Lake Louise Campground

I just checked -- rooms in Banff this weekend start at around $225 for the budget options and go up from there. But check this out -- a roomy shaded spot at Lake Louise Campground is only about $30. The competition for spots is the same -- book well in advance during the busy summer months -- but you get a nice spot, clean toilets, and even a free hot shower. The campground is just a few hundreds meters south of the village centre and does, unfortunately, pick up a good amount of highway and railroad tracks noise, but the location is great otherwise and the price hard to beat. Of interest, the

Lake Louise campground provides an interesting solution to wild animal / human interactions. Hard-sided vehicles such as camper vans are on one side of the Bow River. Campers in tents are on the opposite side of the river and kept within an electric fence. The local wildlife including bears have a free range with the exception of the fenced in campsite. The campsite has spacious pitches, picnic tables and fire pits, washing facilities and showers.

The Bow River Loop a relaxing walk along the river bank is accessible via a gate in the electric fence. When we visited in July a section was