H wants to know where we’re going this summer. Well, not Ukraine! S2 and DIL will be visiting here in September. We went to the Canadian Rockies in 1989 and I was thinking about making a return trip. (I broke my back on a horse there the last time, so didn’t get to do much of what we had planned.) Is it more crowded these days, a la US National Parks? Is there snow on the mountaintops in July-Aug? Any recommendations for things to do/scenic drives?
We did a RT US cross-country trip two years ago and had a great time. Has anyone done this in Canada?
Other alternative is England/Scotland/Wales, but are trying to avoid the flood of people heading to the Olympics.
I think a Canadian Rockies trip in July or August would be awesome. I’ve been twice during those months, and the weather was great both times. I can’t speak to how crowded things will be - the last time we were there was probably 15ish years ago.
It will be high season in the Canadian Rockies- so guessing accommodations will be at a premium. We have gone in mid September and early October - and consider that an ideal time. Sorry about your broken back - sounds painful and scary. We have gone on a combo horse pack/ride and hiking trip there many years ago and no injuries - thankfully We love Lake Louise and Banff - haven’t made it as far as Jasper for at least 30 years and maybe that would be less crowded?
Vancouver in BC is a great city, Vancouver Island is so beautiful both Victoria and off the beaten path (Sooke Harbor etc) plus it is an easy and stunning drive from Vancouver up to Whistler with nice hikes, restaurants in the village and many summer activities.
Regarding Scotland - we just returned and everywhere we went was crazy crowded and really shocked us. So busy on the Isle of Skye that our Inn threw together a dinner for all the guests that were unable to get into any of the local restaurants! We had made reservations in advance and were covered - and had to hit all the popular walking trails no later than 8 am or after 7 pm to avoid the crowds and actually get parking. They did say the crowds thin out a bit in the summer months due to the amount of midges (sp) bugs in certain areas in the country. Not at all what we imagined for our trip to have to plan so much around crowds.
Wow, that’s good to know about Scotland. DH and I are pretty sure we’re related way back, because we found evidence that someone with my family name (an unusual one except in southern Scotland) married someone with his. A trip there is high on our list. We will have to plan carefully, it appears!
I’m so surprised to hear about the crowds in Scotland! We have been in late September/early October and July and it wasn’t crowded at all. We’re hoping to get back in '26 to drive the Northcoast 500. I hope we don’t run into too many people!
I’ll second the vote for Vancouver and surrounding areas. We had a phenomenal visit there. What a gorgeous part of Canada!
It appears May is the month - the main crowds were in Edinburgh (castle sold out by 10 am for the entire day) and in the Isle of Skye. Big with campers coming over from Germany, Netherlands etc - We were in Skye in early May and they said that the visitors numbers were at a record already for any month in the past! We went to visit Talisker Distillery and they had regular tour tickets available for select dates in June and the 1 ticket left for the $150 barrel tasting tour the next day!
One reason is we were told why it was so crowded is the “midges” get really bad (hiking with netting) and it has pushed tourist season earlier - not an expert - so take my info with caution We noticed a lot of tour buses with mainly seniors and then the campers.
A friend just returned from a Canadian Rockies trip and was floored at how crowded it was. (Lake Louise, Banff, Jasper…) Their whole group also got covid toward the end of the trip.
I was surprised to hear this as I used to spend a lot of time in that neck of the woods – albeit quite a while ago – and was always blown away by how few people were there.
My overall sense is that people are still working through pent-up covid travel-lust. It seems like crowds are the new normal everywhere…
We did Scotland in April – all four seasons within an hour! Since the guys went off to college, we started traveling in shoulder seasons (April-May and Sept-Oct) to get better weather and fewer crowds. Apparently we aren’t the only ones who had that idea! S2 and DIL will be with us in September, and High Holidays are in October this fall, so I think we are kind of stuck with peak summer season.
We were in BC (Victoria and Harrison Hot Springs) in December for our 40th anniversary. We drove up to Ucluelet about ten years ago and had the best scallops and sushi of our lives. Loved the remoteness.
Older S and other dear friends are in northern CA, so we would try to see them as well on a Canadian trip.
I really want to do the Icefields Parkway and Jasper, which we missed when I fell off the horse. We camped near Lake Louise and had snow on August 15th, but never did much in Banff.
Did Banff in September last year and it was glorious. Parks were pretty empty, weather was beautiful during the day and chilly at night. Lake Louise had the only crowd we saw the entire week and it wasn’t mobbed. Stayed in Canmore which has cute restaurants and a walkable little town. No restaurant was crowded and a few were empty except for us. Summer crowds gone, winter not started yet. Hiking fantastic that time of year…
We stayed in Banff in February 2023, but we were there to ski. We drove from San Diego across the Trans Canada Highway and stayed at Revelstoke to ski first before going to Banff. We spent a day in Canmore when it was -18 and we skipped skiing that day. We loved both Lake Louise and Banff and would like to plan another trip there in September or October one year.
I did summer and stayed in all the Canadian Pacific Railroad Hotels (gorgeous) and Christmas week in just Banff, also gorgeous. Both were crowded but not crazy like public beach crowds.
Last summer we did a trip to the Canadian Rockies. It was spectacular. Are you East Coasters? We are and we awoke early each day (since we were still on East Coast time) and got to our morning hike by 7am. No crowds! But when we returned to the parking lot, tons of people. So my tip is rent a car, plan to start your days early, and make dinner reservations. Reserve the car asap, do not use Avis, sign up for the car rental’s “club” so you can skip the lines (you will see why when you get there!). Get tickets ASAP for a shuttle to Lake Moraine as you can no longer drive there. If you decide to actually plan this trip, I can give you more information. I will say that we stayed at The Moose Hotel and Suites in Banff and highly recommend it. You can actually stay in Banff and possibly find a day long tour to Lake Moraine and Lake Louise thus avoiding the stress of Very expensive lodging at Lake Louise and trying to figure out where to park and to get a shuttle to Lake Moraine.
Yes, Banff Springs Hotel and Chateau Lake Louise (both Canadian Pacific Railroad Fairmont Hotels) are expensive but if you ever were going to spend $$$ on hotels, these are some pretty nice ones!
We stayed at The Moose Hotel and Suites in Banff in February of 2023 when we skied there. Since we drove from San Diego H booked this hotel as there was underground parking for the cold nights and they had ski lockers.
It was a great hotel and we could walk to restaurants and shops in the evening and we jumped on a bus to visit the Banff Springs Hotel.
We tend to stay on east coast time when traveling west. Worked really well for Yellowstone and Yosemite. H likes the idea of going back to the Canadian Rockies, so this is good.
Just looked at the Moose Hotel and Suites. Now I remember why we camped the last time we were out there! (We had snow at our campsite near Lake Louise on Aug. 15th. That wasn’t on my bingo card!) The Empress in Victoria is also a Fairmont property. We went for high tea there on our 40th anniversary, but stayed elsewhere.
We love Lake Louise and Banff - haven’t made it as far as Jasper for at least 30 years and maybe that would be less crowded?
We noticed a lot of tour buses with mainly seniors and then the campers.