Fun Facts

• Banff is located at an elevation of 4,537 feet (1,383 metres) making it the highest town in Canada


• Established in 1885 as Canada's first National Park (third in the world)


• Banff National Park covers 6,641 square kilometres (2,564 miles)


• Banff has over of 1,600 kilometres (1,000 miles) of hiking trails


• Castleguard caves are Canada's longest cave system


• Home to Alberta's southernmost herd of the endangered woodland caribou


• Banff has over 2,468 campsites


• Banff National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a United nations designation which helps protect over 20,000 square kilometres (7,700 square miles) of the Canadian Rocky Mountains


• The name "Banff" is derived from Banffshire, Scotland, the birthplace of two of the original directors of the Canadian Pacific Railway


• Banff National Park is home to the following seven National historic sites: Skoki Lodge, Abbot Pass Hut, Howse Pass, Cave and Basin, Banff Park Museum, Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, and the Cosmic Ray Station on Sanson Peak


• The highest mountain in Banff National Park is Mt. Forbes which stands at 11,850 feet (3,612 metres)


• Mountains in Banff National Park are 45 to 120 million years old


• Banff National Park has in excess of 1,000 glaciers


• The Bow River in Banff flows as far as Hudson's Bay


• The largest dammed lake in Banff is Lake Minnewanka and the largest natural lake is Hector Lake


• More than 4,000,000 visitors travel to Banff National Park every year since 1996