National park pass
It opens the whole park: lakes, trails, viewpoints and scenic drives.
Duration
15 min – 30 min
Difficulty
●●○○○
Best time
On arriving in the park
Open
Every day
Entry price
12.25 CAD
The Parks Canada pass is required as soon as you stop inside the national park, and it is checked on the windscreen. It opens everything: lakes, trails, viewpoints, scenic roads, picnic areas.
The arithmetic is simple: the daily pass is per person, the annual Discovery pass per vehicle. From around seven days of visiting, or with several people in one car, the annual works out cheaper — and it covers every national park in the country for twelve months.
Getting there
At the entry kiosks on Highway 1, at the Banff visitor centre, or online before you travel. The pass is displayed on the windscreen.
What the price covers
required for any vehicle in the park, daily or annual; confirm the rate with Parks Canada
What to bring
- Walking shoes
Rules on site
It is required even for a brief stop at a viewpoint, and fines are issued. The pass covers neither the reserved parking at Lake Louise nor the shuttles, which are paid separately.
Checked on 29 August 2026 at Parks Canada — Banff National Park fees
Other places in Banff
Lake LouiseMilky turquoise water under a glacier, with a castle hotel on the shore.
Moraine LakeTen peaks above impossibly blue water — the view that was printed on Canadian banknotes.
Icefields ParkwayTwo hundred and thirty kilometres between Banff and Jasper, past a hundred glaciers.
- Banff Upper Hot SpringsA thirty-nine-degree pool facing the Rockies, open year-round.