Calgary/Banff area around Christmas?

[BiddyPop]

Hi all,

I'm hoping to glean some advice from locals/seasoned visitors. Our small family (young teen DD, DH and I) are contemplating Christmas in the Calgary/Banff area of Canada this Christmas (or maybe 2020). We would likely stay at least 1 week, maybe up to 2, but using scheduled flights so not tied to package operators.

Does anyone have good ideas of places to go when there, good places for winter sports (we've been skiing once and love outdoors generally), are there things you need to do differently to cope with the cold compared to UK/Ireland and continental Europe (where it gets cold, but around the zero degrees mark rather than -20 to -30), that sort of thing?

Thanks in advance.
Biddy

Banff is a great place to base yourself though I’ve only been in the summer.

Banff is amazing (although only been in summer). I can heartily recommend the Rimrock hotel - it’s lovely. A little way out of town but ideally placed for the cable car up a mountain I’ve forgotten the name of!

If you want to taste the very best steak you will ever have in your life, Saltlick is the place to go. Absolutely amazing!!

My brother lives in Calgary and said they usually go to America for Christmas time skiing as it's too cold at that time of year in the Canadian Rockies. My brother may just be a bit lame though.

The Rockies are good for skiing around Christmas and not too cold. They'll be busy though, particularly from Dec 21-Jan 4. Usually, the temperature is around -10. It's between -20 and -35 now and the ski hills have been closed for a few days. You'll need to book a good rental car with snow tires. Banff's ski hill, Sunshine Village, is about a 10-minute drive from Banff townsite. If you are entering into Banff, you'll need to get a national parks pass, which can be purchased when entering into Banff National Park. Dogsledding, skating, and hiking activities are available. Banff is more commercial than Jasper so there's a bit more shopping.