This is a great little ski shop right in the heart of Banff that serves as a one-stop-shop for last…read moresecond gear, rentals, lift tickets, and more. I popped in after forgetting to pack gloves for my snowboarding trip, and there were several options to choose from, along with expert analysis from their staff on what would be the best fit. From leather gloves that are poised to last 10 years to more affordable options perfect for one day on the hill, they had quite the stock available. I ended up going with the latter, though their higher end options were something to save for in the future. Don't wait until you hit the hill where you'll get price gouged, do your last minute shopping here.

Friendly. Frequent. Dated. Rented a 4 day ski package here and returned after 2 days due to dull…read moreedges and limited selection of alternative ski options. Mostly Fischer and Rossi(?) skis so if you're looking for other brands or skis that don't look like they've been through battle by 2/3 through season, look elsewhere. Staff is friendly and I'm sure they do a good business being right off the strip but I found other shops in town that offered far fresher rentals.

The top sheet of my snowboard was chipped and peeling off. It was recommended that we come here to…read moreget it fixed. After 24 hours, I picked it up and I was able to use it for the next day. At the end of our trip, we brought our boards to get waxed. It was done timely and at a reasonable price. Overall, wonderful service and helpful staff.

Bear Street Outfitters is awesome. Marshall helped me navigate the enormous selection of downhill…read moreskis. Every day I rented demo skis, he listened to my feedback and recommended a better ski for the next day. A wonderful selection for anyone, top line brands and master advice. I can't recommend Bear Street Outfitters enough. It's fantastic. The best advice I can give: if you are in the market for new skis, demo here and buy.

Before our trip to Banff my husband didn't have time to pick up a pair of snow pants so when we got…read moreto town we went out to try and find some. I saw that Abominable had a 50% off sale so we we went in. They had a great selection of clearance items and, after trying on a few pairs, he was able to find a nice pair or grey O'Neill pants at a reasonable price. However, the experience wasn't particularly pleasant. It wasn't BAD, but I left really annoyed. One of the clerks was just way too suffocating. He followed us around (the store is small, it was easy to tell he was following us) and just way too involved in the process. Every time I picked up a pair of pants and hung them back up on the rack he was right behind me straightening them. I felt like the simple act of browsing was frowned upon and that I was looked at as making a massive mess just for shopping. We just wanted to shop and browse on our own time and not feel pressured or as if we were intrusive. It finally got to the point that I would just hand him the pants because I felt like if he was going to straighten everything after me anyway I might as well not even bother. When we did have a question he answered it politely. I just wish we had been given a bit more breathing room to enjoy the experience of shopping there a bit.

As I read the reviews for this place, Angela B.'s caught my eye because that is EXACTLY what just…read morehappened to us! This morning, Maha and I set out to buy her new boots, as hers did not fit properly anymore. The salesman was gracious and knowledgeable and helped us buy insets for the boots so they fit her perfectly. He tightened them for her, and we paid and went on our merry ways. Maha spent the day complaining that her one of her boots was loose. I told her to tighten the boa and to try to pull the inner boot tighter, but nothing seemed to be working. When we got back to the hotel, she took off the boot and we peeked inside and found that the leather tongue that tightens the inner boot was torn right down the middle. Anyone with an IQ over 70 would know that such a defect is a manufacturer's defect as it was torn right down the middle and there is simply no other explanation. The employees were apologetic and clearly said several times that this was obviously not our fault and a defect from the manufacturer. The owner however, had a different POV and one that really makes me suspect that he is mentally ill. He began raising his voice and saying that he would contact Salomon on Monday (when Canada is observing Boxing Day!) to see what they told him. I calmly, politely, and graciously explained to him that we were here as tourists for only a limited period of time, and as such would appreciate a refund so we could buy new boots that were functional. He would not let me finish a sentence and began yelling, and making paranoid statements. He said that we were trying to force him to do something he wasn't going to do, that we were trying to run him over, and so on. I calmly tried to tell him that I just wanted him to use his relationship with Soloman to get new boots to sell to someone else and allow us to get our money back because HE sold US a defective product. Because several customers overheard the conversation, which was quickly escalating to a one sided screaming match, he got even more aggressive and started yelling that the law was on his side. He then kicked us out of his store, and continued to scream while we were really just bewildered at the way he did business. Fortunately, I have American Express Refund Protection, and the power to let people know on Yelp and other avenues to avoid this place. With so many wonderful, kind and polite merchants in this charming town, do yourself a favor and skip the unmedicated mentally ill man's store (this is what I do for a living-trust me, he's really sick). You won't miss much, and will save yourself a serious encounter with crazy.

genuinely best staff ever, hiroki in particular fixed my busted boa in under an hour. cannot…read morerecommend enough :)

Luke & Co went out of their way to fix my son's BOA device on his older snowboard boot. Outstanding…read moreservice and even fixed it in about 5 hours. Highly recommend this store!!

These guys are amazing! They recommend excellent equipment, delivered to our door, did a ski…read moreswitch out and picked up. Always on time and so pleasant! Worth every penny!!!!

