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    Discover Banff Tours

    3.9 (63 reviews)
    Closed 7:30 am - 8:00 pm

    Discover Banff Tours Photos

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    Marijane F.

    guri was a delightful knowledgeable consummate professional and fun guide for our tour of banffs top attractions which did not disappoint BUT #getyourguide who we have happily used in other cities has to make a change in banff! they lost all the pick up times no matter the location at 8am when. if you read tiny embedded print it will seperate out by location! needless to say we arrived at our location at 8am and didn't get picked up til 950! just a thing they should fix since everything else is so good.

    Night tour
    Shanelle S.

    Great night hike of Johnston Canyon! My friend and I booked a tour online beforehand and we got picked up from a different hotel (only certain downtown hotels allow for pickup). Since it was in February, we dressed very warmly. Handwarmers and foot warmers would be advised. They provide headlamps which you can keep as a souvenir as well as snow shoes. Our group had about 12 people in it and we all fit comfortably in their van. The night hike was short and not too strenuous. We saw a waterfall and stopped at various points to gaze at the stars. One good tip for those with iPhones is to change the night mode setting from 3 seconds to 10 seconds in order to allow the photos to develop better. We had hot cocoa while on the trail and were given a packet of maple cookies. Overall, the night hike was a nice way to explore safely at night and view the beauty of nature.

    Sheila K.

    We booked a tour to see the Columbia Icefields and we chose this tour mainly because of the group size, it was smaller than the typical tour size. We personally preferred being with a smaller group. After you book the tour, you get the choose what kind of sandwich you want for lunch. Food wasn't bad, they actually provide you more than just a sandwich. They included fruits, cookies, and a drink. We stayed at Lake Louise and had to drive down to the mall to get picked up since they weren't allowed to go directly to the hotel. Our tour guide was Anick and she was awesome! She stopped at so many places on the way to the Icefields and back. She also shared a lot of great history along the way which was nice. Her driving was good as well! For someone who gets car sick easily, I didn't feel anything. At the end of the tour, she also gave us maple cookies which was nice. Overall, it was a good experience and I would definitely book again.

    Favorite stop on the tour!
    Monika T.

    Harry was our awesome tour guide in Banff! He did an incredible job telling stories and facts about the area. Definitely our kids' favorite guide! Thank you Harry for the A+ service! :) Monika & Joe

    Up views
    Lin F.

    Book johnson canyon hike with Discovery tour group. Small group big adventure promises and delightfully delivered! Hotel pick up & drop off. Group of 10 for us. Pace reasonable for this overweight middle aged weekend warrior- I was able to keep up. That goodness for photo opportunities and lovely historical spots for a narrative from Rob. Icicles and frozen waterfalls greeted us on the right side of the hike. We were on the look out for wolves, elk, bears- but we only saw footprints of the said wildlife in the ravines and snow streams. Velcro shoe straps for traction provided- go to washrooms first before putting them on at the van. Pole also provided. Rob carried maple cream cookies individually manufactured wrapped from Quebec cookies and hot cocoa. Nice treats. 8:30 am tour booked. Picked us up at 8:11 am. Hiked 5 ish miles. Back to hotel at 12:15 pm. I stayed in Banff lodge. No issues with our group and we all got along. Age varied from early twenties, I am forties, some fifties; several 60's. The older folks seemed fitter than us younger folks! I need to step my weekday fitness level up- Lolol. Best time ever!!! I think I'll book a wolf sanctuary tour on Monday. Definitely use discovery tours especially if you don't want to drive in the snow, rain, or sleet; carry equipment on your carry on; or need a guide at your side! Loved it.

    This photo was taken of me when we got out of the shuttle on the Lake Louise tour
    Mosiah L.

