Alberta
Lake Louise
Adventure 6/10 · Scenery 10/10 · Family 8/10 · Access 7/10
The place
The turquoise showpiece of the Canadian Rockies, framed by the Victoria Glacier. Paddle a canoe on glacial meltwater, hike up to the Lake Agnes Tea House, or ride the summer gondola into grizzly country.
Lake Louise is the postcard everyone comes for, and the reality lives up to it: a sheet of glacier-fed turquoise held in a bowl of rock and ice below Mount Victoria. Rent a canoe from the boathouse for the classic view from the water, or lace up for the steady climb to the Lake Agnes Tea House, where a wood-fired kitchen has been serving hikers since 1905.
Parking at the lakeshore fills before sunrise in summer, so plan to take the Parks Canada shuttle from the park-and-ride or arrive very early. In winter the frozen lake becomes an ice-skating rink beneath the peaks, and the surrounding ski area keeps the valley busy long after the canoes are put away.
What you can do
- Canoeing
- Day hiking
- Tea-house treks
- Summer gondola
