A place to see all the animals you didn't see live in Banff National Park…read more We didn't see a lot of wild animals in our trip to the Canadian Rockies. Trout in Maligne Lake, pikas at Morraine Lake, elk on the Icefields Parkway, and bison at a ranch in the Kananaskis Valley. Here in the heart of Banff is a two story 100+ year old building, constructed out of Douglas Fir, renovated, so that the interior structure looks spanking new, with varnished wood beams. Entering the front door, and I feel like I'm in the center of a stage, with all the animals seated in the stands and bleachers, looking right down on me, with open eyes, ready to pounce! Individual airtight glass cases, to keep out destructive insects and live rodents, and keep the dust down. Wolves, lynx, elk, moose, bison, mountain lion, ox, beaver, bear, deer, mountain goat, owls, birds, and pronghorn sheep. Two stories, with the second floor being a corridor running along the sides, with a center gap, looking down on the displays. Many of these animals, I've seen live in Yosemite, Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks. Today for the 150th anniversary of Canada, free admission throughout 2017. A great place to spend a few hours during our stay in Banff, under forest fire smoky skies, this first week in September.

One of the perks for running the Banff Marathon was free entry into the Banff Park Museum. It was…read morevery convenient since the race finished right at Central Park. So after the race, my friend and I stopped in here to check things out. Before we began looking around, the guy at the entrance made sure to let us know that some of the exhibits were over 100 years old and cautioned us not to touch any of them. There were 2 floors full of exhibits including a room with videos. A lot of the animals that we saw were ones you probably don't want to come across out in the wild! Overall I thought it was a museum definitely worth checking out.

I was there from Saturday to Monday for a work conference…read more staff: pleasant. To be honest I did not interact with them too much except for at breakfast buffet and they were friendly. service: front desk staff friendly, restaurant staff friendly, staff in conference area friendly. They were discrete as to not interrupt conference and still kept everything running smoothly. establishment: nice, quaint, comfortable rooms - from style - but perfect for sleeping and desk area to work. Bathrooms big and roomy. Conference room nice and big with big windows to outside. Restaurant fantastic. Great food and nice big windows to see the scenery while you eat! food: great! Buffet breakfast nice big spread and variety. Just the buffet lines were awkward - please find a smoother system for making the buffet lines. Buffet lunch was great - Indian/Mediterranean foods and flavour! Conference food and health breaks were a nice variety.

This place is off the chain amazing!…read more I went to a welcome party here recently for a weekend event and was blown away by the Banff Centre campus. GORGEOUS!!!! Words simply cannot do this place justice. Check out Three Ravens here to dine on culinary student delight! Creativity and nature are oozing from every corner. There's a free museum here as well you've got to check out. Basically, if you're going to Banff - visit here. And if you have the opportunity to come here for a conference or work retreat, don't think twice - say yes instantly!

The Whyte museum was named after Peter and Catherine Robb Whyte, local artists and philanthropists,…read more who created a museum where visitors could see the culture and landscape of the Canadian Rockies. Paintings of the original settlers, the Indians, and their clashes with the white men explorers in the 19th century. Building of the railway, including an interactive tunnel view. How the railroad tracks were laid through mountainous areas, and the effect of frequent avalanches. Picture of the golden spike where the trans Canadian railway was joined. No Chinese workers, who did all the hard work, in the picture, just business men in formal clothing, gathering around the railroad track. Early women tourists in their long ankle length skirts exploring the glaciers in pictures. Men and women of wealth in pictures showing their fancy dress for crossing the Rockies by rail. Cutaway view of a automobile from the 1920s, with a film of automobiles in the Canadian Rockies at that time. The Canadian Rockies contribution to the war effort in the world wars, including descriptions and pictures of heroic actions by locals fighting the enemy. The Canadian Rockies in the movies, including posters of 'Saskatchewan', and 'River of No Return'. Helicopter skiing in the late 20th century, where helicopters would ferry skiers to the top of mountains, to ski down. Mountain climbers going up mountains, with display showing how they slept in tents anchored off the cliffs. Great way to spend time indoors when Banff was suffocating under forest fire smoke. $10 per adult, $9 for seniors, and AAA discount. Wife had no objection when I paid for 2 senior tickets, even though she was not yet 65. You know you are getting old when the museum cashier doesn't ask to see identification with dob!

VERY SMALL MUSEUM IN BANFF…read more We recently visited the Whyte Museum located in downtown Banff. Admission is $15 adults, $12.50 seniors and students and free for children. There are free docent-led tours as well as a one hour Historic Banff Walking Tour (fee) and Historic Homes Public Tour (fee). No coffee shop on site but there is a very nice book and gift shop. This museum is a beautiful space but very small. The permanent exhibition hall is one large room featuring artifacts relating to the local Indigenous populations and the early history and pioneers of Banff. Without the docent-led tour of the special exhibit, Thick as Thieves, we would have spent less than 1/2 hour at the museum.

I love to learn about Native American history (US), or First Nations People in Canada. I had high…read morehopes for this museum - it had some excellent artifacts and information posted. It's a traditional-type museum that is self-paced with still, quiet displays & dioramas. I'm not a fan of the mannequin-style dioramas because it feels a little creepy to me, but that's just my aside thing. I hope one day they will update their museum to have interactive elements and to modernize. I'm glad to support this museum with my entrance fee. We spent about an hour here browsing the displays and enjoying the space.