    Discover Banff has the most affordable prices & offers the best variety of tours in Banff. I used them for three of my December excursions. Their shuttles will pick you up at just about any hotel in town. Here is a brief synopsis of the 3 tours I went on. 1) Discover Banff & Its Wildlife Winter tour: I did this tour on the morning of 12/12/2019. It normally costs $70 but their online site had something called an ONLINE2SAVE coupon that marked the price down. I ended up paying $58.80 in Canadian dollars (about $44.70 US dollars) for. The tour lasts about 3 hours. The tour group was small & we were picked up in a blue shuttle van. We were driven to several locations where we got out, observed the scenery & took pictures. The parts of this tour I enjoyed the most were going to Lake Minnewanka & the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Many of the lakes around Banff are frozen but since Minnewanka is so deep, it was only frozen around its edges. Minnewanka means "Water of the Spirits" and local folklore has it that a merman (a creature who's half man/half fish) once lived there. The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel isn't just any hotel. It first opened in the 1800s & resembles a castle. It's currently the most expensive hotel in Banff. There's a small replica of it sitting on a table in the lobby that's made of gingerbread. They had a live stage play version of "A Christmas Carol" performing their auditorium showing later that evening. This place is popular for weddings & has its share of ghost stories too. Though this tour mentions wildlife, since it was December we didn't see many animals other than deer. But we were shown a phone booth near the Bow Falls area of Banff National Park that had been destroyed by a black bear. 2) Johnston Canyon Icewalk : I did this tour later in the afternoon on the same day I did the Discover Banff tour I just mentioned. After I used the ONLINE2SAVE coupon it cost $74.66 Canadian (about $56.40 USD). We were given ice cleats to wear on our shoes for the walk. The tour guide was a fit, slender woman of British heritage who seemed as if she wanted up to break a Guinness world record for the fastest recorded hike through Johnston Canyon. I was expecting a leisurely stroll through the canyon. There would be "2 or 3 hills" she said. Good thing she wasn't hooked up to a polygraph at the time. I found myself stopping to take pictures & then having to rush to catch up with the rest of the group. Me being dressed in layers, being the thickest bodied person in our tour group & the fact that there were way more hills than advertised resulted in, you guessed it, me hitting a physical wall. Here I was, December in Canada & I'm sweating like I was wearing a sauna suit. The tour guide laughs and says, "I see some of you are breathing heavy. But rest assured that the air you're breathing in is fresh, clean CANADIAN air!" She also said, "You guys are gonna get your 10,000 steps in today." Were we at boot camp now? She pretty much dog-walked me through the bowels of Johnston Canyon that afternoon. Beautiful scenery though. 3) Discover Lake Louise: I celebrated my birthday (12/14/2019) with this tour. I arranged it at the last minute over the phone & without the coupon I paid $66.55 in USD. This turned out to be the best tour of them all. Lake Louise is about 35 miles from downtown Banff & was completely frozen over. There were people ice skating and playing hockey on it. It's near a plush hotel that has a shopping center & gift shops inside. The lake has a walking trail around it & is nestled in between mountains. The tour group was there for several hours & were allowed to split up & explore on our own before meeting the shuttle at a predetermined time. A couple of other things that made the Lake Louise tour my favorite was that there were several cute black women & a white couple on it who coincidentally were visiting from Atlanta. Small world! We got out several times on the way to take photos & even saw a bighorn sheep (a ram) casually licking salt from the road. We passed by an elk farm too. If you ever visit Banff, do not skip the Lake Louise tour. Despite my struggle stroll through Johnston Canyon, I still rate Discover Banff Tours a solid 5. I'm not even mad at that woman. In fact I gave her a tip just like I did the other guides. I should've been better prepared. If I visit Banff again, I'll revisit Johnston Canyon. The competitor in me won't let myself go out like that lol. This tour company is the most thorough in Banff. They offer way more tours than the ones I went on. They have dogsledding, horse draw sleigh rides, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, cave exploration, helicopter rides, skiiing, a visit to a wolfdog sanctuary & even an excursion to Calgary to catch a Flames hockey game. The photos I'm posting don't do it justice. You need to see it for yourself!

    Trail marker

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    Page 1 of 2

    Review Highlights - Discover Banff Tours

    Despite my struggle stroll through Johnston Canyon, I still rate Discover Banff Tours a solid 5.

