Located wholly within Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this historic and world-famous hotel delivers on location, style, comfort, and amenities. Approaching the Chateau-style hotel with its towers, steeply pitched rooves, dormer windows, and substantial presence, it is easy to feel you’ve been transported to the French alps.

Many of the rooms have stories to tell and have hosted famous guest including English and Hollywood royalty. Queen Elizabeth and King George the VI stayed at what was then the Banff Springs Hotel in 1939. Fourteen years later in 1953, the hotel hosted Marilyn Monroe, in the area to film a movie.

The History of the Banff Springs Hotel

As the nation of Canada formed, an enticement for British Columbia to join was the creation of an intercontinental railroad that would join the west to the east. Train travel was the best method for long distance travel. Completed in 1885, the Canadian Pacific Railway Company began to also develop towns and lodging along the line to accommodate passengers.

Why was the Banff Springs Hotel built?

During the construction of the railroad, workers reportedly found hot, mineral springs in the Banff area. William Cornelius Van Horne, president of the Canadian Pacific Railway, saw an opportunity to cater to the affluent traveler at the time who favored nature excursions and spa resorts. Van Horne was famous for saying “If we can’t export the scenery, we’ll import the tourists.” Indeed, he did. 

The Fairmont Banff Springs, formerly known as the Banff Springs Hotel, was one of several in a network of grand, chateaueasque hotels along the line. Far from basic accommodation, these hotels were grand landmarks with incredible interiors and furnishings to rival some of the best hotels in Europe. 

Related to the Fairmont Banff Springs is the Algonquin in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, the Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, Quebec, the Chateau Lake Louise and the Hotel MacDonald in Alberta, and the Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. All of these hotels were built to provide exception experiences and become destinations in their own right for the upper classes.

Providing luxurious travel and lodging to the more powerful and influential people of the nation also helped market and promote the value of Canada’s western lands. In a sense, the railroad and the tourism it encouraged and economy it generated served to unite the new nation of Canada.

When was the Banff Springs Hotel built?

Construction began on the original part of the hotel in 1886 and it opened in 1888, at the height of the Gilded Age. At that time, the explosive growth that had occurred following the American Civil War in steel, railroads, banking, meatpacking, mining and even the textile industry resulted in enormous wealth for a small group of businessmen in America. Many European businessman, through trade and manufacturing, also accumulated tremendous wealth.

For these families, vast and sudden wealth meant they had the luxury of leisure and time. Travel become the most popular occupation, becoming not only something to do but a way to show off their wealth and status and mingle with others of the upper classes.

The original hotel, completed in 1888, was designed by the architect Bruce Price who also designed the Chateau Frontenac and Place Viger in Quebec City and Montreal, respectively. Designed to rival any hotel in Europe, the Banff Springs Hotel could accommodate almost 300 guests over five stories. It was the second hotel completed by the Canadian Pacific Railway. Its popularity resulted in expansion in subsequent years. The tower was completed in 1914 and the main block was built to replace Price’s original wooden portion of the hotel that burned down in 1926. It closed during World War II from 1942 to 1945.

In the early 1970s it was updated for four-season accommodation and began to attract winter sports enthusiasts. A challenging golf course, at the base of Mount Rundle, was completed in 1928. The award-winning spa has recently been enlarged to more than 40,000 square feet and updated to include couples’ areas and modern fitness facilities.

The Banff Springs Hotel Today

The Banff Springs today continues to offer visitors an authentic mountain experience with its beautiful scenery, cozy accommodations, and delicious food. It also offers a variety of activities for guests to enjoy, such as hiking, horseback riding, golf, fishing, and skiing.

How many rooms does the Banff Springs Hotel have?

Choose from among the Fairmont Banff Springs’ 745 guest rooms for the perfect accommodation for your visit.  Everyone can find exactly what they need whether it is a cozy, tucked away room for a couple’s getaway or a lavish, spacious suite to celebrate a family or group event in style.

Twelve highly acclaimed restaurants give guests a wide variety of dining choices.  After an energizing day of hiking, nature photography, or golfing, dress for the evening and enjoy a cocktail at the historic Rundle Bar, maybe even some live music, before enjoying an excellent meal.

The Fairmont Banff Springs is also a family friendly hotel. Most restaurants have menus accommodating children with smaller portions and half plates. If you would like a romantic dinner for two, there are child- and baby-sitting services available.

How much is the Banff Springs Hotel worth?

Determining a precise dollar figure for the worth of the Fairmont Banff Springs is difficult since the hotel is privately held. It was part of a global luxury hotel brand acquisition when the French hotel chain AccorHotels bought its parent company in 2016 for $2.9 billion USD.  

AccorHotels really bought the holdings of three companies – Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissotel – comprised of over 150 hotels and resorts with more than 50,000 rooms globally.

Is Fairmont a luxury brand?

