Beauty in Our Own Backyard

Hello fellow classmates and bloggers! 

My name is Megan and I look forward to sharing with you some of my best travel advice and experience. To describe myself, the word wanderlust is very fitting (it is also a great movie if you have not yet seen it), and in saying that, my hope for this blog is to kindly infect the rest of you with the same desire.

My first post was based more so on future travel and not necessarily something we can look forward to any time soon (especially as starving students), so I figured I would get us thinking about travel opportunities that we can actually start packing our bags for!

In many cases, when people think of travel, they think about tropical vacations where they are required to save up for months, book multiple days off of work, find new beach attire, and then hit the gym for months to look good in said beach attire. Then, once on vacation, they find themselves rushing through airports, spending more than they've saved, indulging in all-inclusive food and beverage options, and then they end up back at home with a sunburn and that desperate feeling of needing another vacation to recover from their vacation.

Wouldn’t it be nice if there were an easier way?!

I believe there is, and it’s right here in our own backyard. Banff National Park is approximately 2-hours (137 kilometres) by vehicle from the Calgary International Airport (Google Maps does not seem to encourage walking there). If you travel with an appreciation for scenery, culture, cuisine and adventure, then Banff is the perfect place for your vacation check-list (minus the sunburn). From an endurance-testing scramble up Cascade Mountain to a spa day at the Rimrock Resort Hotel, a trip to the mountains has something to offer every type of vacationer. 

A few of my favourite things to experience in Banff include:

• Breaking the morning fast at the Wild Flour Bakery (the toasted breakfast sandwich is amazing!),
• hiking up Tunnel Mountain (where you get the most amazing view of Banff),
• exploring the Banff Springs Hotel,
• indulging in a hearty fondue at The Grizzly House (both cheese and chocolate),
• taking advantage of the powder at Sunshine Village,
• lazing around the hot tub cave at The Fox,
• and if spending the night, a dance off at the The Dancing Sasquatch and picking up a late night poutine at Aardvarks is a must!

Tunnel Mountain, conquered!

I would also like to point out that one of the best things about travelling to Banff (as a Calgarian, of course) is that you can escape the city, take in a few of your favourite activities, and still make it home to sleep in your own bed. I don't know about you, but I rarely go away on vacation and not think about being back in the comfort of my own bed (memory foam is an amazing thing)!

So, if you are really itching for a vacation, don't deprive yourself while waiting for the next great deal on Expedia (or finishing your degree at Mount Royal University for that matter). Hit the Trans-Canada highway and get out of town this weekend (I hear it's suppose to snow)!