    Mentioned in 6 reviews

    Read more highlights

    Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour - Moraine Lake

    Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour

    5.0(12 reviews)
    0.8 km

    If you're looking to explore just about all of Banff's greatest sights in one day...then this is…read morethe PERFECT tour for you. Not to mention you get to do it all without having to worry about driving or parking! If you're not already sold, which you should be, then keep reading along for all the tour highlights. Our two tour guides were Dominique and James and our bus drivers were Bobbie and Jeff. All of them were absolutely delightful. Dominique and James were extremely knowledgeable about Banff, it's history, it's wildlife, and the surrounding areas. They kept the bus rides entertaining and lively. Jeff and Bobbie were great animal spotters and helped us to see a fox on the morning drive and two elk on our return trip. I also spotted a black bear on the morning drive. We opted to do the full day excursion, leaving on the first bus and returning on the last. This was perfect for us to get able to see everything we wanted to. Started the day at Johnston canyon where we hiked to the top of the falls. This was a quick turnaround time so not everyone was able to make it to the top, but still a beautiful spot even if you don't go all the way up. Once done here we continued on the Bow Valley Parkway and took a stop to take in the views of Castle Mountain...an absolutely majestic sight! Next we were onto the Lake Louise ski gondola, where we rode the gondola to the top and had lunch. There was probably enough time to hike, but not enough time to have a leisurely lunch and hike. We opted for the leisurely lunch as we didn't want to have any bear encounters. Here we did see a black bear as we rode the gondola back down. Next up was Moraine Lake, due to one of the buses getting stuck behind a train we stopped in Lake Louise to pick up some others that we're heading to Moraine Lake, but it was a quick trip. At Moraine Lake we had about an hour, enough time to walk up the rock pile, enjoy the view for some time, and walk the shoreline a little bit. Next stop was Lake Louise, we were here for just under an hour. We walked around the shoreline and enjoyed some time in the fairmont hotel. This route didn't give us enough time to hike here, but they did have another schedule you could follow if you wanted to spend more time doing the hikes here or possibly even canoe. After a stop back at the Lake Louise ski gondola to pick up the last of the group, we headed back to town. It was truly an amazing experience and I'm so happy we booked it. We visited Banff without a car and there's no way we would've been able to see some of these places had we not done this tour. So happy this exists and would definitely book it again if I ever visit Banff again.

    We chose Hop On Banff for our day tour after researching other options, including the Parks Canada…read moreshuttles. They offered the best value and most flexibility in our schedule and gave us ample time at Johnston Canyon to reach the upper falls, at Lake Louise to make it to the Lake Agnes Tea House (a bit hectic but doable) and to marvel at Moraine Lake atop the Rockpile. There was an additional stop available to take the Lake Louise Gondola, but we opted for an earlier return in order to explore downtown Banff and get dinner. Free parking at the Banff train station was easy and convenient. Our drivers and guides were all first class and the retro feel of the school bus was fine (tip - avoid sitting over the rear wheels in back, as it gets quite bumpy).

    Photos
    Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour - Transportation for the day

    Transportation for the day

    Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour
    Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour - Our ride!

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    Our ride!

    Columbia Icefield - So cool!!

    Columbia Icefield

    4.2(63 reviews)
    0.5 km

    We booked a tour with Columbia Icefield Adventures online. The process was smooth…read more On the day of our tour, we drove from Banff up to the icefield area near Jasper. The drive was a trip highlight. We did many stops along the way to enjoy the mountain views. The tour was awesome. You get on a bus which takes you to the glacier mobile and up to the glacier you go. What a unique experience. Our driver was knowledgeable and answered many questions. After you return to the bus, you are taken to the skywalk which is a glass bottom walkway over a gorge. So cool. I had almost as much fun watching people who were nervous about stepping on the platform as I did looking into the gorge. Parking at the icefield was a nightmare. We ended up parking in the RV lot or we would have missed our timeslot. It was also unfortunate that the digital tickets did not have your timestamp on them as we held up the line looking for confirmation of our timeslot.

    It's once in a life time experience to walk on the Gracier. It was amazing…read more This Gracier is located in Jasper which is about a couple of hours away from Banff. The reason that I can't quite give five stars because the Columbia icefield truck was hot on the inside. They can make it a little more comfortable in summer for customers. The parking, the transfer bus, washroom, cafeteria are all great. Staff are friendly and helpful. Recommended.