Museum about the native Canadian Indians, inside a building resembling a 19th century log fort,…read morecomplete with towers, near the center of downtown Banff. Lots of mannequins with painted faces and hands, covered with traditional native Canadian Indian clothing. These mannequins are not in display cabinets nor in dioramas with background settings, but just out in the open behind security ropes. Low budget from the 1970s. Display showing warriors hanging from their chest muscles from the ceiling, in a ceremony. Women weaving behind a small hut. Women washing clothes. An Indian warrior on horseback using a bow and arrow to shoot a bison. Indians herding horses, with a dog running aside. Warriors in teepee. Indian chief presiding over a gathering. Canadian Mountie and Indian warrior side by side with their horses. Displays of headdresses, papoose, stuffed animals such as mountain lions and bison. Crafts, artifacts, native artifacts of the first nations. Gift shop with free coffee, except that I'm not addicted to coffee, unlike most of my fellow Yelp friends. Would have like to have seen big display dioramas of battles in the French and Indian Wars, and other wars involving native Indians in Canada. No showing of massacres. Would I come back? Only reason to come here is that all outdoor events smoked out by the smog created by the forest fires, causing me to cough.

One of the only historical sites in Canmore to visit. A small exhibit with donated items from…read morearound the time period. Some nice old photographs and printed out stories on the walls. If a docent was there to walk with you and tell you stories and more facts this could be really great but it is self guided. Which is okay because it's only a few, very small rooms. I think this museum has been around for awhile but is still lacking. At least Canmore has this for us history buffs.

Cute little movie theater. A little tricky to find- make…read moresure you look up. The gps will take you to the exit- when you get there turn around, go outside and hit a hard right..

I thoroughly enjoyed going to the Lux Cinema on my first trip to Banff! It reminded me of the…read moresmaller, local theaters iI used to go to in Aspen and Edwards Colorado. Great vibe while in line for popcorn and wine; lively conversations before the movie started too.

Years ago we had stopped in here and purchased a photo print. We couldn't remember exactly where…read morethey were located in Banff but found them again during our latest visit and bought another print. The photographs are fun, the staff is very helpful, and you can get a unique souvenir of your visit. Nice art store to explore.

Love this gallery, just happened that the day we went in the gallery. The photographer Jason was…read morethere. His photos are amazing. He greeted us , and as we wandered around he told us the story behind each photo. So , when in Banff wander in take a look . My favorite is "The Boss."

I recently got married at Hive Gallery, and words cannot express how wonderful the experience was…read more Cheryl and the rest of the crew went above and beyond to make sure the day was absolutely perfect. Everything that I envisioned for the day was carried out perfectly, from the photo booth that was set up for us to the room where kids could hang out and watch Netflix. We opted to have the ceremony outside on their large balcony, and it was truly a beautiful setup, with flowers entwined over an archway above us and the mountains surrounding us. Cheryl was even so kind as to record the whole ceremony for us, as my husband's family was unable to attend, so we will have a very special piece of the day to share with them when we go visit. The staff took care of all the decor based on inspiration photos that I had provided and assembled floral bouquets for all the tables, which were absolutely beautiful. The food, which was provided by Cornerstone Catering, was delicious... the best creme brûlée I've ever had! And when it came time for dancing, the tables were moved away, the disco lights came on, and their very talented DJ went to work, playing songs that kept the dance floor busy all night! I received so many complements from people who attended, telling me how beautiful the venue and the ceremony/reception were. I would not change anything about the day, as it was executed perfectly. Thank you to the staff at Hive Gallery for making my wedding day so magical!

My wedding reception was recently hosted at the Hive. I am writing this review to provide feedback…read moreto others considering the same, and to experience some sort of catharsis after an overall awful experience on what should have been a happy day. I have never felt so belittled, disregarded, and demeaned in a professional relationship. Before I provide insight into my negative experiences, I should recognize areas where the Hive excelled. The Hive is a beautiful facility with an interesting layout that lends itself well to smaller groups hosting events. The art work is top notch, and the décor of the wedding itself was put together beautifully. Staff members worked hard to choose, create, and set up flower arrangements and accommodate color selections. Staff members accommodated our guests with specific food restrictions, and ordered/picked up 2 meals from a local restaurant. This was going above and beyond as I expected needing to ask a family member to do this. The Hive hired an exceptional bartender to work the main bar. I had nothing but positive interactions with her and received good feedback from our guests. I will also say that our guests largely had a good time, enjoyed the venue, and had fun with the adult paint room. The Hive agreed to set up a photo booth with short notice (although this only required setting up a small digital camera on a tripod, securing a black sheet over a wall, and placing props I had already purchased on tables/hooks). The Hive was also good at adding small touches, such as placing blankets on the backs of chairs of outdoor guests for comfort. I realize my review is lengthy. In this case, the length is directly proportional to the level of difficulty we had in planning the wedding with the Hive. Due to character restrictions on Yelp, I cannot post my entire review here. I urge you to read the full thing on Trip Advisor (https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attraction_Review-g181727-d9765610-Reviews-The_Hive_Gallery_Gatherings-Canmore_Kananaskis_Country_Alberta.html). If you do not have time, I will briefly sum up my experience. From the onset, there were communication issues. Complete information was not always provided; contradiction and inconsistency were instead the standard. I felt that the process was poorly organized and scattered. Major changes were proposed to our program, and contracts with the caterer as many as 5 days, and as little as 1 day before the wedding. Arrangements were not carried out as requested and agreed upon. I urge you to visit the Trip Advisor review for an abundance of concrete examples of my experiences.