Banff and jasper

Stetay · 03-24-2018, 05:57 PM

Planning a trip from so cal to Banff and Jasper in July, was going play it by ear and make reservations as we went but the more I read sounds like I better plan ahead. Pulling a 26 ft trailer, any suggestions on camp grounds? We have never been there and having a hard time planning ahead. We have reservations in Idaho June 20-25. Think a couple days to get to Banff thanx

Chief T · 03-24-2018, 06:18 PM

ohhh, can we come with. Just kidding. Whistler has been on our bucket list for the last 30 years.

I would think it will be an awesome trip to make. We need to upgrade our TV before we venture out on such a long trip.

Cheers,

Safe and happy travels.

kenandterry · 03-24-2018, 06:19 PM

I’m watching this thread. 🥤🍿

kdcamper · 03-24-2018, 06:53 PM

Well if you planing on Banff tunnel mountain campground has it all close to town and full service sites but I would strongly recommend booking as it will be busy

Stetay · 03-24-2018, 07:06 PM

Saw that I will try and figure a time schedule which is hard thanx

EdJunior · 03-24-2018, 08:20 PM

My Dad took a trip up through there a few years ago. He did not make any reservations anywhere that I know of. He just went and stopped when he found somewhere. I am trying to find the pictures so I can see when, but he was not very organized when it came to pictures. Well, pretty much at all. I'll try to report back with what I find.

EdJunior · 03-24-2018, 08:29 PM

Well, I found a couple of pictures he posted on another site. He went in mid to late July. And as I said, he did not do any planning, other than saying "I'm going North and see where the road takes me". But this was back in 2007, so it's been a while. Good luck, and I envy your trip there.

mbtelguy · 03-24-2018, 08:59 PM

Highly recommend reservations for both Banff & Jasper in July. There is a Canada Parks reservation website.

Stetay · 03-24-2018, 09:06 PM

Found it thanks

WFD · 03-24-2018, 10:09 PM

Parks Canada reservations for Banff and Jasper opened in January. July and August are high season. We were there 2 years agoin Aug and did our bookings in Feb and already at that time we had a hard time getting a spot in Jasper and had to alter our plans as we could only get 3 consecutive nights. Now this was for full service, if you want basic sites you will likely have more luck. When we checked in, people that didnt have reservations were being turned away. The park attendant doing check in just told us in passing that it happens all the time. As EdJunior stated in his post that he didn't think his father had any reservations, I would venture to say that his father likely didn't get any sites with services. Going to Banff and Jasper would compare with going to Yellowstone...busy busy busy!

WFD · 03-24-2018, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chief T

ohhh, can we come with. Just kidding. Whistler has been on our bucket list for the last 30 years.

I would think it will be an awesome trip to make. We need to upgrade our TV before we venture out on such a long trip.

Cheers,

Safe and happy travels.

Just to set the record straight in case people reading think Banff, Jasper and Whistler are close to one another....Whistler is FAR from Banff and Jasper!!

, like 495 miles and 460 miles respectively.

bruin · 03-25-2018, 08:28 AM

Back in January when the reservation site opened we booked our sites. You will have a tough time getting spots now for weekends and long weekends are pretty much full. Plan your trip now if its not already to late. Go to pccamping.ca to pick and book sites. They do put pictures of each site on webpage. Coming up from Idaho you could stop at Redstreak campground in Kootenay National Park. Best hotsprings in the Canadian Rockies. Banff townsite is another 1.5 hour drive. When we stay in Banff we stay at Tunnel Mountain Village one. These are unserviced sites but more of a campground then a parking lot. They also have fire
rings which makes camping, camping. Try to get a site on the outerloop of each section for privacy. We always stay in K. Shower and washroom building nice and in centre of each loop. When in Jasper we stay in Whistlers Campground. This is close to town and is a large campground. Decent washrooms in each section but they have one large shower building in centre of campground. Wapiti is also good, a little smaller with a nice path along river. Pocahontas Campground is to far from town and you will need a case of bug spray for the mosquitoes. I believe they have built up an immunity to spray in this campground. Don't be afraid to get unserviced sites. The services are good in the national parks. Just don't forget to fill up with water before going to you're site. No matter where you stay you'll have a wonderful time and see mountain sheep, elk, bears and more. Welcome to Canada we've always been great.

fonzie · 03-25-2018, 09:05 AM

This is a nice campground near Banff.

Spring Creek RV Full Service RV Campground

Mount Kidd Fanatic · 04-06-2018, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WFD

Just to set the record straight in case people reading think Banff, Jasper and Whistler are close to one another....Whistler is FAR from Banff and Jasper!!

, like 495 miles and 460 miles respectively.

There is a campground in Jasper called Whistlers Campground. I'm guessing that's what they're referring to.