    Photos
    Columbia Icefield
    Columbia Icefield - A glacial portrait, Sep 2024.

    A glacial portrait, Sep 2024.

    Columbia Icefield - Columbia Icefield - Shoulder of Mt. Andromeda

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    Columbia Icefield - Shoulder of Mt. Andromeda

    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours - Us with our dog team at the halfway mark (on the frozen lake)

    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours

    4.5(70 reviews)
    17.5 km

    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours exceeded my expectations and provided me with a bucket-list experience…read morethat will be a lasting memory. Upon arrival, we were greeted by Motorhead (retired sled dog). He was so friendly, sweet, and engaging. The shop space is open and offers a slue of gift shop items and rentable gear (snow boots and snow pants are a must!). Clean bathrooms are available because once you get to the top of the mountain, there are only porta-potties. I loved my dog team (Ghost, Poblano, Ivar, Mayday, Gomez, and Kannicky). They are definitely professionals and they commit to running. However, when we had some breaks, they were very sweet and enjoyed positive affirmation and pets. Driving the sled is more physically intense than I expected. You will need to do some running up the hill with the dogs. However, the thrill of the experience, wind in your hair, and breathtaking views is beyond words. In my experience, Snowy Owl treats their dogs well. I appreciate their use of colored collars to signal whether the dogs are shy or overly friendly. One of my tour guides for another excursion affirmed this sentiment as well and spoke of them in high regards. This is a must-do experience (expensive, but well worth it). Also, 2 printed photos available at the end for $50 canadian dollars. They will also transfer a digital file and I found this to be well worth it.

    This was SO MUCH fun. Unbelievable scenery. The guides were totally fantastic. The dogs are super…read morecute and loveable.

    Photos
    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours - Us with our dog team at the halfway mark on the frozen lake

    Us with our dog team at the halfway mark on the frozen lake

    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours
    Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours - Our bus.

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    Our bus.

    Banff National Park

    Banff National Park

    4.8(174 reviews)
    0.0 km

    What an amazing time I had at this park! I am a big National Park junkie back in the U.S. and was…read moreexcited to visit my first Canadian National Park. I came with my running group and they combined our runs with various activities around the park. Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park and was established in 1885. It is known for its mountain peaks and turquoise glacial lakes (Lake Louise and Moraine are the two popular ones). Banff offers year-round outdoor adventures like hiking, wildlife viewing, cycling and skiing. The Town of Banff has lots of shopping and restaurants for those that aren't into the outdoor activities. Banff National Park is located in Alberta's Rocky Mountains and has several large glaciers and icefields. Nearby are Yoho, Jasper and Kootenay National Parks. The Town of Banff is at the center of the park in the Bow River Valley. The park itself has a variety of recorded mammal species. Banff National Park has been successful at reducing the number of animals killed on the roads by building wildlife crossings. We drove under a number of these while driving through the park. They are such a clever idea. My running company booked three runs in and around Banff National Park. The views were gorgeous as we did our trail runs. When I first arrived, we took a tour bus to Lake Louise, Moraine Lake and Emerald Lake (in nearby Yoho National Park). I really enjoyed the beauty of those lakes and was able to do some photography work at them. They are just as pretty in person as the pictures that you see on the internet. The huge crowds in the summer was the only downer part. For activities, we canoed down the Bow River. That was a lot of fun and we got great views of the mountain ranges while on the river. We also did the Via Ferrata at Mt Norquay. It was my first time doing one of these and it was easily one of my favorite activities. On my final day, I took the Gondola to the summit of Sulphur Mountain. You can see the whole Town of Banff from there and the breathtaking mountain ranges all around. The Town of Banff has lots of retail stores, gift shops and restaurants. I ate very well on this trip. Overall, Banff was an amazing experience for me. The flight to Calgary from Arizona wasn't too long and my running company did a great job in booking all of my activities. I look forward to a trip back someday!