The Fairmont brand is most certainly associated with luxury. The Fairmont name began with the Fairmont San Francisco. The hotel opened in 1907, one year after the earthquake and fire destroyed much of the city. 

From that moment on, the Fairmont name has been associated with exceptional accommodation, fine dining, and the best locations. So much so that in 1999, when the Canadian Pacific Limited company bought a major stake in what was then known as Fairmont Hotels, instead of keeping its name it was renamed Fairmont Hotels & Resorts. 

There is a long list of royals, dignitaries and celebrities that have visited hotels under the Fairmont brand. Commonwealth visits, political strategic planning, and iconic pop culture moments have all occurred in Fairmont hotels across the world.

Does Marriott Own Fairmont?

The hotel was owned by the Fairmont Raffles Hotels International company until 2016, when the company was sold to the French AccorHotels. The Marriott hotel chain, which merged with Starwood, is a competitor of AccorHotels who now owns the Fairmont Banff Springs.

How much does it cost to stay at the Banff hotel?

Depending on the time of year and size of the room, prices vary. In general, one can expect to pay approximately $500 USD/night. During the more popular summer season or if you have your heart set on staying in a suite, prices can be higher, ranging from $650 USD/night up to $3,000 USD/night.

How many days do you need in Banff?

To make memories that last a lifetime and to truly feel the embrace of this special place, if you can spend two weeks in Banff you won’t regret it. If you only have a few days or a week, certainly you may be able to squeeze in a hike, play a round of golf,  enjoy some fishing, or marvel at an indigenous cultural event. But you will be moving too fast to really enjoy and reflect on the wonderful experiences you are having. 

Part of the tonic of this place is reflecting back the calm, the beauty, the wonder and the peace of that amazing natural settings. If you can stay longer, you will begin to appreciate the magic of hikes in different habitats, the path and energy the rivers take, the quality of skiing before and after a new snowfall, and the friendliness and warmth of the people you will meet in the communities throughout the region.

How much money should I take to Banff?

Aside from the type of accommodation you choose and the type of meals and activities you want to do, the time of year you choose to visit can also impact how much it costs to visit Banff. Rates for hotels tend to be lowest January to early March and mid-August until early December. Certainly, a solo traveler or couple will have lower expenses that a family of four or five.

A solo traveler could expect to spend between $25 to $50 USD per day on budget on food, entertainment, and sightseeing activities. Personalized activities, fine dining, access to luxury amenities such as spas or golf, or all-day activities such as skiing with rentals would move the needle on costs up to as much as $200 USD per day.

These figures can multiply up for couples and larger groups.  Costs can range from $225 (budget) to $700 (luxury) USD per day for couples and $400 to $1,000 USD per day for a family of four. There are certainly ways to economize and save your dollars on some things to be able to splurge on other activities, or even just save your dollars.

These estimates do not include travel costs such as air fare or hotels in Banff or rental properties. Some hotels offer transportation services to and from airports and to local sites that can eliminate the need for a rental car. Short-term apartment or house rentals allow you to cook many of your own meals and reduce the costs for restaurant dining. 

Why Is the Banff Springs Hotel So Popular?

The Fairmont Banff Springs hotel, often called the “Castle in the Rockies”, is landmark hotel, equally important for its architecture and history as for its location in the stunningly beautiful Banff National Park of Canada. Guests can enjoy a wide variety of year-round outdoor activities and relax each evening in the comfort and luxury of the hotel’s amenities.

This five-star hotel offers exceptional comfort, impeccable, personalized service, and amenities to compliment everyone’s interests. Take advantage of the fitness and aquatic center for a workout or swim, a yoga class, or relax with a spa treatment or a soak in the hot springs pool. 

Venture out on a hike recommended just for you or hop on hotel-provided transit to the town of Banff for shopping. All season access means you can hike, golf and fish in summer and ski, snowboard, and ice climb in winter. Located at the confluence of two rivers, canoeing, fishing, and whitewater rafting can also feature into your stay. 

Why Is This Place So Popular?

Located in the Canadian Rockies, Banff Springs Hotel offers visitors an opportunity to enjoy nature at its finest. Guests can hike through the nearby forests, take part in outdoor activities such as skiing, snowboarding, and ice climbing, or simply relax in the hot springs pools.

The Banff Springs Hotels’ Future

In addition to being one of the world’s oldest hotels, Banff Springs Hotel also boasts some of the most luxurious accommodations available today. With a variety of room options, including suites with fireplaces, private balconies, and whirlpool tubs, guests will find everything they need to make their stay memorable.

The hotel is undergoing a program of updates to guestrooms and suites. One phase will be completed in the summer of 2022 and a second phase is expected to be complete in the spring of 2023.

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The Rimrock Resort Hotel is pleased to offer exclusive accommodation in a unique location.

