Comparing the Alberta Mountain Towns of Banff and Jasper  

Do you prefer Banff or Jasper? I also forgot to mention the skiing/snowboarding around Jasper - Marmot Basin is a fantastic facility, but I think the skiing/snowboarding is better around Banff. Thanks for watching!

Lived in Banff, Jasper, LL, Field, and a bunch of others. When I was young, Banff for sure. By the time I hit my 30s, Jasper, hands down.

Both Banff and Jasper are awesome. The trip from Banff to Jasper is inspiring with sites to see and explore. Columbia Ice Fields comes to mind. Give Vancouver Island a good visit as well some time. This would have to be a 30-day vacation, to say the least. Such fond memories. No cell phones when I last toured that country, so we called the venture a 20-roll trip.....camera film. LOL

Love both. Each have their own separate and different charms and issues

Gotta say, I prefer Jasper but both are such beautiful places. Congrats on the growth of your channel and subscribers! So happy for you that people are finding your great videos!

Jasper is my favourite, mostly for the laid back atmosphere, but my favourite part of Banff (not counting the breathtaking view) is the huge candy store. 🙂

Awesome info, this area is on my Must See & Do List…!! Many Thanks!

Nice video! I have yet to get out west to these towns. I haven't been west of Ontario. Been everywhere east of Ontario. Some day soon I hope. These towns look amazing! Keep up the great videos. Cheers!

Great video- thanks! I feel to add: to drive to/from Banff to Jasper on the Icefields Parkway - offers many possible stopping points. Driving in the mountains: I can never get enough of it. I have had the pleasure a handful of times to drive people to the mountains for their first time- magical to witness their awe (while experiencing it for myself over and over). Edmonton is home. I find it hard to choose a favorite between Banff & Jasper. I do visit Banff more often recent years- friends in Cochrane & Banff.

Like always, very fair comparison between towns. Great job on your channel.

Moving from Toronto to Calgary back in 2018 was the best decision I've ever made and going to Banff was our weekend gataway until 2021. Post pandemic, it just exploded to what it is right now. I miss the time when it's very laid back and not very busy. Now we prefer Canmore, but it's becoming more like Banff now.

This was actually super helpful, haven't been to Banff since I was very young and I want to go back soon when I'm in Alberta :)

Love this channel.

Thanks for doing these videos. Its handy being a guy from Regina that is living in Edmonton.

I've always preferred Jasper for its more laid-back vibe and less touristy feel. Plus it's closer to my home in Edmonton. I like to stay in a chalet-style motel that's right by the Athabasca River. Maligne Canyon, Pyramid Lake, Valley of the Five Lakes, and the trails around Jasper Park Lodge are all within a short drive. Have to say though, after living in Alberta for more than fifty years, four years ago I finally visited the Waterton Lakes area and it's now my favourite Alberta destination.

Great overview! Banff and Jasper have their own beauty, benefits, and styles. It really depends on your needs, interests and age.

Great vid man

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I usually go to Banff to ski, but find myself staying in Canmore for the amenities. I'd love to give Jasper a try for once.

As a Banff local I can say that you got this more or less right. The biggest thing you got wrong is shopping. Sure in Banff you can spend $2k on a Canada Goose parka but essentials like a cheap frying pan is tough, especially since they forced out the dollar store in favour of a weed shop. Thankfully there's a new dollar store coming in soon. That said if you're new to town you can jump on the roam bus and go to canmore where there's a crappy tire and a dollar store. Also IMHO the restaurant scene is not a tie, generally speaking the restaurants in Jasper give better service and quality. There's such an influx of visitors in banff, they're all held captive and all of the restaurants in banff are pretty mediocre as a result. There's no real reason to improve because people keep coming back anyway. The restaurants in jasper don't get that influx of 3000 or so calgarians storming the gates every friday through sunday so they rely on good word of mouth. And banff may have more nightclubs, but jasper still has a 7 day a week night club scene. I would say that Jasper wins the nightlife/restaurant scene. And just to add on to your point about the arts scene, it was even more vibrant before COVID. The Banff Centre lost a great deal of their staff when they shut down. The sound engineers/lighting/others who were some of the best in the world at their jobs left for jobs in the film industry in toronto, calgary, vancouver, LA, and Atlanta. That talent hasn't really been replaced yet. It used to be blue rodeo would play on or around canada day every year, and they would sell out within days. The vinyl cafe christmas show would sell out the day it went on sale. Most of these tickets are snatched up by Calgarians. The vinyl cafe especially so, even though stuart mclean would do two shows at the jubilee there were still hundreds of calgarians who made the vinyl cafe in banff a part of their christmas tradition. Shows like that used to bring tens of thousands of visitors to the town every year. It will be awhile until that returns again.

If you're under 30, Banff. One underappreciated aspect is what's directly west. Jasper has Mt Robson and Wells Gray. Banff has the Kootenays. It is all very beautiful, but the towns and various attractions are built up differently. I personally prefer Jasper due to the amount of time I've spent working up north, but I always recommend out of province/country friends to hit up the Okanagan valley, Kootenays, and onto Banff.

went on the gondola and had lunch at the grizzly house, yesterday

I've lived and worked seasons in both places. Jasper is more of a small town vibe. There are 3 classes of people in Jasper. The people who grew up there, the seasonal staff, and the tourists. The real local people give the cold shoulder to seasonal staff. While both hate the tourists that provide their paycheques. Jasper is best for the summer. Winter is a lot slower compared to Banff. Banff is good year round for working, living, outdoor activities. As a seasonal worker you won't really run into so many people who grew up there as Jasper. I didn't feel the snobbery from Banff locals as I did in Jasper. The downtown tourist shops are pretty tacky and it seems like the whole town is for sale.

One thing about banff compared to jasper is that things are more expensive in banff in my experience. Banff is only like 30 mins from calgary though, so if you want to visit for a weekend, you can get a cheap hotel on the outskirts of calgary and save a lot there compared to jasper, where you pretty much have to stay in the surrounding area.

You nailed it imo

I lived in Canmore. The first time I saw the rockies was insane. You can't recreate the feeling of the first time you see them.

As a trucker, I find Jasper more annoying. Too many animals on the road and cars pulling on and off shoulder in front of you. It can be very dangerous at times. Though, I prefer Jaspers scenery. Great video!

Where can I get Canadian historical posters like those in the background?

Dinosaur & Elkwater 🐾

Banff is number one for me

I worked in the Lauheed house, didn't get to see much other than the basement. Elevators not working in Alberta isn't anything supernatural, they legally only have to be inspected once. Next time you're in an elevator open the call box and it will tell you the same.

Definitely prefer Jasper

Haha I live in Canmore

I prefer Canmore over both

Banff has gone woke. The average Calgarian could not afford to go there 🤨 Jasper is a much lovelier town . I lived in Banff when it was run by Parks Canada. There was no "town" government to ruin it. I am glad I got to experience living there before all the shopping malls went up and they tore down all the old houses that lined Banff Avenue. I left after The Macdonalds went in, such a shame

Banff has better looking mountains, lakes and town. That's all i have to say.

Banff is definitely way more ]bougie than Jasper.

Neither… too many tourists