Calgary tours and things to do

Parks Canada puts Banff National Park 128 km (80 miles) west of Calgary. Calgary International Airport, the closest airport to the park, is approximately 144 km east of it. Parks Canada lists public transit, shuttles, guided tours with licensed commercial operators and charter buses as ways to travel between Calgary and Banff. Voyzo's 2-day private tour starts in Calgary and visits Lake Louise and Johnston Canyon on day one; Johnston Canyon is closed from 13 October to 11 December 2026, so ask which stops are open on your date.

Calgary Transit's Route 500 Airport Express runs between the airport and downtown via Centre Street with limited stops; it was called Route 300 until a rename announced on 31 August 2026. The airport authority gives the approximate metered taxi fare to downtown as CAD 40 to CAD 45 in normal conditions and a sedan flat rate of CAD 68.75 plus an Airport Access Fee of CAD 11 per pick-up, all checked 26 October 2026. Tourism Calgary says Uber also operates at the airport.

It depends on what you want to do. July and August are the warmest months, with normal daily highs of 23.5 and 23.1 °C at Calgary (Airport) and the Calgary Stampede on 9–18 July 2027. Winter highs average between -1.5 and 0.1 °C from December to February. Mountain and park services follow seasons: Parks Canada's 2026 Lake Louise Lakeshore shuttle season ran from 15 May and its Moraine Lake season from 1 June, both to 12 October, and most Waterton townsite facilities close from November to April.

The Calgary Stampede lists 9–18 July 2027 as its next dates, followed by 7–16 July 2028 and 6–15 July 2029. Separately, Tourism Calgary lists the Cenovus Energy Grey Cup Festival at Stampede Park (650 25 Ave SE) from 11 to 14 November 2026, with the 113th Grey Cup at McMahon Stadium on 15 November 2026. Ask for a quote early if your dates fall around either event.

At Calgary (Airport) the 1991–2020 normals put January's daily maximum at -1.5 °C and daily minimum at -13.5 °C, and the station recorded an extreme low of -39.7 °C on 11 January 1997. Tourism Calgary describes chinooks as warm, dry winds that can bring temporary thaws and lift temperatures above freezing, and advises layers, a warm coat, insulated boots and gloves in winter. Snowfall averages 138.7 cm a year, mostly from October to April.

Voyzo has guides to five: the Calgary Tower, whose observation deck is listed open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily from September to May; Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre; Heritage Park, whose Historical Village reopens in May 2027; Prince's Island Park; and the Bow River Pathway. The Confluence Historic Site & Parkland, the former Fort Calgary, is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Day trips reach Drumheller and Waterton, and a two-day tour adds Banff.

Tourism Calgary calls the downtown core very walkable. The City of Calgary says the Plus 15 has 86 bridges and over 16 km of elevated, weather-protected walkways, open weekdays 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and weekends and statutory holidays 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., though some bridges have shorter hours or are closed for works. The City also maintains about 1000 km of regional pathways. Voyzo's Walk the Best of Calgary tour is a 3-hour private walk through the downtown core.

Partly. Tourism Calgary says the CTrain is free between City Hall Station and Downtown West/Kerby Station on either line, within the 7th Avenue Free Fare Zone, and that you need proof of fare once the train leaves it. Calgary Transit's 2026 adult single fare is CAD 4.00, valid for 90 minutes, and a day pass is CAD 12.65 (checked 26 October 2026).

Check three closures first. Parks Canada has closed the Johnston Canyon Trail and Day Use Area from 13 October to 11 December 2026 for construction. Moraine Lake Road is closed to personal vehicles all year, and the 2026 Lake Louise and Moraine Lake shuttles ended on 12 October. The Banff Gondola lists 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily to 19 November, then 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. to 31 December 2026. Park entry is CAD 12.25 for an adult per day (checked 26 October 2026).

Not in your own vehicle. A Parks Canada order in force since 1 April 2026, until further notice, restricts motor vehicles on Moraine Lake Road to Parks Canada shuttles, commercial operators with a Moraine Lake Road licence, Moraine Lake Lodge guests, staff and contractors, and emergency services. Parks Canada's visitor page says the road is closed to personal vehicles year-round. In 2026 the Moraine Lake shuttle ran from 1 June to 12 October (weather permitting), every shuttle needed a reservation, and a shuttle ticket did not include the park entry fee.

Travel Drumheller gives the drive from Calgary as about 90 minutes. The Royal Tyrrell Museum is 6 km northwest of the town; Travel Drumheller places the Hoodoos about 16 km from its Visitor Information Centre and says the attraction it calls the World's Largest Dinosaur has 106 stairs inside to a viewing platform in its mouth. Voyzo's Drumheller tour and Badlands tour start in Calgary.

Not in the shorter season. From 1 September to 14 May it is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and closed Mondays except holiday Mondays; from 15 May to 31 August it is open daily, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is closed on 21, 24, 25 and 28 December 2026 and 1 January 2027. Adult admission is CAD 25.00, tax included (checked 26 October 2026). The museum describes itself as Canada's only museum dedicated exclusively to the study of ancient life.

Not freely. The Royal Tyrrell Museum says Alberta's Historical Resources Act protects fossils, that violations are punishable by fines of up to CAD 50,000 and/or one year in prison (Travel Drumheller gives the same penalty), and that it is unlawful to excavate fossils. Its advice is to photograph a find, note where it is, leave it buried and report it to the museum. It also says fossils cannot be collected in any provincial or national park or protected area, that surface collecting is allowed only on provincial Crown land or on private land with the owner's permission, and that a legally collected surface fossil can be kept only as custodian because ownership stays with the Province of Alberta. Horsethief Canyon is a viewpoint only, because Travel Drumheller says hiking into it is not permitted on private property. See the fossil expedition.

The park is open year round and the townsite is 271 km from Calgary by road, according to Parks Canada. From November to April most townsite facilities are closed, and Parks Canada names Pincher Creek and Mountain View as the closest fuel stations outside the park, open year-round. Red Rock Parkway is open from early May to November; Akamina Parkway, open all year, reaches only Little Prairie in winter. The Prince of Wales Hotel says it reopens on 10 May 2027. See the Waterton day trip.

That depends on your passport, and this page is not legal advice. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada says visa-exempt foreign nationals need an eTA (CAD 7) to fly to or transit through a Canadian airport but not when they arrive by car, bus, train or boat, and that U.S. citizens are exempt from the eTA but must carry proper identification. Check the IRCC eTA page before you travel (read 26 October 2026).

Tourism Calgary says a 5 per cent GST applies to most goods and services and that Alberta has no provincial sales tax. Alberta.ca says the provincial tourism levy on accommodation is 6% of the purchase price for stays booked after 31 March 2026; a Tourism Calgary page still showed 4% when checked. Tourism Calgary also says tipping about 15 to 20 per cent of the pre-tax bill is customary in restaurants.

Voyzo lists 9 private tours in Calgary, and each is quoted by email for your date and group size instead of being priced on the page. Use the quote form with your date, group size and the tour you want. We reply with the tour that fits and the price for your group, and a booking is confirmed once you and Voyzo agree on it in writing (section 5 of the Terms and Conditions).

The site is now run by The Confluence Historic Site & Parkland: the Fort Calgary Preservation Society changed its name on 2 May 2024. The organisation says the North-West Mounted Police established the fort in 1875 and that Fort Calgary operated there for 39 years, and that Indigenous presence at the site dates back to approximately 10,000 BC. It is a National Historic Site at 750 9 Avenue SE, open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Voyzo's private city tour still lists Fort Calgary as a stop.