Things to do in Banff National Park

Banff became Canada's first national park in 1887, after a hot spring near the townsite was reserved by the federal government in 1885; in 1984 UNESCO listed it with Jasper, Yoho and Kootenay as the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks.

Over 4 million visitors a year cross land within Treaty 7 territory, home to the Stoney Nakoda (Iyarhe Nakoda), the Blackfoot Confederacy and the Tsuut'ina.

Entry requires a Parks Canada pass, roughly 11 CAD per adult per day or 22 CAD per vehicle, with an annual Discovery Pass around 75 CAD per adult — the pass covers Banff, Jasper, Yoho and Kootenay together, but not the neighbouring Kananaskis, which is provincial land with its own separate fee.