Check out those giant deer... Wait—they're elk? What makes the lake so blue? Doesn't even look like real water. There's a bald eagle in that tree. Just saw a marmot, too. I think I see that mountain we climbed yesterday. We're going rafting tomorrow, right? That waterfall is the tallest thing I've ever seen! This is the best vacation ever.
Day 1 Take in views of Mount Rundle and Cascade Mountain while biking from Banff to Lake Minnewanka | Tackle the climb to a beautiful lookout on Mount Norquay | Explore the charming national park town of Banff, the gateway to the Canadian Rockies.
Day 2 There's nothing quite like a morning spin past towering peaks, virgin forests and the blue-green Bow River | A short walk through Johnston Canyon reveals stunning waterfalls | Kids partake in their own fun and games with a special dinner and night out while adults savor epicurean delights.
Day 3 Gaze at the reflection of Mount Victoria in the turquoise waters of Lake Louise | The younger crowd teams up with a local guide for a rock-climbing lesson | Meanwhile the grown-ups embark on a classic Rockies hike to the historic Plain of Six Glaciers Teahouse | You might even hear the thunderclap of ice avalanching off distant mountains | Join local bear expert and researcher Colleen Campbell for "Bear Biology 101."
Days 4-6 Hike to beautiful Moraine Lake for spectacular lake and Wenkchemna Peaks views | Head into Yoho National Park and trek along a forest trail carpeted with buttercups and bunchberry to milky-blue Sherbrooke Lake | Rafting on the Kicking Horse River—white-water thrills! | End your Canadian Rockies Family Adventure with a polar bear plunge into Emerald Lake.
only complaints:Dinner at Balkan in Banff: too long and too loud. Difficult to talk. Would have preferred a quieter setting to facilitate discussion with new acquaintancesDinners at Post hotel were excellent but stretched to almost 3 hours. Its tough to make it through after a day of activitymy daughters didn't feel completely safe on rock climbing. One daughter didn't like that other kids were holding the support rope and needed coaching about proper techniqueLeaders were outstanding. Helpful, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, friendly, responsive- Northern Virginia
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Accommodations may vary based on departure date. Any difference from what is listed below can be found by clicking on your desired date on the Dates & Prices tab.
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A grand contemporary lodge on Sulphur Mountain with awe-inspiring views of Bow Valley and the surrounding Rockies. Travel + Leisure World's Best. (pool, spa)
This European-style mountain chalet, set on the Pipestone and Bow Rivers, is the epitome of old-world elegance. Travel + Leisure World's Best. A Relais & Châteaux member. (pool, spa)
A secluded turn-of-the-century lodge, built of hand-hewn timber and featuring simple cabins nestled in the woods above a spectacular tree-rimmed glacial lake.
There's no better way to find out about Backroads than by hearing it from the people who have traveled with us. For more about the Backroads Experience, read our Guest Testimonials.
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Comments about Canadian Rockies Family Multi-Adventure Tour � Teens & Younger Siblings:
only complaints:
Dinner at Balkan in Banff: too long and too loud. Difficult to talk. Would have preferred a quieter setting to facilitate discussion with new acquaintances
Dinners at Post hotel were excellent but stretched to almost 3 hours. Its tough to make it through after a day of activity
my daughters didn't feel completely safe on rock climbing. One daughter didn't like that other kids were holding the support rope and needed coaching about proper technique
Leaders were outstanding. Helpful, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, friendly, responsive
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Comments about Canadian Rockies Family Multi-Adventure Tour � Teens & Younger Siblings:
Every vacation with Backroads is special and the Canadian Rockies was no exception. Our entire family loved the trip formed deep relationships with trip leaders and other families from day one! Our kids walked away with friendships that continued well beyond the trip.
Comments about Canadian Rockies Family Multi-Adventure Tour � Teens & Younger Siblings:
This was our first Backroads trip. We enjoyed every minute. The leaders were fabulous and the other families were just as fabulous. We made lifelong friends. We are already thinking about where in the world we will go next with Backroads. All of us were challenged in one way or another and overcame fears. The Canadian Rockies are breathtaking!
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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The earlier you book, the more choice you'll have and the lower your price. And you can always change your mind—you won't be charged to transfer to a different trip before your final payment is due.
Please click on a date below for specific pricing and possible itinerary variations.
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AVAILABLE TO BOOKi GOING FASTi CONTACT USi PRIVATE TRIP - RESERVEDi
Interested in a Private Trip? Check out the Make It Private tab for private dates available, or call us at 800-462-2848.
Every Backroads trip is designed to appeal to a wide variety of interests and fitness levels. We know your pace may vary from one day to the next—and your traveling companion's may differ somewhat from yours. So we present a range of mileage options, and each day you decide exactly what and how much you want to do.
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| Daily Route Options | |||||||||||
| Day | Activity | EASYGOING | ACTIVE | AVID | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 | |||||||
| miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | miles | feet gain | ||
| 1 | Biking | 7* | 200 | 21 | 1000 | 29 | 1600 | ||||
| Biking | 37 | 2600 | |||||||||
| 2 | Biking | 11* | 500 | 39 | 2000 | 45 | 2600 | ||||
| Biking | 18* | 800 | |||||||||
| Walking/Hiking | 1 | 100 | |||||||||
| 3 | Walking/Hiking | 7 | 1200 | 8 | 1900 | ||||||
| Kids | Rock Climbing (5 Hours) | ||||||||||
| 4 | Walking/Hiking | 4 | 400 | 4 | 700 | ||||||
| 5 | Rafting | on the Kicking Horse River (5 Hours) | |||||||||
| 6 | Walking/Hiking | 3 | 200 | ||||||||
Note: Most activities on this trip take place at elevations of 3,000–6,000 feet, which can make the routes feel more challenging than the mileage may suggest.
