Recent reviews Banff
[magdadh, 02/04/2011] We return the car to Lake Louise, uneventfully after braving Rockies' roads - a doddle in comparison to Scottish single track roads, but that's probably because we are out of winter now - automatic gear boxes and alien signage systems.
Back to the public transport, we get on the Brewster coach for a ride along what is supposed to be one of the "most spectacular stretches of asphalt (I think they mean tarmac :-) in America", the Icefields Parkway.
And spectacular it is.
We have spent almost a week in the Rockies, having travelled from Calgary to Canmore, Banff, Lake Louise, Golden and Roger
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[magdadh, 01/04/2011] Banff is a major centre for tourism in the Canadian Rockies, the main town in the national park which bears its name and probably the most famous settlement in the area. But then, all of Canadian Rockies are about tourism. The European settlement of the area started with the railways, and the railways brought the visitors searching for dramatic landscapes and healthy airs. Hotels (many of them railway hotels, owned by the powerful Canadian Pacific railway company) followed the railways and the visitors flocked to the wilderness.
And wilderness it remains, despite the veneer of civilization a
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[magdadh, 20/01/2011] Banff Gondola is a cable car that takes up those unwilling or unable to walk up the Sulphur Mountain. The gondola takes four passengers in a small, enclosed, bubble-shaped car. The cable car climbs 698m to a level of 2,281m (almost 7,500 feet) and arrives at the Upper Terminal eight minutes after departure.
The ride itself is rather spectacular, with increasingly awe-inspiring views opening before the eyes as the cable car travels up. It is, also, of course, possible, to climb up Sulphur Mountain (a steep but not particularly long climb, well maintained 5.3km path that takes about two hours
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[tartlette, 30/10/2009] One of the evenings on our trip to Banff was spent in Wild Bill’s. This was somewhere that Mr Tart had visited on a previous trip and he really wanted to return there.
LOCATION:
Wild Bill’s is located at 137 Banff Avenue, right in the centre of the town. The entrance is quite small because the bar itself is located above a load of shops, but there is a sign outside.
THE EXPERIENCE:
We booked our table because we were going on one of the nights that the band was playing, however I’m not sure that this was necessary as the place had quite a lot of space when we arrived. The bar is
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[tartlette, 30/10/2009] I heard about the Grizzly House in Banff long before I went there. Mr Tart, who had been there before, raved about the place so when we booked a skiing holiday to Banff this Grizzly was high on our list of restaurants to visit. The Grizzly started life as a disco but is now a fondue restaurant.
LOCATION:
You will probably be able to smell the Grizzly long before you spot the restaurant but this is not a bad thing! The smell of meat filters down Banff Avenue. A friend of mine who was working in Banff and came with us to the restaurant said you could always tell who’d been to the Grizzly
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[tartlette, 30/10/2009] Another of the restaurants we visited on our trip to Banff was the Balkan restaurant. Mr Tart had visited this one on his last trip to Banff and had really enjoyed it so we knew we wanted to visit.
LOCATION:
The Balkan is located at 120 Banff Avenue, the main road through Banff. It is within walking distance of most of Banff's hotels.
THE EXPERIENCE:
We booked a table for our night in the Balkan because it was Greek night and we knew it was going to be busy. The restaurant is popular so I would recommend booking, especially on Greek night.
We were shown to our table which was o
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[tartlette, 30/10/2009] While in Banff, Mr Tart and I sampled numerous restaurants. We tried Giorgio’s early in the holiday and we so impressed that we returned there on our last night.
LOCATION:
Giorgio’s is located at 219 Banff Avenue, which is the main road through Banff. It is fairly easy to spot. There were steps up to the door and I didn’t see another way in so I’m not sure if wheelchairs can access the restaurant.
THE EXPERIENCE:
The restaurant is spread over three levels so it can sit quite a lot of people. Both times we went we walked straight in and got a table (including a Friday night) but if
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[tartlette, 23/02/2009] Mr Tart and myself recently spent 10 days in Banff for a skiing holiday. We looked around a fair few hotels before deciding on Brewsters Mountain Lodge. We were looking for something reasonably priced that had some good reviews.
LOCATION:
Brewsters is not, despite its name, located on the edge of a mountain. It is actually in the middle of Banff townsite, on Caribou Street (yes, nearly all the streets in Banff are named after wildlife!). Banff is the main town located in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies. The nearest main airport is Calagary, which has direct flights to the UK, w
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[jo145, 31/08/2008] Two blocks from Downtown Banff, a popular inn both in summer and winter months. A small indoor pool for relaxation, and a fire in the small lounge in the lobby but otherwise little else to do here. The restaurant is next to the hotel and owned by someone else, but there is a "Breakfast room" where you cook, serve and clear up your breakfast, which is complimentary. Comfortable beds and a view of the mountains, this inn is suitable for a short stay whilst passing through the Rockies.