Offering 333 guestrooms, we have something for everyone. With warm contrasting earth tones and dark wood accents; all of our guestrooms are complimented by the natural beauty surrounding us.

Explore our room categories and room types below. We look forward to providing you with a room that meets your needs and expectations.

Dining and Lounges

The Rimrock Resort Hotel offers a great variety of options for your dining needs; our dining venues include two restaurants (Primrose and Eden), two lounges (Larkspur and Divas), a coffee shop and our in-room service. Our Eden fine dining restaurant has become a milestone destination for diners around the world, honoring since 2003 its AAA/CAA 5-Diamond rating (only 4 in Canada) and “Best of Award of Excellence” Wine Spectator Awards.

SPA AND WELLBEING

Embrace the peace and quiet and stunning views of the Canadian Rockies in our Rimrock Resort Spa; with a focus on comfort, relaxation and wellbeing. Each treatment promises to bridge a deeper sense of awareness to mind, body and energy. We offer therapeutic massage treatments, enhancements, facials, hand and foot care treatments.

Meeting and Events

The Rimrock Resort Hotel is proud to present a Convention Facility that is able to create exceptional meetings, weddings and events for groups of all sizes and types of functions.

Our facilities are literally carved into a majestic mountain. The Art Deco interior adds an elegant touch to all events. Rooms are specifically designed with windows that let light in to illuminate inspiration. Our Conference Services department is dedicated to planning every aspect of your function – from agenda to adjournment; enabling you to accept the accolades from your delegates with every successful session.

We offer flexible spaces to create a perfect event. With the utmost attention to detail and delectable food and beverage offerings, we will make your function a memorable one. The Rimrock Resort Hotel Convention Facility features over 18,000 square feet. We have an on-site audio-visual company who will provide state of the art equipment that will meet your every need.

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People have gathered on this spot to renew the human spirit for 5000 years. This land hums with energy, lineage, and living memory—with a panoramic view and plentiful sunshine, the mountain rises straight up from our door an pathfinding elk, coyote, and deer walk among us.

The Juniper was built more than 60 years ago. It’s a blink in the life of this vista, but our retreat is one of Banff’s most celebrated as we know it today. From this vintage modernist homebase only minutes from downtown, spirit-seeking adventurers and travellers land with us to find fresh air and fresh perspective.

Throughout the day we see skis and bikes on the back deck, bags of climbing ropes, and plenty of rosy cheeks. When you land at The Juniper, you land well, immersed in thousands of years of spirit.

Stay.

After a day of adventuring in the renowned fresh air of Banff National Park, come home to your bright, comfortable guest room and relax, surrounded by nature. Choose a cozy standard room oriented to the deep greens of the forest, a deluxe room with an awe-inspiring valley view, or an elevated suite or cabin. Select rooms can accommodate pets upon request. 

From the moment you step into the lobby, you’ll feel the warmth of our signature Canadian hospitality—with friendly guides to help you find your way to the best the mountains have to offer. Join us in the lounge, where you can enjoy delicious food and drink at our unparalleled vista of soaring peaks and shimmering lakes. This is why people have gathered in this spot for thousands of years: for the light, wilderness, and renewal of Banff.

Always included: wi-fi access, free and convenient outdoor parking, and a warm welcome.

Dine.

In the heart of Canada’s premiere national park, our chefs curate a bounty of garden-fresh and sustainable regional produce and handcrafted ingredients to create award-winning dishes. This is truly modern Canadian cuisine: food not only inspired by our stunning surroundings, but by the fresh-faced, hunger-making joy of mountain life. Long considered one of Banff’s hidden gems, the Juniper Bistro is a local favourite and proud recipient of multiple titles in the annual Best of the Bow dining awards.

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In the heart of Banff National Park, you’ll find the pristine, sky blue Lake Louise with The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise on its shore.

Undoubtedly set in one of the world’s most beautiful landscapes, this historic luxury resort is a popular choice amongst brides and grooms, as well as travelers to the region.

The journey to the resort is a beautiful experience in and of itself. The scenic drive takes you past snow-capped Rocky Mountain peaks, glacial melt rivers, mammoth glaciers and icefields and a variety of resident wildlife.

When you arrive, you’ll probably just have to look around and gather yourself for a minute because the view is so breathtaking.

Take your pick from the elegant and polished, yet relaxed and inviting guest rooms. Comfortable guestrooms, suites, specialty rooms and primo Fairmont GOLD rooms are available at this Fairmont location.

The Fairmont GOLD rooms are part of a six million dollar expansion that was completed in 2008. Something of a hotel within the hotel, these rooms are the finest suites in the Rocky Mountains and offer a high level of personalized service.

The luxury resort has Internet access should you choose to stay connected, both in the room and in several common areas.

Also on grounds, you can let go of every last bit of tension at the Escape Spa & Salon and dine in a variety of delicious restaurants!