    I started this draft in 2019. I had to go back to Banff in 2025 as I forgot why I wanted to give…read morethem 5 stars and what to write. Banff National Park is a place where everyone needs to go! They have something for everyone. Nature is at its finest here with lakes, mountains, and wildlife. Even with all the tourists, Lake Louise is awesome. The lake itself is stunning with its turquoise blue water. If you don't feel like walking, go inside the Chateau Lake Louise and have afternoon tea or go souvenir shopping at the gift shop inside the hotel. Moraine Lake is another place that is picturesque. It isn't as popular as Lake Louise, but, it is just as awesome. They have cabins and a gift shop that was closed for the season when we visited. Access to both Lake Louise and Moraine lake is limited. They don't let you drive there anymore. You need to either join a tour, or take the shuttle bus. The city of Banff is a huge populated area inside the park with many hotels, restaurants, shops and even a supermarket. Horseback riding is available. You can take a gondola ride or even go to a hot spring. Banff is a great park. Even my city loving wife, enjoyed our visit to this wonderful national park of Canada.

    Photos
    Banff National Park
    Banff National Park
    Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies

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    Canadian Rockies

    Banff Adventures - Horseback riding

    Banff Adventures

    3.1(23 reviews)
    0.1 km

    I searched around to find the best price on ski and snowboard rentals for our week in Banff and…read morethis was the best price. The quality did not disappoint either as they used a third party to fulfill our rental. We were unaware of this so went to the Banff Adventures office at first, and then was directed to the shop just down the street. I was happy that we were allowed to get fitted the day before our rental started and that they delivered the gear to our hotel free of charge. They also picked it up from our hotel when we were done. The third party was very reputable and I wrote a separate review for them. I would use Banff Adventures again for my rentals!

    My friend and I bought the "Best of Banff" adventure package well in advance of our trip. The price…read morewas so reasonable for all that we were able to do. We were so excited to ride the Banff Gondola, Horseback ride along the Bow River and Kayak on the Bow river as well. The first issue we encountered was when my friend's flight was delayed on her way to Canada and we had to push all of our scheduled activities back a day. The service at Banff adventures was excellent- we had to call a few different times to move things around but each time the attendant was patient and super helpful in helping us to reschedule our experiences. The day of our experiences, we were able to pick the times of our Gondola ride and the kayak but the Horseback riding was the only activity with a hard time. We chose to ride the Gondola first and it was so easy to check-in and ride up the Gondola. The view was spectacular and so peaceful. At the top there was a super cute cafe, which was a nice touch. We didn't eat there but it was nice to know it was there. Next we headed to our Horseback riding appointment. We arrived early so we had time to sign our waivers, get weighed and fitted for our helmets before the safety speech was given. We were each assigned a horse and given a few minutes to get acquainted with our steed. This wasn't my first rodeo, so I was ready to get on the trail right away. Once we were on the trail, it was smooth riding. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous and we were given opportunities for photos with our horses at the end of the ride. Finally, we went over to the Canoe place for our kayaks. It was easy to sign in and get our kayaks. We were given our life jackets and a quick lesson in kayaking. The weather was sunny and warm which made for a perfect day out on the water. The Bow river was especially calm on this day so we really enjoyed our float up river. Overall, each activity was the perfect little adventure. Everything was within a 10-20 minute car ride of each point so it was easy to navigate. We had an amazing day. We would absolutely buy this tour again.

    Photos
    Banff Adventures - Lake Minnewanka

    Lake Minnewanka

    Banff Adventures - Bike rental at Vermilion lake

    Bike rental at Vermilion lake

    Banff Adventures - Big Canoe Tours

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    Big Canoe Tours

    Brewster's Bus Centre

    Brewster's Bus Centre

    3.4(13 reviews)
    0.5 km

    Amazing bus and drivers. I've never been on such a comfy bus that was roomy, spacious and clean…read more Hands down the best tour bus experience. The drivers went out of their way to accommodate everyone and make the experience unforgettable. They have outlets for your phone or in my case I brought my heating pad and the plug proved so helpful. The drivers were excellent drivers especially with snow etc. The bathroom on the bus was clean too. I sat back and relaxed with this tour and loved all the detailed stories. One of the pictures of a bear they have on some of their buses is famous is those parts and I loved how they honored her story.

