Things to Do in Banff, Canada

Quick facts: Canada's first national park was established in 1885 when railway workers discovered hot springs on the site. The park's 6,641 square kilometer area is home to over 280 bird species and 50 mammal species, including bears, moose, and mountain sheep.

Highlights: Unique is the turquoise Lake Louise, whose color comes from glacial rock flour in the water. The water's color changes in different shades of blue and green depending on the sunlight, and it is the one among the park's numerous stunning lakes that people come to see from around the world.

Quick facts: The lake is named after Princess Louise, daughter of Queen Victoria. Its turquoise color is created when fine-grained rock flour from meltwater reflects light through the surface of the water.

Highlights: The color of the lake changes noticeably throughout the day: in the morning sun it is bright turquoise, in the evening deep emerald green. Lake Maligne is known as the world's longest disk-shaped lake, and during the summer months the movement of canoes with countless signage indicators is a spectacle of its own.

Quick facts: The lake is known for its exceptionally clear turquoise color, which is caused by glacial rock flour. The water's color changes according to the season and is at its most intense in June and July.

Highlights: Rock flour particles are so fine that they float in the water for months before settling to the bottom. Sunlight refracts through these microscopic particles, creating the lake's characteristic fluorescent turquoise that you won't see anywhere else in the world in the same way.

Quick facts: Mineral-rich water bubbles up from the earth at 38-40 degrees directly into three pools, where the water is completely replaced three times a day. The minerals contained in the water, such as calcium and magnesium, make skin silky smooth and relax muscles.

Highlights: When you swim in 37-degree water and look around, the majestic Mount Rundle opens up before you, and the cold mountain air caresses your face while the water warms your body. During evening visits, the sky glows orange and the pool offers a direct view of the starry sky without any city light pollution.

Quick facts: A thirty-meter-high waterfall drops over a 10-meter stretch and sends 60,000 liters of water plunging per second. The water comes from melting snow on Sulphur Mountain, making the falls especially powerful in spring.

Highlights: You can walk right at the edge of the falls, feeling the mist on your face, which is rare for such a mighty waterfall. The roar coming from behind the rock wall tells you that the waterfall has been carving deeper into the stone for 10,000 years.

Quick facts: At the top there is a 360-degree view that covers six different mountain ranges. Climbing to the top requires a 2.2-kilometer walk and 700 steps.

Highlights: As the sun slowly sets behind the mountains, untouched wilderness spreads endlessly at your feet. The silence is broken only by the rustle of the wind and the roar of distant rapids.

Quick facts: An eight-minute journey takes you to an altitude of 2,281 meters, and along the way the landscape changes from coniferous forest to barren mountain tundra. At the top, a three-story building awaits, offering a view of six different mountain ranges.

Highlights: A glass-walled restaurant slowly rotates on its axis, so every diner gets to enjoy the full 360-degree panorama without having to get up from their chair. At sunset, the lights of the Banff Springs Hotel come on and the river turns into liquid gold at the bottom of the valley.

Quick facts: A 23-kilometer-long lake, it is the largest in the Canadian Rockies, and its steep underwater canyons reach depths of 142 meters. The clear turquoise water is completely replaced every 20-30 years, which is rare for mountain lakes.

Highlights: A perfectly preserved ghost town lies beneath the water: a 19th-century holiday village and an entire residential area that was submerged during the construction of the dam. In the clear water, divers can still see the foundations of houses, roads, and even the remains of an old bridge at a depth of 30 meters.

Quick facts: This three-kilometer-long main street is the heart of Banff National Park, lined with buildings over a hundred years old. Visitors are drawn by over 200 shops and restaurants, and more than 15 different festivals are held on the street annually.

Highlights: Most tourists do not notice the old cattle gates at the eastern end of the street, through which farmers used to drive their cattle through the village back in the day. In the middle of winter, the street is lit up with thousands of blue LED lights, making the snow cover glow like in a fairy tale tunnel.

Quick facts: A narrow limestone canyon has been shaped by flowing water for over 8,000 years. Along the route there are no fewer than seven bridges and two magnificent waterfalls.

Highlights: When you walk across a wooden suspension bridge over the canyon, you can see rock formations shimmering in the emerald green water directly below your feet. In winter, the frozen waterfalls turn into a world-class ice climbing destination, with hundreds of icicles hanging and colorful climbers clinging to the vertical walls.