cascades ponds are a series of ponds that lie under Cascade Mountain. You will find bridges that you can explore between the ponds. The views here are beautiful! There are places to setup a fire and have a picnic if you visit on a day that isn’t too cold. We saw some locals doing this and it looked like fun. You can get to the ponds by driving to Lake Minnewanka, you will see signs for the ponds as you drive towards to the lake. Go to the Banff Christmas Market Located at Warner Stables, right outside of downtown Banff at 100 Sundance Rd. This is a fun activity to do at night before dinner if you are in Banff while it’s happening. Walk around the stables and see locals selling their goods, listen to live music playing, grab an adult hot cocoa, warm up by the fire and enjoy a fun event many locals go to every year. Events take place three weekends in mid-late November into early December. Buy your tickets ahead of time online, they are only $10 CAD. Ski at Lake Louise Ski Resort If you like to ski/snowboard or want to try it out make sure to do so while in Banff! Out of the Ski Big 3 mountains in Banff National Park, Lake Louise Ski Resort will probably have the most trails open in November. We spent a day here and had a blast! Being from the East Coast, the early season conditions were a dream for us! We were able to explore a lot of the mountain and even found some powder. Skiing in the early season means cheaper lift tickets. Depending on how many trails they have open will depend on the price. Usually this time of year they are significantly cheaper and still offer great terrain. Need to rent some gear? Rent from Sports Experts in Canmore! Renting here will save you money compared to the resort’s prices. We paid $48 CAD per person for ski, boot, pole and helmet rentals for one day. Hike Johnston Canyon The perfect winter hike with the best reward! A 1.4 mile out and back hike that is rated easy with only 344 feet of elevation gain. Arrive early to beat the crowds, this area can get busy. The lower falls are mostly frozen with a little water still coming through, making for the coolest sight to see. You’ll hike on steel catwalks that are built into the canyon walls. This takes about an hour total. Dress warm! Visit Lake Louise Make it a point to see Lake Louise! You are so close coming from the Banff/Canmore area you have got to check out this beautiful area as well. Lake Louise (even in the winter) is another breathtaking sight. The cool thing about Lake Louise in the winter is you can walk, ice skate or sometimes even cross country ski right on it! Look for wildlife While in Banff and the surrounding areas, especially outside of the towns keep an eye out for wildlife! You could potentially see elk, deer, moose, big horn sheep, wolves and coyotes. During our time there we saw a bighorn sheep who was giant and got pretty close to us! We saw some beautiful birds that were unique to us and a very large buck. All so exciting to see! Your highest chances of seeing any wildlife will occur on the Bow Valley Parkway. Get views of Mount Rundle Mount Rundle is a mountain in Canada’s Banff National Park overlooking the towns of Banff and Canmore. You get the best views of Rundle at sunrise and sunset. The best spots to see this from are: Vermilion Lake: Enter Vermilion Lake into your GPS. You will drive down a long bumpy remote road and eventually arrive at a dock with some signs about the lake with Mt. Rundle in the background and a little room to park along the side of the road. In the winter it will most likely be quiet and you shouldn’t have trouble finding room to park. Head down to the lake and get some beautiful shots of the lake at sunrise! Mount Norquay lookout: Enter Mount Norquay lookout into your GPS. You will head up the road to Mt. Norquay Ski Resort. It’s a switchback style road so just be careful driving if it’s ice/snowy out. There will be a few lookout points on the drive up but go until your GPS tells you, the main lookout spot is the best! There’s room to pull over off the road, get out of the car and check out the views! Being so high up on the mountain gives you really cool views of Mt. Rundle! I recommend doing both if you have time! It’s cool to see Mt. Rundle from both viewpoints because they are very different. Start out at Vermilion Lake, give yourself a little time for pictures then head just ten minutes away to the Mount Norquay lookout! Go on a helicopter tour of the mountains One of my favorite if not my #1 favorite thing I did on this trip was going on a helicopter tour of the mountains. Seeing the Canadian Rocky Mountains covered in snow by helicopter was absolutely unbelievable. Being in a helicopter up...

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The Best Guide to Banff National Park (November)