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Find renewal in this fabled getaway of the Canadian Rockies
Banff National Park
Banff National Park is like the Yellowstone of Canada. Established in 1885, it is that country’s oldest national park, encompassing more than 2,500 square miles. Banff is a marvel of scenic terrain – mountains, glaciers, lakes, forests – and adjacent to 4,200-square-mile Jasper National Park to the north. Following the discovery of hot springs in 1883 and then the establishment of the national park, Banff has served as a mecca for tourists, prompted by the visionary gamble of Canadian Pacific Railway general manager Sir William Cornelius Van Horne. Under his guidance, the railroad spent vast sums on a European-style luxury hotel deep within the Canadian Rockies, confident that it would draw everyone from Canada’s upper crust to the crowned heads of Europe. And it did.
Today there are two tourist seasons. Skiers crowd the slopes and clomp around town all winter and into the early spring, while the summer months bring nature lovers hoping to see the landscape in full bloom. The key towns within the park are Banff Townsite and, about 39 miles away, the smaller Lake Louise, two of the most luxury-rich destinations in the Banff area. Canmore, lying 15 miles to the south, is another great base of operations.
Within an hour of picking up our rental car at Calgary International Airport and heading west on the Trans-Canada Highway, the Canadian Rockies came into view. The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel (405 Spray Ave.; from $312/night; 403/762-2211, www.fairmont.com/banffsprings) was another hour’s drive away, yet still within the Banff National Park boundaries. We had heard that the baronial Scottish-style castle was an elegant and lavish resort hotel, offering serious pampering. We soon discovered – to our relief – that the hype was justified. The hotel hosts luxury-seekers of all kinds, many of whom (like us) are intent on marking special occasions. In recent years, a $200 million face-lift added a conference center and a 38,000-square-foot spa. As befits a Canadian National Historic Site, the castle offers daily tours.
After gawking at the cavernous lobby, we settled into a room with a view of the serpentine Bow River. Also framed by our window: the hook-topped Mount Rundle, carved by glaciers and the river (which played the title role in River of No Return with Marilyn Monroe and Robert Mitchum). Right below our window was the entrance where King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, and countless other dignitaries once arrived.
The most congenial kid-friendly eatery at the hotel is the Waldhaus Pub (403/762-2211), a terraced café overlooking the golf course, providing comfort food and the occasional moose sighting. The pub is the easygoing little brother of the more formal Waldhaus Restaurant, specializing in German and Swiss cuisine; both reside in a 1927 Bavarian cottage.
One attraction of the area is the sheer variety of activities on offer. Top on our list was a morning jaunt with our son Brian to nearby Lake Louise, a 30-minute drive on the Trans-Canada Highway or about 45 minutes on the more scenic Bow Valley Parkway. Despite the throngs of sightseers there, we agreed that the lake was exquisite: a fantasy of glaciers flowing into an unearthly turquoise. Although less well-known than its Banff Springs counterpart, the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise (111 Lake Louise Dr.; from $391/night; 403/522-3511, www.fairmont.com/lakelouise) is equally classy, with a Swiss Alps twist. Its refined rival is the Post Hotel & Spa (200 Pipestone Rd.; from $279/night; 403/522-3989, www.posthotel.com), a more intimate Relais & Châteaux property that is all pine and fieldstone. Pay a visit if only for a meal at the renowned Post Hotel Dining Room (entrées from $27). In a rustic log cabin setting with a roaring stone fireplace, sample from the extraordinary Swiss-inspired menu and the jaw-dropping 2,200-label wine list.
Our golf-maven son, Alex, stayed behind in Banff Springs and later raved about the mountainview tee offs at Fairmont’s Banff Springs Golf Course (from $90/round; 403/762-6801, www.fairmontgolf.com/banffsprings). The world-famous Course on the Roof of the World opened in 1928. Meanwhile, after a 3-hour horseback ride our daughter-in-law Lisa relaxed at the hotel’s Willow Stream Spa in restorative multiple-temperature pools.
All too soon it was time for our anniversary dinner. A grand oil painting of a bearded Van Horne, the railway executive and tourism pioneer, presided over our private room in the hotel’s best restaurant, the Banffshire Club (tasting menu from $78; 403/762-6860). All the adults and grand-toddler Justin celebrated our marital longevity in the sublimely sequestered haven. We feasted on Kobe beef, Alberta elk tenderloin, pork chops with sage spaetzle, and Vancouver Island halibut with chanterelles and buttermilk risotto.
The next day we wandered into Banff Townsite, an impeccably clean town in Canadian chalet style across the river from the hotel. The town sports a cornucopia of tidy shops, including gift emporiums, art galleries, jewelry stores (many displaying local gems), as well as The Bay, a division of the Hudson’s Bay Company and Canada’s oldest department store. The town gets mobbed in the high season but never loses its quaint appeal. We discovered the Banff Park Museum (91 Banff Ave.; $3; 403/762-1558, www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/ab/banff), a restored 1903 natural history museum and national historic site. Like a time machine, it presents vintage dioramas of the region’s flora, fauna, and geology in their original hand-rolled glass vitrines.
Many visitors opt for helicopter tours of the mountains, but chopper-phobes may prefer the Banff Gondola (Mountain Avenue; $21; 403/762-2523) for its Ravello-esque views of the mountain range and the town below.
That night we headed into town to Elk and Oarsman (119 Banff Ave.; entrées from $10; 403/762-4616, www.elkandoarsman.com), a casual pub and grill where we devoured Angus sirloins and rosemary-infused, grilled New Zealand lamb chops. Another night, we dined at Melissa’s (218 Lynx St.; entrées from $13; 403/762-5511, www.melissasrestaurant.com), a Banff institution offering hearty fare such as steaks, pizzas, a signature Canadian mountain stew, and a homegrown version of beef Stroganoff.
High-end lodging options abound in the Banff Townsite area. Set on the side of Tunnel Mountain, Buffalo Mountain Lodge (700 Tunnel Mountain Rd.; from $187/night; 403-762-2400, www.crmr.com/buffalo-mountain-lodge.php), welcomes guests into an antler-rich lobby; many of the rough-hewn, wood-beamed rooms have a fireplace. Rimrock Resort Hotel (300 Mountain Ave.; from $281/night; 403/762-3356, www.rimrockresort.com) is a gorgeous mountain retreat, whose richly hued decor is set off by dramatic Bow Valley vistas.
