Originally Posted by
Nirvana91
I was also trying to finding Banff base-room availability for the two free nights, also coming up empty. I don't think there is any way to search for the entire month at a time so I did the search manually for every 2-day block in August and September. Nada. It seems that there is nothing until October, and then then as soon as you hit October the availability is wide open. In my situation, our travel is a little more flexible so we're going to pick some dates in October and then plan our trip specifically around the hotel's availability. Others may not have that flexibility though.
Ya dont bother wasting your time looking for room for summer months. It's absurd that there is nothing available. I tried checking one night after another from May - Sep and got fed up (obviously didnt go through all 150 nights). The tour companies have block-booked most of the rooms, and probably will only start releasing them when they realized they over-estimate their sales volume.
I dont mind going to Canadian Rockies in October, except October is a little unpredictable in weather and can start getting cold already. But I could very likely end up having to do that. The other thing is that, the turquoise color of Lake Louise is not as brilliant in the latter or post-summer months, because the rock flour sediments (?) that supposedly make you see this color is not as much.
My other alternative is to visit during fall foliage season but I think October is a little too late for that. I think fall colors start becoming visible in September, but I am not sure which week in September.
Another idea is to visit during the coldest time in January, where I can attend the Ice Magic Festival. Probably will freeze to death :s