If you are the sort of person who prefers a cheerful, straightforward guide to your vacation, I must insist you close this article immediately and throw your phone and computer into a very deep, very cold lake – preferably one of the turquoise-hued, glacier-fed varieties you will soon learn are an unfortunate hallmark of the place you are intending to visit. This is not that kind of Jasper National Park travel guide.
Instead, what lies ahead is a series of observations about Jasper, a location nestled deep within the unforgiving, rocky mountains of Alberta, Canada. You will be told it is a paradise, but I, as someone who has spent countless long weekends there, must inform you that the word paradise is a flimsy disguise for what is, in reality, a vast and often terrifying wilderness.
So, if you are determined to subject yourself to this excursion, prepare yourself. For what awaits you in Jasper is not a vacation, but an ordeal, and this guide is merely a record of its many, many miseries. I have done my best to describe them with accuracy, and I sincerely hope you find them as profoundly depressing as I do. But if you are determined to press on, plan to stay for three to four days, and consider yourself warned.
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- What to Expect
- What to See and Do in Jasper
- Getting to Jasper
- Getting Around Jasper
- Where to Stay in Jasper
- Where to Eat in Jasper
What to Expect
Jasper is the name of both a Canadian National Park and the only town within it. The town, to be more precise, is a small collection of buildings huddled together in the midst of an overwhelming natural landscape. It is a place where the mountains, great jagged peaks of rock and ice, loom over you with a casual indifference. The very air, which some insist is crisp and clean, has a tendency to be unpleasantly cold, and it carries the scent of pine, which, as everyone knows, is the official fragrance of a bad situation.
The inhabitants of Jasper, a perpetually cheerful and baffling lot, will speak to you of wildlife viewing, a term that is a euphemism for the terrifying possibility of encountering a bear. These creatures, large and possessed of a particular lumbering grace, are not at all the cuddly playthings you might have seen playing Pooh Sticks in a particularly misleading children’s book. They are, in fact, hungry and possess sharp claws. And then there are the lakes. The water in these lakes is so cold it could turn your heart to ice, and the color, a shocking shade of turquoise, is a visual trick, a kind of aesthetic deception that lulls you into forgetting the great and icy depths that lie beneath.
And yet, as if these misfortunes were not quite enough, 2024 brought a new and particularly flammable calamity to the area. A fast-moving and rather rude wildfire forced the mass evacuation of Jasper and consumed a significant portion of the park. The fire swept through the town of Jasper itself, leaving a great many buildings as nothing more than sad, charred memories. And now the landscape is dotted with the scorched and skeletal remains of trees, which serve as a permanent reminder of this heartbreaking event. And yet, the park is just as breathtaking as it ever was, though its beauty is now of a more melancholic and honest variety. It is the beauty of a place that has suffered a profound tragedy and has no intention of pretending otherwise.
A Park Pass is a required permit that grants you entry to Jasper National Park. You can buy one of these ahead of time, which might save you a moment or two of waiting in a queue, or you can purchase one when you arrive at the park. Or perhaps you’ll strike fortune and discover that the passes are currently being offered for free. Here’s more info on Park Passes.
What to See and Do in Jasper
While I would never encourage a person to venture into a landscape teeming with steep cliffs, treacherous wildlife, and unforgiving weather, I feel that it is my duty to provide you with a few options, should you find yourself in such a grim predicament.
- Explore Maligne Lake: This particular expanse of liquid, the largest natural lake in the Canadian Rockies, is both strikingly beautiful and unsettlingly deep. Ringed by formidable snow- and ice-capped mountains and glaciers, its surface reflects this stark majesty. Within its cold embrace lies the famed Spirit Island, a tiny, pitiful clump of trees often photographed by those drawn to isolated beauty. One might choose to do half or full-day hikes in this area or brave a boat tour to Spirit Island.
Be warned: the waters are profoundly cold.
- Ride the Jasper Sky Tram: This particular contrivance is not a gentle ascent, but rather Canada’s longest and highest guided aerial tramway. It whisks you with disquieting speed up Whistlers Mountain, offering stunning vistas over mountain ranges stretching up to 80 km away. At the windy summit, one can find walking trails and, inevitably, a restaurant and gift shop. So, if your inclination is towards elevated perspectives and a faint sense of unease, the Jasper SkyTram is ready to lift you to dizzying heights.