    On Friday, 12/13/2019, I went on a tour called the Banff Winter Sightseeing Tour. The website I…read morevisited to make arrangements for this tour used several names. One of the names they used was "Pursuit", another name was "Banff Jasper Collection", and another was "Brewster Sightseeing." Since the buses they used for the tour are Brewster's buses, I decided to write my review here. The Banff Winter Sightseeing Tour cost a total of $135.45 Canadian dollars (about $102.31 US dollars). The tour began at 12:30 pm and lasted until approximately 6 pm. Every customer was picked up at their hotel in a blue bus that had the word Brewster's written on the side. Even though there may have only been about 20 customers on our tour, I preferred riding that bus over the small shuttle vans I'd ridden on with another Banff tour company. We had more room to stretch out and breathe. We had a bus driver and a tour guide. The tour guide was a short blonde who was originally from New Zealand. She got us all to introduce ourselves. We had tourists from the USA, Canada, Australia, and Asia. Our first stop was at Lake Minnewanka. I had already been there two days earlier with another tour but it's so nice that I didn't mind seeing it twice. The edges of it were frozen and most of the land around it was thick with snow. It was here that this native Georgian got to wear snowshoes for the first time in my life. I thought they'd be awkward but walking in them felt natural to me. The tour guide was gracious enough to take pictures of us with our cameras whenever we asked. Our next stop was the Cave & Basin National Historic Site. Some people tend to overlook this place when visiting Banff, but because of the sulphurous hot springs here the idea of establishing Banff National Park first began. While we were there we saw two of the hot springs: one outside the cave and another inside. There was a very strong rotten egg odor as we first approached them. While we were viewing the one outside the cave, a Native American woman told us about the history of the hot springs and what they mean to her people. A long time ago people bathed in the hot springs because they thought it would cure various ailments, but that practice has stopped at this location. There's a tiny endangered snail called the Banff Springs snail that needs the hot springs in order to survive. We weren't allowed to put our hands in the springs but a small pail of the water was passed around and we could touch that if we wanted to. Then we entered a small building that was attached to the tunnel entrance of the cave. Inside the cave, we saw the second hot spring. A streak of light shone in from an opening in the cave's ceiling. There was a small platform built around the hot spring so you could safely get a closer view. After leaving the Cave & Basin, we were driven to our next stop and the the grand finale: the gondola ride up to the top of Sulphur Mountain. Each gondola seats four passengers and takes several minutes to reach the top. At the ride's highest point, you'll be about 7,486 feet above the bottom of the mountain. There are large windows for your viewing pleasure. At the top of the mountain is a small indoor restaurant and a kind of family recreational center that features a live Santa Claus for much of the Christmas season, but he wasn't up there during my visit that afternoon. My favorite part of the whole tour though was the outdoor observation deck on the mountaintop. It was like standing on top of the world itself. You could see the town of Banff in the distance and all of the other surrounding mountains. There were tables with small fires in the center of them so you could either warm your hands or roast bannock bread (a treat popular with local indigenous people that you roast like marshmallows on a stick). We were also given warm, delicious apple cider to drink. There were round, see-thru, heated, tent-like things you could sit in if you got tired of the cold air. As the sun went down, it got very cold up there but the view made it more than worthwhile. I looked down and saw the town of Banff all lit up as it got dark. It was a photographer's dream. When I rode the gondola back down, night had fallen and I couldn't see much of anything but darkness when I looked out the window. Once I exited the gondola, I stopped for a minute in the gift shop, then boarded the bus so they could take us back to our hotels. This tour was beyond 5 stars to me. I'd recommend it to anyone visiting Banff. Here is the link to the website I used to book my tour: https://www.banffjaspercollection.com/brewster-sightseeing/winter-wonder-tour/

    Photos
    Brewster's Bus Centre
    Brewster's Bus Centre - One of there buses

    One of there buses

    Brewster's Bus Centre - The observation deck at the top of Sulphur Mountain

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    The observation deck at the top of Sulphur Mountain

    Discover Banff Tours - tours - Updated May 2026

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