7 Nights: Banff & Jasper National Park From Vancouver (Approximate Distance: 2,500 km)

Day 1: Vancouver To Revelstoke

Pick up your RV in Delta in the morning and travel east on Highway 1. Once you pass the town of Hope you will leave the Fraser Valley and the Coquihalla Highway will start climbing into the mountains. Notice how the landscape is changing from dense forests to a wide-open valley once you pass the Coquihalla Summit and start descending into the Nicola Valley.

Near Salmon Arm the highway will start following the shoreline of Shusawp Lake, providing you with some spectacular views along the way. Visit the ghost town and train museum at Three Valley Gap in the afternoon. Just before Revelstoke you can visit Craigellachie, the location where the last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway was driven. Arrive in Revelstoke in the late afternoon.

• Revelstoke Campground
• Lamplighter Campground
• Snowforest Campground

Day 2: Revelstoke To Lake Louise

Continue east on Highway 1 and stop at the Rogers Pass Visitor Information Centre, where you can visit a great interpretive display of local wildlife or go for a short hike nearby. In Golden you will have the option to explore the new Skybridge, the highest suspension bridge in Canada.

Keep an eye out for Bighorn sheep on the side of the highway after you depart Golden for Yoho National Park. This is the smallest of the four National Parks in the Canadian Rockies, but it is spectacular nonetheless! In the park you will visit Emerald Lake and Natural Bridge. Arrive at the Lake Louise village in the afternoon.

• Lake Louise Campground
• Castle Mountain Campground

Day 3: Lake Louise To Banff

Depart your campsite in the morning for the short drive to Lake Louise. After visiting Lake Louise continue to the nearby and even more spectacular Moraine Lake (seasonal).

In the afternoon you will visit Bow Falls at the base of Sulphur Mountain in Banff, followed by a visit to the Banff Gondola for a spectacular 360 degrees panorama of the surrounding mountains. End the day by driving the Minnawanka Lake loop to Two Jack and Minnewanka Lake.

• Tunnel Mountain Campground
• Two Jack Campground

Day 4: Banff To Jasper

The 48-km Bow Valley Parkway provides visitors with a scenic and leisurely route between Banff and Lake Louise as an alternative to the busier Trans-Canada Highway. Here you may see elk, moose or wolves, while summer provides you with an opportunity to see black bears and grizzly bears. Option to hike to the Johnston Canyon and the Castle Mountain viewpoint.

After this you will travel the Icefields Parkway, often considered one of the most scenic drives in Canada. Highlights of today include Bow Lake, Peyto Lake, the Athabasca Glacier and Athabasca Falls.

• Whistlers Campground
• Wapiti Campground

Day 5: Jasper

Today will be spent exploring Jasper National Park. Visit Medicine Lake, Maligne Lake and Maligne Canyon in the morning. The road to Maligne Lake is one of the best places in the Rockies to see wildlife, including bears, moose and elk.

Spend the afternoon exploring the town of Jasper or hike the 5-lakes trail or one of the other many hikes nearby.

• Whistlers Campground
• Wapiti Campground

Day 6: Kelowna To Kentucky Lake

Today will be another short driving day, ending with spectacular views at one of BC’s little-known gems! Travel through cattle country and rolling grasslands along the Okanagan Connector to arrive at the sparkling turquoise waters of Kentucky Lake.

Here you will feel like you are in the Caribbean without even leaving British Columbia! From the newly developed campsite, it is a short walk to the nearby Alleyne Lake.

• Kentucky-Alleyne Provincial Park

Day 7: Clearwater To Hope

Today you will continue to travel westbound with an optional stop in Merritt, the country music capital of Canada, and famous for its murals. Stop at Othello Tunnels for a short and easy hike to the old railway tunnels and bridges of the former Kettle Valley Railway.

Hope is known as the Chainsaw Carving Capital of Canada with impressive pieces of art throughout the town. Hope is also the location where Rambo: First Blood was filmed in the fall of 1981. Fans of the movie can still visit many of the film locations today!

• Coquihalla Campground
• Kawkawa Lake Campground

Day 8: Harrison Hot Springs To Vancouver

Depart Harrison Hot Springs in the morning and return your rental RV to Fraserway RV before 11:30 in the morning.