Ice Skating in Banff: Your Complete Guide!

Ice skating in Banff is on so many people’s winter bucket lists, and for good reason! The aesthetic and picture of ice skating on a lake surrounded by the snow-dusted mountains in Canada’s Rocky Mountains is just such a dream!

If you’re planning to visit Banff in the winter time, ice skating can be a super fun activity to add to your to-do list. I’ve lived 4 hours from Banff my whole life (28 years!), and have gone ice skating in Banff a bunch of times!

In this article, I’ll include an overview of ice skating in Banff, wild ice skating, tips and things to know, where to rent gear, where to skate, and more!

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Ice Skating in Banff: Your Guide

When to go Skating in Banff

Usually lakes are frozen and thick enough to skate on by December, depending on the temperature and how winter is progressing each season. It is usually safe to skate on lakes until late-February/early-March, again, depending on temperature and ice thickness!

Wild Ice Skating

Wild ice skating is when you skate on a frozen lake, instead of skating on a man-made rink! And adding wild ice skating to your Banff Bucket List is the perfect activity for the winter season.

If you are hoping to skate on a frozen lake in Banff, there are maintained lakes where a section of the snow is scraped off the ice for nice skating conditions. Or, unmaintained natural ice where you basically have to remove the snow yourself, or hope someone was there before you and cleared a section off (or the wind was strong enough that the snow couldn’t settle).

Banff has both maintained lakes (Lake Louise), and unmaintained lakes (basically every other lake!).

Tips for Wild Ice Skating in Banff

1. Go early or on a weekday

Ice skating can be a popular activity in the mountains – even though it’s technically the off season. Because of this, a lot of people, locals, and tourists, have the same thing in mind – ice skating!

If you’re hoping to have a rink to yourself (or kind of to yourself in the case of Lake Louise) – go early!! Or sometimes a little before sunset can be a good time as well.

But as the day progresses – especially on a weekend – the lakes start to get pretty crowded.

2. Bring a shovel

The wild skating in Banff that you see on TikTok and Instagram are actually not sharing the whole story. The conditions of a perfect, clear, and clean lake is just not really realistic. These conditions happen for only a few days out of the whole year, and usually it’s when the lake is frozen is enough to skate on, but it hasn’t snowed yet to cover up the ice.

For the rest of the season, you’ll typically have to shovel yourself a place to skate or use a section of the lake that was shovelled earlier that day, because most wild ice skating lakes are not maintained or cleared.

If a nice hotel is located on the lake (e.g., Lake Louise) then the hotel will maintain the lake and clear snow. Otherwise – you’re on your own.

3. Dress warm

It can get cold in the mountains! And the weather can change pretty suddenly as well. It’s better to have too many layers that you can take off, instead of freezing to death wishing you brought more.

Mountains are super tall, and because of this, they can block the sun for periods of the day – leaving it waaaaay colder than what was forecasted!

Pack extra clothes, mitts, hats, etc., and make sure you’re well suited up.

4. Have a plan

It’s good to have a plan for a few potential lakes to skate on.

You may arrive at a lake and find the lot full or the lake super snowy and you forgot your shovel.

Maybe the lake is super busy and just looks way too crowded to enjoy. Make sure to have your potential lakes mapped out so you don’t spend your day trying to come up with a Plan B!

5. Check the ice!

When wild skating, the lake ice is not monitored. Be careful and skate with caution!! Ice is considered safe enough to skate on when it is 15cm (when skating by yourself) or at least 20 cm thick (when more than one person is skating).

Even if other people are skating on the ice – use your best judgment and always test the ice thickness yourself too. Clear, blue ice is typically the strongest ice, whereas ice that looks grey is unsafe.

The weather in the Canadian Rockies fluctuates and ice thickness fluctuates too. It can also be unsafe to skate in the dark/after the sunsets or before it rises.

Check the conditions and always skate safely, you are responsible for your own safety!

Where to Rent Gear in Banff

You can rent skates by the day at different shops in Banff. Usually the price ranges from $15-20/day per person. Different shops have different rates so do your research beforehand! If you have your own ice skates, you can always bring those with you as well!