To the OP. There's a campground about 40 min S.E. of Banff town site called Mount Kidd. It's my favourite place (hence my username). It's packed on the weekends in summer but you should be ok during the week. They have full service, P/W, Power only and Unserviced.
Here is their website:
https://www.mountkiddrv.com/

Kaadk · 04-06-2018, 11:53 AM

It could also be a genuine mistake of distances. I remember back in High school days a friend's father was tasked with showing some overseas visitors around town. They wanted to see Niagara falls in the morning on the way out to do some whale watching in the maritimes, followed by going to see the rockies in the afternoon. No concept of scale at all.

A bit more personal of an experience, I was sitting in a hotel lobby in Germany having some lunch, my conversation with the hostess went something like this:

Quote:

Me: Well, I guess I better wrap this up, it's 2:00 now so somebodies finally in the office back home.

Her: What time is it in Canada?

Me: It would be 8:00 am in our time zone.

Her: What do you mean in your time zone? How many time zones does Canada have?

Me: Umm, let's see, there'd be 6 if you count Newfoundland's 1/2 hour as it's own time zone.

Her: 6!!!! All of Europe only has 1!

Me: What about the UK?

Her: They're not part of Europe, they don't count.

I also found it interesting when I would hear things like "You're from Canada, it must be really cold being way up north like that". Considering, where I was at in Germany was about 6.5 degrees North of where I live, so, rough estimate, I actually lived about 450 miles south of where they were.

But I digesss, please ignore my

and resume your regularly scheduled discussion of Banff/Jasper.

fanrgs · 04-06-2018, 03:21 PM

We camped at Whistler's cg in Jasper, Lake Louise cg, and Tunnel Mountain cg in Banff in August on our way back from Alaska several years ago. We got on-line a week before we got to that area and made reservations for all three campgrounds because we did not know until then exactly when we would be headed home. We had reservations in Jasper and Lake Louise for week nights and weekend reservations in Banff. The campgrounds are huge and there are generally a few cancellations except, as others have said, during the May, July, and September long weekends.

Our experience with the three cg's was that: the parallel parking at Tunnel Mountain means no privacy at any site, the train noise at Lake Louise was worse than we expected even though we knew about it beforehand (we had been to the Canadian Rockies 6 years earlier), and Whistler's is now one of our favorite cg's anywhere. We highly recommend side trips to Maligne Canyon and Lake, Pyramid Lake, and Mt. Edith Cavell while in Jasper and Johnston Canyon/Falls while you are in Banff. And, if you decide to stop in Lake Louise (well worth a couple of nights despite the trains), don't miss going over Kicking Horse Pass to visit the Spiral Tunnels Overlook and spectacular Takakkaw Falls.

TeamTravelers · 05-20-2018, 08:18 AM

We are planning our first trip to that part of Canada and plan on being there late Jul - early August. We tow a 30' TT. Searching public campgrounds has been an eye-opening and discouraging experience. Most public campgrounds specify for tents or RVs up to 27'. Does anyone have experience with availability at Private campgrounds.

Melssimplelife · 05-20-2018, 08:47 AM

I don't live to far from Banff and camping anywhere in Alberta and BC is frustrating unless you plan 3 months in advance for a campsite to book. Yes it's a pain in the butt however living in Canada it's cold most of the year, so when the weather gets warm we camp. So we all book in advance so we can get out and enjoy the weather.

Hutch333id · 05-21-2018, 09:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeamTravelers

We are planning our first trip to that part of Canada and plan on being there late Jul - early August. We tow a 30' TT. Searching public campgrounds has been an eye-opening and discouraging experience. Most public campgrounds specify for tents or RVs up to 27'. Does anyone have experience with availability at Private campgrounds.

Hi there. Similar to what others have said, camping in Alberta and BC can be frustrating. If you are looking for a nice commercial CG with a FHU and level sites, take a look at Coyote Creek Golf and RV Resort in Sundre - just over an hour northwest of Calgary. Usually very quiet, certainly relaxing but if you have children, not a lot for them to do.

Also, just west of Sundre (about 50km) is this place Panther River | Escape into the Wild. Out in the mountains, by a river but very accessible (I'd recommend coming in from the northern side). You will need to take your provisions with you but there is a restaurant on site and they have FHU, even some 50amp if you need those too.

August 6th is a holiday in AB so if you need a campsite for then, book now or you may be too late. Avoid any CG in the immediate vicinity of Calgary - they are an expensive embarrassment.

prairiecamper · 05-21-2018, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeamTravelers

We are planning our first trip to that part of Canada and plan on being there late Jul - early August. We tow a 30' TT. Searching public campgrounds has been an eye-opening and discouraging experience. Most public campgrounds specify for tents or RVs up to 27'. Does anyone have experience with availability at Private campgrounds.

We have a 35 ft fifth and have never had a problem finding a campsite in Western Canada, don’t despair you will find sites for your 27 footer. Welcome to Canada and have fun.

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