The resort also offers excursions and programs for guests wanting to get to know the area. The Mountain Heritage program has guests taking guided casual walks around the lakes, and hiking and mountaineering the tallest peaks and deepest canyons.

Your wedding pictures will be stunning if you get married at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise! (The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise)[/caption]

Mindfulness In The Mountains is another example program offered at The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. This weekend program offers a variety of body, mind and spirit practices that will heighten your capacity to observe, see and feel.

Plus, Mother Nature has provided one of the biggest playgrounds right outside the door. Ski, ice-skate, horseback ride, hike or snowshoe, depending on the season.

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Modeled after a Scottish Baronial Castle, The Fairmont Banff Springs is a unique accommodation in the Canadian Rockies at worst and a majestic dreamland at best.

That may sound a little over-stated, but where else can you find plush rooms, a world-class spa, championship golf courses, and every kind of cuisine imaginable all under one roof? And did we mention that it is located right in Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site within minutes of Rocky Mountain ski slopes?

Stay in this castle in the Canadian Rockies and you won’t be disappointed. The luxury, hospitality and individual attention at The Fairmont Banff Springs is unrivaled.

The resort is also a great place to hold a reception- whether it’s for your wedding, retirement or a company Christmas party! There is a wide selection of banquet rooms to choose from. After the reception, your guests can just head up to their rooms in the hotel!

Whether you’re there for a big event or just on a relaxing vacation, the Willow Stream Spa will be a highlight of your trip. This 38,000 square-foot spa overlooking the Rockies has a therapeutic mineral pool with three cascading waterfalls, private steam and inhalation rooms, saunas, whirlpools, sun terraces for men and women and offers all the spa treatments you could imagine. Ask about the regional treatments!

For those looking for the ultimate getaway, The Fairmont Banff Springs is now offering Fairmont GOLD. Guests on this floor of the hotel will experience superb personalized service including a private check-in desk, personal concierge service and an expansive guest lounge. The guest rooms are elegant, spacious suites with real feather pillows and plush comfortable robes, amongst other posh amenities.

The dining options at the resort are diverse enough to fit any taste. You’ll find regional, contemporary and international cuisine right on the resort. There are so many great choices that a weekly dining guide is published for guests to help you make your selection! Stand outs include Castello Ristorante (Italian), Samurai Sushi Bar (Japanese) and Waldhaus (Swiss/German fondue).

Restaurant reservations can be booked when you reserve your room at The Fairmont Banff Springs. The restaurants are also open to the general public. Read here about restaurant descriptions at the hotel.

If you can actually peel yourself away from the hotel grounds, you’ll be in a great position for sightseeing in Banff National Park. The Icefields Parkway is a great scenic drive past the mountains, lakes, streams and glaciers of the park. This parkway will also connect you to The Fairmont Banff Springs’ sister resorts: The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise and The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge.

Kids will love the new program organized by the resort called Banff Explorers-Into The Wild. This program starts the summer of 2010 and consists of a day (or half day) of exploration, excitement and education for children and their parents. Teach your kids about environmental stewardship in a fun way! Program activities may include learning about photography, playing sports, cooking classes, and field trips into the park!

And of course, the park’s wilderness offers a wealth of activities for the whole family. Downhill or cross-country ski, dog sled, snow shoe and ice-skate in the winter and golf, hike, fish, raft and horseback ride in the summer.

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Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is the largest luxury hotel company in North America, with a tidy collection of 56 hotels around the world. Its size means that if run incorrectly, the effects on the environment could be disastrous. Luckily, the company also enjoys an international reputation as an environmental leader in the industry.

Way back in 1990, when people thought global warming meant having to buy less jumpers, these guys were way ahead of the pack. Guided by its Green Partnership Program, an environmental initiative pioneered by its Canadian properties in 1990, the company received two prestigious awards in 2006 alone: the Global Tourism Business Award and the Worldwide Hospitality Award for Best Corporate Responsibility Program. Perhaps its greatest compliment came from the National Geographic Traveller which claimed that that Fairmont Hotel and Resorts has “the most comprehensive environmental program in the North American hotel industry. In fact, the Green Partnership Program’s Green Partnership Guide has been endorsed by none other than world-renowned environmental activist Dr. David Suzuki.

Green Cuisine

The hotel offers a “Green Cuisine” to customers and even staff which consists of sustainable, locally produced, organically grown food. “We are always told to think globally and act locally here at Springs. We all contribute in our own way.” – Jeff, Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.

The leftover food is converted into composting organic waste, which is then converted into mulch for the use of local farmers to start the whole process over again. All untouched food from banquets, buffets, etc goes to local homeless shelters.

The example that Fairmont Banff Springs has set has been copied by its smaller peers around Banff, meaning the future of Banff National Park is looking as bright and green as ever.

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