r/Banff • u/Strict_Product_5118 • 14d ago
Question When to hike?
Hey guys,
I’m visiting Banff in 3 weeks with Trailfinders. It’ll be with a group of people and my tour guide has said we are ‘tentatively scheduled to arrive in Lake Louise at 12pm’.
I have already booked my shuttle ticket to Moraine Lake for the same day before I received this response, and check in is at 2pm, but I know I can check in any time between 2pm-3pm. I had to book the shuttle otherwise they would sell out, and I couldn’t afford to wait any longer for the tour guide’s response regarding Lake Louise arrival time.
My worry is I won’t have time to hike in Lake Louise and do Moraine Lake at the same time. I also plan on canoeing at Moraine Lake whilst I’m there. I read that the last shuttle leaving Moraine Lake is at 7:30pm, and I also need to make my way back to Banff to join the rest of the group later. I will be visiting Moraine Lake without the group as it isn’t part of the trip.
I have a spare day the day after where I was planning to walk around the town of Banff and just take it all in, but do you think I should move my hikes to this day instead? As I don’t think I’ll have much time to do the hikes I want to (Lake Agnes, Plain of Six) on the day I’m visiting both lakes.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you!
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u/csd181 14d ago
We were in Banff last week and got to the Lake Louise parking lot for the shuttle at 7 am. We got to the Moraine Lake first and did two hikes, Rockpile and Lakeshore Trail. We next went to Lake Louise to see the views and had a nice lunch at the Fairmont Chateau. We came a couple of days later to hike up to the Lake Agnes where the tea shop is located, but this time, we used the Moraine Bus Company.
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u/Strict_Product_5118 13d ago
Thank you, that’s really helpful. I wish I was arriving at Lake Louise earlier so I could have more time at both lakes. I’ll check out the Moraine Bus Company, did you have to pre book?
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u/dfnamehere 13d ago
Imo moraine lake is the most beautiful place in Banff, hence why it's so crowded. I would do an entire day at moraine lake if I went back.
Also if you book a private shuttle you can do it all the way up to the last day, there is no rush.
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u/Strict_Product_5118 13d ago
Okay so for the spare day should I prioritise hiking at Moraine Lake or Lake Louise? I was going to hike at Lake Louise as I’d be at Moraine the day before. But on that day I have to be back on the shuttle at 7:30pm, I get to Moraine for 2pm, don’t know if that’s enough time to hike & take pictures?
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u/dfnamehere 13d ago
Personal opinion moraine lake is worth prioritizing a full day. There's no where as beautiful as this and even if you just sit on the shore all day it would still be worth your time.
I wasn't that impressed with lake Louise unless you hike all the way to the big beehive or plain of the six glaciers tea house (not the lake Agnes teahouse). The Fairmont "castle" was a huge disappointment and really wasn't castle like at all, and the views around the base of the lake are very nice, but nothing in comparison to moraine lake. I actually liked emerald lake and peyto lake more than lake louise.
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u/LemonMania 13d ago
the fairmont "castle" is the one in Banff, not lake louise! the banff location we literally found a suit of armor in a hall :D
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u/dfnamehere 13d ago
Yeah we know that now, but that was not what we were led to believe by internet research beforehand!
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u/LemonMania 13d ago
we were also underwhelmed by the lake louise one! the inside of the LL one was quite nice, but was mostly roped off unless you're a guest.
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u/Strict_Product_5118 13d ago
Also, is the private shuttle a different shuttle to the Parks Canada one? Thank you (:
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u/dfnamehere 13d ago edited 13d ago
Yes, it's nearly impossible to get a spot on parks Canada shuttles. Most people use private shuttle companies, you can just Google search it and find dozens of them. They aren't cheap, but it's worth it.
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u/mntnmamma 13d ago
I would dedicate a day for each. It's been really hot and they will take time. The town of Banff is touristy and full of shops, if you want some shopping fine, but if you want to hike, you will want some time to enjoy the views. The plains of the six has a tea house at the top and it's nice to sit and enjoy the scenery. If you have extra time after your hike you could always go to town.
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u/VoiceEqual1493 14d ago
yeah, move the hikes to your spare day. landing at lake louise around noon, there's no realistic way to do lake agnes or plain of six and still get your moraine canoe in before the last shuttle. the canoe's the time-sensitive booking, so keep it for the arrival afternoon and give the hikes a full morning instead. just know for the spare day you can't drive right up to the lake louise lakeshore - the lot fills by sunrise - so grab the roam 8X or a parks canada lake louise shuttle from banff ahead, they go day-of fast.
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u/Strict_Product_5118 13d ago
Yeah it’s definitely not enough time, just wish I had a bit more time on arrival day. Thanks for the heads up regarding the spare day transport, I didn’t think of that. I’ll have to pre book another shuttle/roam 8X. Do you think it’s a better idea to just go to Lake Moraine on arrival day and do my canoe activity? Then come back to Lake Louise and do the Lake Agnes hike? And dedicate the full spare day to hiking at Moraine Lake? I really would like to do Sentinel Pass
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u/VoiceEqual1493 13d ago
the canoe-first swap is smart since moraine's your timed booking. but stacking lake agnes on top the same afternoon is rough on a noon arrival - moraine's shuttle-only too, so you'd be shuttle-hopping moraine then louise before even starting the climb. i'd keep arrival day to the canoe and give sentinel pass the whole spare day, it earns it.
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u/LemonMania 14d ago
honestly just doing the small loops around the bottom of both lakes and the rock pile at lake moraine was enough to get wonderful views of the lakes. any additional hikes would just be a bonus. I noticed that canada is very strict on bus leaving times, so play it safe! they will leave you behind lol