Banff National Park breaks visitation record — again

People continue to flock to Banff National Park.

It saw 4.5 million visitors in the 2025-26 fiscal year, surpassing the previous high of 4.28 million in 2023-24, in what’s become almost annual increases over the last decade. (Visitation statistics are tracked from April to March each year.)

“I think one of the things that will be certain is Banff will continue to be a place people will want to come to,” said Daniella Rubeling, acting superintendent of Banff National Park, at its 26th annual planning forum.

The COVID-19 pandemic wrenched visitation down to three million, but it quickly rebounded.

The area’s popularity has led Parks Canada, the Town of Banff and local organizations scrambling to come up with short- and long-term solutions to the constant crush of people visiting Canada’s oldest national park.

Rubeling noted initiatives such as a three-year paid parking pilot in Upper Hot Springs, shuttles to Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, and encouraging people to take Roam transit are meant to reduce congestion.

She said Parks Canada’s expert panel on moving people sustainably in the region is likely to have more information released this year.

Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno expressed concern over the timelines of some new initiatives, using a packed skijoring weekend earlier this year as an example of when a “growing Calgary decides to show up all at the same time.”

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François Masse, the superintendent of the Lake Louise, Yoho and Kootenay field unit, said spots such as Lake Louise, Moraine Lake and Banff are “iconic” and “highly sought after” destinations.

He said Parks Canada is collecting and analyzing data from each spot to create solutions.

Masse said Bow and Peyto lakes on the Icefields Parkway and Yoho National Park’s Emerald Lake are on their radar as well, but nothing is imminent.

“The visitor pressure is very intense in very specific spots,” he said. “Any local can tell you if you want to find a quiet spot, you can find one 15 minutes drive from Lake Louise. I guarantee if you go there with me, there will be no one bumping into us the whole day.”

Peter Duck, president of Bow Valley Naturalists, noted visitors to Banff might only touch a small amount of land, but it has a cumulative effect.

“That’s ecosystem nonsense to say there’s three per cent where stuff can go on and 97 per cent is protected,” he said.

“You can’t just carve an ecosystem up like that. … The three per cent has a very significant impact on the ecosystems.”

Emma Hoskins, conservation campaign specialist for Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society in southern Alberta, said although visitor use management plans are underway in Lake Louise and Lake Minnewanka, a more comprehensive plan could be helpful.

Masse said Parks Canada is in constant discussions with regional partners. He recognized when plans are brought into one area, it can impact others.

“We are considering potential spillovers and we’re talking with others. We’re trying to make this consistent as much as possible,” Masse said, citing each national park has management plans.

The Canada Strong Pass is returning, offering free access to national parks for the summer months.

Roughly 70 per cent of visitors to Banff National Park come from the region for day use, Rubeling said. As Calgary and southern Alberta keep growing, she said it’s a challenge and opportunity.

“We want people to visit the park. We want them to connect to this place, but we also want them to leave as stewards of this place.”