Destination Alberta - Canada

Alberta is a land of natural beauty and has 5 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Banff, Jasper and Lake Louise with the majestic Rocky mountains formed 70 million years ago, spectacular lakes and phenomenal scenery are well known as tourist destinations year round.

Alberta is a Province known for its Oil and Cowboys and Alberta Beef is well liked and known around the world. Alberta has 5 national and 67 Provincial Parks where big horn sheep, mountain goats, elk, bears, wolves, bison and even woodland caribou roam at will.

Adventure programs are available province wide, hiking, rafting, golf, cycling, canoeing and snow coach tours on the Glaciers of the icefields. Banff is a well known ski destination and attracts skiers from around the world.

The Rocky Mountaineer Train programs offer a variety of popular sightseeing trips through the Rockies with stops at the major destinations. The programs offer sightseeing on the Train with the dome cars during the day with stops at the Banff Springs Hotel, the Jasper Lodge and Chateau Lake Louise for ove
ights. These properties are majestic Hotels dating back to the early 1900’s. Early booking is suggested as they book up fast.

Calgary was an early cow town, now a large metropolitan city. Heritage park is a must see with animators, story telling, a train collection, horse and carriage rides and a whole village of houses and businesses showing the history of Alberta.

The Calgary Stampede is held the first week in July and is a wonderful assembly of cowboys, native Indians, animals, rodeo and a nightly entertainment show. Combine this with a fairground, square dancing in the streets, western breakfasts served on the streets daily, and everyone in Cowboy and Indian garb throughout, the atmosphere is electric. People crowd in from around the world for this annual spectacle.

The Alberta Badlands have a magnificent lunar landscape in sharp contrast to the surrounding areas. Dinosaurs roamed these Badlands 5 million years ago. The Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller displays the worlds largest collection of dinosaurs and is a winner with kids and adults alike. If you have a mind you can join an archaeological dig and fossils are regularly found in this area.

All in all Alberta has much to offer the tourist, and is often combined with British Columbia with a trip through the Rockies.