* Includes shuttle.
Learn more about how we determine our activity levels and fully support a range of abilities and interests.
Please note that our distance and elevation figures come from Ride with GPS. Other sources (such as Map My Ride and Garmin devices) may give differing elevation figures due to different GPS and mapping technologies. Readings from a Garmin or a smart phone are influenced by other factors such as air pressure.
After exploring these mountains for more than three decades, many of us now live among them. Backroads Regional Manager Alison Iles, who raised her kids in Banff, not only designed many of our Rockies trips but has also served on park development committees and chaired both the Interpretive Guides Association and the Heritage Tourism Association. Having helped set the standards for all travel in the region, she knows how to ensure our trips exceed all expectations.
We've been bringing Backroads guests to the Post Hotel & Spa in Lake Louise since the early 1980s, and over the years we've built a great friendship with George and André Schwarz, the Swiss-born brothers who've made it a Canadian Rockies landmark. You and your family can count on a warm welcome as you ride up to this Relais & Châteaux lodge – especially from André, a renowned ski instructor who's joined us on several biking trips around the world.
Coordinating multiple activities throughout a single day can be tricky, but with Backroads you'll never know it. When you explore Canadian Rockies with us, you switch activities seamlessly without missing a beat. We invented the multi-adventure concept, and we're constantly adding new dimensions and fine-tuning the experience to make it even more enjoyable.
When everyone's together, there's lots going on; and when kids' and adults' priorities diverge, it can seem like two different trips. That's why our Family Adventures in Canadian Rockies have three Trip Leaders—including a dedicated Kids Activity Expert who regularly takes younger travelers off to do their own thing. Other companies try to get by with two leaders; we step up and do it right. For more on our family focus, check this out.
Backroads is the only active travel company providing two support vans in Canadian Rockies—because we know it's essential to ensure a truly great travel experience. It doubles our ability to be there when you need us to offer hydration, lighten your load or give you a lift if it's time to take a break. Read more on why two vans make all the difference.
After more than 30 years of creating Backroads Multi-Adventures, our trip designers know how to blend the perfect balance of biking and hiking with other activities to showcase the best of a region. And then they arrange the seamless transitions that would be so hard to orchestrate on your own—adding dimensions to your trip that are exciting, inspiring and just plain fun.
It may be hard to imagine being on a family trip with no other families on it—but it happens regularly with some companies. On a Backroads Family Adventure there are typically several families on each departure, creating more opportunities for your kids to make new friends as they try fun things together – which is a big part of the experience.
We design and support our Canadian Rockies trips to suit mixed abilities and varied interests—so you can set your own pace, then change things up as the day unfolds. And all guests are free to do the same, traveling together or apart, with no one cramping anyone else's style. Which sounds easy in theory, but it's hard to pull off. Here's more on how we do it.
Backroads is the leader in designing trips that ensure everyone, young and young-at-heart alike, has an amazing time. Your Backroads Family Adventure balances family activities with diversions designed exclusively for the kids—giving the adults a welcome break from making decisions, other than choosing whether to explore a few more miles or just enjoy each other's company. A family vacation where everyone gets to relax, recharge and have fun – what a concept!
Backroads has the best-qualified people to lead your trip in Canadian Rockies, and our guests back that up, rating our Trip Leaders an average of 9.75 out of 10 for all-around quality of performance. Get the facts (and no fluff) on how we recruit and develop the very best people for your trip.
Backroads first headed up to Canada in 1980, when an older Trudeau was prime minister, and we've been exploring its spectacular landscapes ever since. Our leaders are Canadian and many are proud to make their homes in Canadian Rockies—where we offer more trips than any other active travel company and have spent many more years finding the best ones.
For nearly four decades we've worked to earn and maintain our right to call Backroads the world's #1 active travel company. In pursuing that vision on behalf of our guests, we believe we've set the standard for our industry—captured in the Backroads Quality Guide, which clearly sets out the benchmarks of excellence, choice and support that we live by
The activities on Backroads Family Adventures are designed with all of you in mind. We've got easier routes designed for younger kids' abilities – and attention spans—and great longer options scaled to fit the tastes and energy levels of tweens, teens and adults. To narrow down the best choices for your family, take a look at our age guidelines.
Under our Book with Confidence policy, your Backroads trip will run even for a single family of three or four people, subject to a nominal extra fee. Or transfer to another trip, and we'll give you a credit. It's all part of our trademark commitment to treating guests with integrity, transparency and total accountability. Read all the details.
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Gather your favorite people to share a Backroads adventure on a ready-to-book Private Trip - featuring all the legendary Backroads hallmarks from expert leaders to unforgettable activities. You can pick from the selection of dates below for your group of 8 or more. If your party has fewer than 8 guests, or your preferred date is not available, we'll create a departure just for you. Call or email us to reserve your date.
Click on a date below for specific pricing and possible itinerary variations.
8 AVAILABLE TO BOOK FOR 8 OR MORE GUESTS 16 AVAILABLE TO BOOK FOR 16 OR MORE GUESTS RESERVED
Don't see your ideal travel date? Make a Date! i
Invite your family and friends on an adventure that's entirely your own - for your group of 8 or more. Find out more
I simply can't imagine a better way to immerse yourself in the life of a region, to explore hidden corners and appreciate nuances while enjoying the benefits and enormous satisfaction of traveling under your own power. These are experiences you cannot have behind the wheel of a car, or on a train or a tour bus. Active travel is, at its heart, a way of connecting more authentically with the world. Sure, Backroads provides amazing leaders, superb accommodations and meals, and opportunities you could never arrange on your own. But all of our comprehensive planning and support is aimed at something far simpler: bringing you the immediate, highly personal satisfaction of discovering a new world on your own terms.
— Tom Hale, Founder & President
