Banff Tour with Gondola & Lake Cruise - roundtrip from Banff
Description
Discover the Canadian Rockies' favorite resort town and its beautiful environment on a 4-hour guided tour of Banff. You'll visit the intriguing hoodoos earth pillars shaped by centuries of wind, then spot where Banff's history began. Ride up Sulphur Mountain on the Banff Gondola, and enhance your experience with a Lake Minnewanka cruise. Hotel pickup is included. Please note that until Lake Minnewanka opens in mid May, this tour will not include the lake cruise.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Views of Banff National Park
Ascend the Banff Gondola and enjoy the views from our boardwalk deck
Views of Sulphur Mountain while you are on the gondola
Views of Bow Falls
Views of Tunnel Mountain
See the Rocky Mountains from a new perspective while touring beautiful Lake Minnewanka on a panoramic 1-hour interpretive cruise. Beginning from the western end of the largest lake in Banff, the Lake Minnewanka Cruise sets sail under towering peaks. Take in breathtaking mountains and emerald-green water as you keep a watchful eye on forested slopes and rocky shorelines for wildlife and waterfalls. Cruise always included from June 1 to October 7th.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Fairmont Banff Springs 8:05 am pickup Banff Caribou Lodge 8:05 am pickup Elk + Avenue Hotel 8:15 am pickup
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Duration ranges from 4.5 hours to 6 hours
- Prior to your travel date, your hotel details must be provided to the local tour operator so they may arrange your pickup. If you do not indicate this at the time of booking, you will be required to call and advise them of this information directly. The contact details will be on your voucher once you have a confirmed booking
Reviews(171)
Driver Colin and host Michaela were absolutely brilliant - pick up was great and they kept us fully engaged and informed all day . The gondola tour was spectacular and the highlight of the trip.( take a jacket its chilly at the top ) Lake minewanka tour although beautiful is a little underwhelming .
Hi nikkisV201FW, Thank you for your kind review! We're so pleased to hear Colin and Michaela made your day enjoyable, and that the Banff Gondola was the highlight of your trip. We also appreciate your feedback about Lake Minnewanka. Thanks for travelling with us, we hope to welcome you back again soon!
Our host Hailee and Driver Gerald were welcoming, informative and very energetic adding greatly to this excursion. Lunch was an added surprise. Including two attractions with tickets included made the day easy and fun. Plenty of time at all the stops.
Thank you for the great review! We’re so glad you enjoyed your day with Hailee and Gerald. It’s wonderful to hear their energy and knowledge helped make the excursion even better, and that the timing, stops, and lunch all added to an easy, enjoyable experience. We really appreciate your feedback and hope to see you again in the Rockies!
Our day started with a very punctual team, Eleanor and Colin, this was their first time working together. They played off each other very nicely. We never felt rushed. Colin would take time to pull over to get pictures of Big Horn Sheep, or any other animal if we had seen one. He is very entertaining and has a great knowledge of the area. Eleanor was a knowledge and accommodating. We would highly recommend this day tour.
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're so glad you enjoyed your day with Colin and Eleanor. We'll be sure to share your kind words with them. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you back again soon!
Excellent day out with a Banff Gondola trip and Lake Minnewanka cruise. We were on a trip with Pursuit tours and our host was Holly. Excellent visit to Banff Gondola and up Sulphur Mountain, just spectacular. On to a boat cruise on Lake Minnewanka, also fabulous. Holly was a great host and she made it memorable for us.
Hi Sarah H, Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed your day exploring the wonderful sights around Banff. It’s lovely to know Holly helped make the day even more special- we’ll be sure to share your kind words with her! Thank you again and we hope you had a fantastic vacation.
We saw a lot of sites we would not have seen solo and had great guides that were very knowledgeable and patient
Smooth transitions. Great excursion. If you’re lucky you will get Mike the driver- an actual local. The gondola and cruise were fantastic
Brewster was unresponsive (I was on hold for 2 hours before finally getting a call back) and Viator was unhelpful in answering questions. The tour operator and Viator should provide an itinerary of the tour in advance. Conflicting information was provided regarding departure time from the meeting point as well as lunch plans. While the tour description says no food/drink provided, a full lunch buffet actually was provided. All this aside, Ben and Andrew were great tour hosts and I’d recommend them for future tour opportunities.
Bus tour that starts in Banff, works through a few local sites (drive by castle, stop at garden) then winds out to the gondola, plenty of time to take boardwalk to weather station for epic views, food/coffee/gifts at the top of Sulphur MT. Then a stop for lunch before heading to Lake Minnewanka for a 1.5 hour cruise. Ben the bus driver, Andrew the guide, Kenji the captain, and Hayden the boat guide were all amazing! Back to Banff by 4pm.
It's not cheap, but it's worth it. The trip is laid out well, and it gives you a good feel and lay of the land in Banff. The Gondola was great- even though I don't like heights. The view was quite something. The boat tour was informative and interesting. Our guide Kirsty was fantastic! As we're our two guides on the bus- Dustin and Andrew. Lunch was pleasant. Good variety for the small buffet. It would be nice to have "real" baked good for dessert though. Not mass produced ones.
Andy and Holly were very good But the lake minnawanka boat cruise was a total waste of time. The gondola ride at Banff was really nice as were cascade gardens; just these 2 things would have been fine. Boat tour was not impressive at all. Waste of time and money.
Hi micheletl4566LQ, Thank you so much for your feedback and for joining us on tour. We’re glad to hear you enjoyed the gondola, Cascade Gardens, and the great service from Andy and Holly. We’re truly sorry to hear the Lake Minnewanka cruise didn’t meet your expectations, as many of our guests find it a highlight. We’ll be sure to share your comments with our team as we continually work to improve the experience. We really appreciate you taking the time to let us know what you enjoyed and where we can do better, and we hope you enjoyed the rest of your trip to the Rockies!
