An Epic RV Trip to Western Canada and the Canadian Rockies PT. 1 (Calgary and Banff)

This is a guest post by Gretchen Holcombe from Boxy Colonial on the Road. It is part one of a three-part series of podcasts about her family’s epic RV trip to Western Canada and the Canadian Rockies. In this first entry Gretchen take a close look at Calgary and Banff.
Our family had been dreaming of a Canadian Rockies RV road trip for years. But we’d done several great trips to Rocky Mountain destinations in the US—Grand Teton, Glacier National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park—and we wondered if the Canadian side of things would just feel like more of the same. After spending a couple of weeks exploring the region over the summer, we can definitively say that the Canadian Rockies are at least as impressive as their counterparts to the south and that they show off in completely different ways and are well worth the trip no matter how many gorgeous mountains you’ve been lucky enough to visit in the past.
Our Canadian Rockies adventure took us to four different national parks and included stays in four different campgrounds. In this post I’m talking about our first two stops: at the Okotoks Lions Campground outside of Calgary and at Bow Valley Provincial Park in Canmore, a few minutes away from Banff National Park.
Calgary
Calgary, Alberta is an easy 80 mile drive from Banff and home to the closest major airport, so it’s a very common first and last stop for people who fly in to visit the Rockies. But it’s also a vibrant city in its own right with a ton to offer, so I recommend spending some time exploring here before rushing off to the mountains if you can.
Okotoks Lions Campground
The Okotoks Lions Campground was our base camp for exploring the city. We were pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed spending time in the small suburban city of Okotoks as well; the campground is right on the Sheep River and is an easy pleasant walk along a paved path from the charming downtown area with shopping and restaurants. Everything else you might need as far as groceries and other services is a short drive away. The campground offers 55 spacious, well-maintained full hook-up sites for only $50 Canadian/night. There’s a small camp store, a clean and modern bathhouse (with pay showers), and a huge community playground right at the entrance to the campground. Wi-fi is available for a small daily fee, and we found it very speedy and reliable.
Downtown Okotoks is packed with adorable coffee shops, bakeries, breweries, and shops. A couple of our favorites were 94 Take the Cake, with its quirky black and white decor and beautifully decorated baked goods, and Brew and Scoop Co. ice cream and coffee shop, with a great outdoor seating area in the heart of town.
Things to do in Calgary
The Wilder Institute’s Calgary Zoo might be our favorite zoo we’ve ever visited, largely on the strength of its very playful polar bears. It’s Canada’s most visited zoo and has over 1000 animal residents; in addition to the polar bears, we were especially fond of the penguin and grizzly bear habitats. If you happen to be there on a Sunday, the Sunday Safari buffet brunch is an excellent value; my husband and son still reminisce fondly about the chocolate fountain.
I came across a self-guided walking tour on the Fearless Female Travel blog, and we used this as our guide to exploring some of Calgary on foot. The tour took us through the stunning public library, past some fun public art, and finally to the lovely urban oasis of Prince’s Island Park and the iconic Peace Bridge. From there we made our way to the hip neighborhood of Kensington and stopped in for snacks and games at the Hexagon Board Game Cafe.
Canmore and Banff National Park
Bow River Campground
To be honest, Bow River Campground was not our first choice for this leg of our trip. We’d planned to stay at Tunnel Mountain Trailer Court right near the town of Banff. However, reservations proved even more competitive than I had anticipated, and we found ourselves shut out even though I was online the seco...