Question Jasper and Banff

[Greg108]

I am farily new RV owner. Seems like Jasper and Banff are "RV unfreindly" Super few RV parks as far as I have been able to find. Anyone have any tips on how to navagate this area of British Columbia? Best, Greg

 

[Fueco]

I am farily new RV owner. Seems like Jasper and Banff are "RV unfreindly" Super few RV parks as far as I have been able to find. Anyone have any tips on how to navagate this area of British Columbia? Best, Greg

*Alberta

Have you checked the campgrounds? We haven’t brought our trailer up there yet, but there’s a lot of camping.

 

[Rosy]

If you want full service, they're limited but if you're up to boondock, I think there are lots of options as long as your rig isn't too long.

 

[Rollin Ollen]

I am farily new RV owner. Seems like Jasper and Banff are "RV unfreindly" Super few RV parks as far as I have been able to find. Anyone have any tips on how to navagate this area of British Columbia? Best, Greg

I guess the first thing you should know is that both Banff and Jasper are in Alberta. Both are located within National Parks thus development is purposely hindered to protect the wild. Further, Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper are super popular locations so getting a site is almost like winning a lottery. If you can be without services or don't mind a bit of a drive to see some of the local attractions there are some venues available. Cochrane, Alberta is about an hour and a half east of Banff along highway 1. Your chance of getting a serviced site is far better there but still not easy. In Yoho National Park located just west of Banff is Monarch Campground. It is a first come first served and one can usually find a site if you arrive early in the day. There are NO SERVICES. Some sites are Big Rig Friendly. There are some beautiful attractions nearby. It is about a 30 minute drive to the Lake Louise town site and about an hour to Banff. Be aware, you will find just about all of the campgrounds to be located near a major highway and railroads. This is a mountainous area thus limited flat land. The next area that has access to Banff National Park would be from Rocky Mountain House where there are a number of private full service parks and from there one can follow highway 11 (David Thompson Highway) west towards Saskatchewan River Crossing (Name of a small settlement) and you will find a number of Alberta Provincial Campgrounds along the way but don't believe any have services. The drive, however, is spectacular. Rocky Mountain House is about an hour and a half from the Banff National Park border. There is also some beautiful scenery along the Ice Fields Parkway. Next is just outside of Jasper about an hour away along highway 16 is Hinton (east) and towards Valemont, British Columbia (west) where you can find a few private parks with services. Boon docking is frowned upon and in most cases if you find a spot that looks promising, Mr. Ranger sir will make you move. having said that, overnight Parking has been overlooked on occasion in the parking lot for the Columbia Ice Fields tour.

My advice is to bypass the towns of Banff and Lake Louise. Banff is just a tourist trap that very difficult to get around in. Finding parking space is almost impossible. If you must visit the town, there are parking areas outside of town and you can take a shuttle from there. Do not attempt to drive your rig into the town site!! Lake Louise is almost as bad as Banff as is Jasper. The big attraction to this area is the mountain scenery. Definitely worth a visit The best time in my opinion is mid to late fall. It will be cool at night but you should not see the huge masses of people that plague the place in the summer.

Safe travels

Darrell We full time but our home base is in the town of Canmore about fifteen minutes from Banff.

 

[Fueco]

I much prefer Jasper to Banff. The trails next to town provide some great trail running, and I saw several elk out there. Banff just seems like wall to wall tourists, even though you can also escape town pretty quick.

 

[Fueco]

I much prefer Jasper to Banff. The trails next to town provide some great trail running, and I saw several elk out there. Banff just seems like wall to wall tourists, even though you can also escape town pretty quick.

And since you brought up the town, my wife is from Rocky Mountain House. It’s certainly worth a visit.

 

[Rollin Ollen]

I much prefer Jasper to Banff. The trails next to town provide some great trail running, and I saw several elk out there. Banff just seems like wall to wall tourists, even though you can also escape town pretty quick.

And since you brought up the town, my wife is from Rocky Mountain House. It’s certainly worth a visit.

Rocky Mountain House is a pretty town. We stayed at Riverview/Blacksheep Campground for about a week. The sites are huge, flat and well manicured.

Darrell

 

[Fueco]

Rocky Mountain House is a pretty town. We stayed at Riverview/Blacksheep Campground for about a week. The sites are huge, flat and well manicured.

Darrell

I’m sure we’ll end up in one of the campgrounds near there sooner or later. The farmhouse isn’t really livable any longer, but it’s still a good place to visit while it’s still in the family.

 

[Greg108]

Dear Fueco and Rosy, thank you for your comments. All the best, Greg