My brother & I spent Christmas & NYE in Banff and we were so glad to have chosen the lovely people…read moreat Black Tie for our ski hire! We couldn't believe how price competitive they were given they came to your hotel room to fit you out & all of the gear was top grade & brand new! A few instructors on the slopes commented on the fact that it was the best hire gear they had seen on the mountain. The other awesome upside to their service was avoiding the long rental lines at the mountain, we practically had a private ski lesson as a result because the other people booked to join us were held up in the morning rush getting their gear & missed the group lesson. This is a part of their outstanding service I hope that no one ever needs to experience...Unfortunately, early one morning our hotel caught on fire, causing serious & extensive damage. Speaking with Jason that day was amazing, he was so helpful, told us there was nothing for us to worry about regarding gear or charges & was more concerned about our wellbeing. Hopefully we get back to Banff again & Black Tie will be our first call!

I had a blast doing the Via Ferrata here at Norquay. My running group company booked this adventure…read moreas an excursion on our trip to Banff. The Via Ferrata (Italian for the Iron Path) has five different types of adventure tours: Explorer, Ridgewalker, Alpinist, Skyline and Summiteer. Each of these trails cater to all different types of skill levels. My travel company booked the Explorer package for our group which is 1 km (3,280 feet) in distance and lasts just over 2 hours. The views are breathtaking and I really enjoyed doing my first Via Ferrata. You can see one of the coolest looking mountains Mount Rundle in the distance while on the trail. Mount Norquay has a rich ski culture that goes back to the early 1900s. It lies directly northwest of the Town of Banff and is one of Banff National Park's three major ski resorts. The mountain has a top elevation of 6,998 feet. The main chair lift is one of the oldest lifts in North America and has been providing riders with views of the Bow Valley since 1948. Mount Norquay Ski Resort is operated by Norquay Mystic Ridge Ltd. Norquay has a total of 60 runs and is a huge supporter of alpine ski racing. The Mount Norquay Via Ferrata is located in Banff National Park. We had a great guide that took us up the sheer rock wall and across the suspension bridge. I initially was a little nervous, but felt safe the whole time with the harness that attaches to the mountain's steel cable pathway. Those cables can hold a ton of weight. Anyone without rock climbing experience can do this. Before we started our climb, our guide went over all of the safety rules and let us do a practice run on a short wall before we headed up the chair lift. Norquay Via Ferrata offers complimentary hiking boots if you forgot to bring some and has a bistro and snack bar if you are hungry. The Norquay Via Ferrata is a must if visiting Banff National Park.

The best experience we have ever gone into blindly. Very well curated guided experience, great…read morecondition equipment, amazing and funniest guide. We had lot of fun with the Ridgewalker hike/climbing we did. Worth every dollar we spent on it. It was safe and the instructions were clear, concise and easy to follow. The work that goes into maintaining those trails is very much unknown and underappreciated. So thank you!

Our family wanted to hike in and around the area in April, which meant beautiful vistas along with…read moreabundant snow and ice on the trails. This meant renting crampons for our party of four. The first place that we went, Outside Bike & Ski ---- while they did not rent them, Paul sent us over to the nice folks at Gear Up. Cara (hope I am spelling that right!) took her time with each of us, explaining how they worked, showing how to adjust them, and then making sure that each of us newbies had our gear squared away so tht we were ready to go! It was also explained that "down days" would be allowed when we were not hiking with the crampons, so no charge there (yes, Canada is awesome!), which spared us the hassle of having to hustle back to the shop on the days we were not hiking. Much appreciated, Gear Up! So, given the amount of snow and ice on the trails, the crampons were life savers, and allowed my family to spend more time enjoying the great outdoors standing upright, rather than lying flat on our backs on the ice, looking dizzily up the sky as cartoon birds flew in circle chirping over our slipped-and-fallen bodies. oofah. Just to reenforce how necessary the crampons were: on this trip, we returned to Johnston Canyon, which is not hike as much as a walk long a path overhanging the canyon and water. Well, this time there was a lot of ice, making it a wee bit treacherous...people hiking in their sneakers were slipping and some falling. We must have had ten people point to the crampons we were hiking in and say "You've got the right idea there! Wish we had those!!" etc. The highlight for me was watching a guy in sneakers holding a cup off coffee sliding down an incline in the path like he had those shoes with wheels in them, maybe 15 feet total, coming to a perfect stop, with his coffee and dignity intact. Olympic Gold medal winner, fer sure!! Maybe not everybody needs crampons, like that guy, but we sure as heck did! We had a great time hiking Peyto Lake, Lake Minnewanka, and more! Thanks, Gear Up, for the great service and gear which added so much fun to our trip!!!!

Amazing staff, affordable prices and great equipment! Usually rental skis, boots, poles, and even…read moreice skates have a terrible look or feel to them but the ones at Gear Up were in good condition and performed great on the mountain! The skates however are standard hockey skates so don't expect too much from those. The man that helped us was super chill and provided us with some pretty great skis. Definitely recommend renting from this place during your stay in the Banff ski area!

Great store and selection of climbing gear but the staff felt a bit condescending when asking…read morequestions about some of the different shoes they have in stock. Overall I would recommend the store if your looking for gear in the Canmore area but just be aware that some of your questions might be dismissed.

Legit telemark store. The only downside to telemark skiing is the challenge of finding a store to…read morecheck out gear. Vertical Addiction is a solid spot.

Great service and excellent prices! Fun to shop there, especially coming from the US.read more

I came here because the park service said it was cheapest place in town to buy bear spray. You can…read moreget a canister for $45.