- See the mighty Athabasca Falls: Among the most powerful falls in the Canadian Rockies, these falls are less remarkable for their height than for the sheer volume and force of water that plunges over the unforgiving rocks. The resulting thunderous roar drowns out polite conversation, as the alarming turquoise water descends with spectacular, reckless abandon into a churning abyss. Fortunately, and perhaps surprisingly, this disquieting spectacle can be safely viewed and photographed from various platforms and walking trails. Proceed with caution.
- Go on a tour: Consider one of these varied and highly rated options:
If you’ve got more time, here are even more great sights and activities to explore in Jasper.
Getting to Jasper
Fly: Edmonton International Airport (YEG) is a 4-hour drive from Jasper. It has nonstop flights to many destinations in North and Central America and Europe.
- From Edmonton International Airport:
- Sundog Tours offers a bus connecting Edmonton International Airport with Jasper.
- There are a number of car rental agencies in the terminal.
Fly: Calgary International Airport (YYC) is a 4-hour, 45-minute drive from the town of Jasper. It has nonstop flights to many destinations in North and Central America, Europe, and Asia.
- From Calgary International Airport:
- Brewster offers bus services from Calgary International Airport to Jasper.
- Sundog Tours offers bus services connecting Calgary with Jasper, with a transfer in Banff.
- There are a number of car rental agencies in the terminal.
Drive: Self-driving is an excellent way to get to Jasper and around Alberta in general.
Bus: Sundog Tours offers bus services connecting Edmonton with Jasper. There is also a bus that connects Jasper with Banff, Lake Louise, and Calgary.
Train: Via Rail trains connect Edmonton to Jasper twice per week.
Train: The luxury train service, Rocky Mountaineer, connects Vancouver with Jasper, and connects to Calgary and Edmonton via motorcoach.
Getting Around Jasper
Walk: Walking is a great way to explore town, though you’ll need to supplement with wheeled transportation to explore further out.
Bus: Jasper Transit buses run throughout the town of Jasper, as well as to other popular parts of the park, including Pyramid Lake Resort, Jasper Park Lodge, and Lake Annette. Jasper Transit also connects to the town of Hinton outside the park. One-way fares for most rides are $2.50 for adults, and day and multi-day passes are available. A one-way fare to Hinton is $15.00.
Drive: Self-driving is an excellent way to get to Jasper and around Alberta in general, though you are better off simply walking to get around in town.
Taxi and rideshare: There are no rideshare services operating in Jasper, but taxis are an option.
Tours: Brewster offers a number of bus tours that take the effort out of planning and getting around.
Where to Stay in Jasper
When it comes to accommodations in Jasper, your options range anywhere from backcountry camping to luxury hotels. You can also consider staying in Hinton, the nearest town outside of Jasper National Park. Filter by location and find a hotel that’s in your price range, with the amenities you want.
Here’s information on the various camping options. And should you be feeling particularly spendy, a uniquely curious option awaits:
- There are some who believe a grand hotel should be a towering monument, an imposing edifice of stone and steel. But then there is the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, which began as a collection of tents in 1915. The tents gave way to a rustic lodge and cabins, a new, largest single-story log structure in the world. In 1952, a fire of a most calamitous nature reduced the main lodge to a smoldering ruin. It was, of course, rebuilt, this time with a steel frame, out of an abundance of caution. The lodge sits on the edge of an unnaturally green lake and is surrounded by the Canadian Rockies. The hotel offers a golf course, a spa, and the constant threat of wildlife encounters.
Where to Eat in Jasper
A person would be well-advised to pack a suitcase full of their own food when visiting Jasper. However, even amid such gastronomic disappointment, I can offer some advice. I have, on many an occasion, found myself in Jasper, and I have fond memories of the Saganaki at Something Else Restaurant. I also recommend hanging out at Jasper Brewing Company, grabbing pastries from Bear’s Paw Bakery, and I’m not ashamed to say I still love the pizza at Famoso.
Next time you feel the urge to get away from it all, I implore you to simply stay home. The comfort of a warm chair, a good book, and the knowledge that there are no bears in the immediate vicinity is a far more worthy prize than any scenic overlook. And if you must travel, at least choose a place with less chance of a sudden, perilous encounter with a large mammal. I hope you’ve enjoyed this Jasper travel guide. If you’re looking for more, here’s everything I’ve written about Jasper and Canada.
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