A few rental places to rent skates in Banff are:

• Banff Adventures
• Fairmont ChateauLake Louise
• Chateau Mountain Sports (Banff location)

Skate rentals in Canmore:

• Gear Up Mountain Sports
• Chateau Mountain Sports (Canmore location)

Where to Wild Ice Skate in Banff

There are so many lakes in Banff that are perfect for skating on, depending on the conditions! Each year conditions can vary, but these are some popular places to ice skate.

1. Lake Louise

You can’t read a blog post about Banff and not have it mention Lake Louise. Lake Louise is one of the most famous places in Banff, and it is also the perfect place to ice skate!

Because of its popularity though there are definitely busy times – visit in the early morning or late evening to avoid crowds, and if possible do not visit on the weekend.

If you’re skating in early winter, it is so magical to come to Lake Louise when it is thick enough to skate but it hasn’t yet snowed. The whole lake is frozen and you can basically skate the entire section of the lake!

As winter progresses, the majority of Lake Louise becomes covered in snow and a section of it is maintained by the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise (an incredible hotel!). They clear the ice of snow and I’m pretty they smooth it over and polish it as well. It’s a treat to skate on, but gets super busy because of this!

2. Gap Lake

Gap Lake is a popular choice amongst locals for wild skating. It is closer to the Town of Canmore than the Town of Banff, but close enough to Banff that you can still enjoy a good chunk of time skating and taking in the views the mountains have to offer in 1 day.

This is one of my favourite lakes to wild skate on, however I have seen it not freeze enough in some seasons to be safe to skate on. I was disappointed one year when I showed up and it was still barely frozen!

Because Gap Lake is in the Canmore/Kananaskis area, you will need a Kananaskis Conservation Pass to park your vehicle. This is separate from the National Parks Pass!

Read more: Things to do in Canmore in Winter

3. Abraham Lake

Abraham Lake isn’t technically in Banff, but I wanted to mention it because it is such an incredible spot to visit in the mountains! Abraham Lake is famous for the ice bubbles that freeze below the surface, making the ice super cool and great for taking pictures.

Abraham Lake is a 2 hour drive from the town of Banff. To get there from Banff, you’ll have to drive a portion of the Icefields Parkway, which can have varying conditions in the winter, can be unsafe sometimes to drive, and snow tires are legally required to drive this highway in the winter season.

If you’re just in Banff for a short time, I would recommend choosing a closer, easier lake to ice skate on, but I still wanted to mention it as a spot just in case!

It can also get incredibly windy at Abraham Lake, which would make it unsafe to ice skate too. You could get carried away by the wind to an unsafe section of the lake – it is a huge lake, so be careful and use caution here!

4. Two Jack Lake

Two Jack Lake is an awesome place to skate in Banff! The lake is pretty big which means it doesn’t get too crowded (usually). There is also a mountain view no matter which direction you look in, which makes for an incredible backdrop!

For the past few seasons that I have gone skating at Two Jack Lake, there have been random little sections of cleared places to skate. Almost like a bunch of mini ice rinks all around the ice. Try to get here early to snag a little spot all to yourself!

5. Vermillion Lakes

The Vermillion Lakes are roughly a 6 minute drive from the Town of Banff, making it the perfect place to spend a sunrise or sunset if you are staying in town! There is nothing better than skating at golden hour in the mountains – it is so serene and SO beautiful.

This lake is not as deep as some of the other lakes in the National Park, meaning it is one of the first to freeze. If you’re visiting early in the winter season, keep an eye on this lake as one of your first choices!

6. Lake Minnewanka

Lake Minnewanka, technically, is skateable. But skate here with caution! Parks Canada warns that strong winds can prevent skaters from getting back to the main shore, so they recommend taking boots with you while skating. That way, if you are carried away, you can put your boots on and try to walk back with a little more grip.

It’s beautiful, but be careful at this lake! I’ve actually never chose to skate here because I’m worried about flying away, and there are so many other awesome lakes to choose from. But I have seen people skating here before, so it is definitely still doable!

7. Johnson Lake

Johnson Lake is a slightly lesser visited lake to skate on. When we got there around 1 pm on a Saturday it actually wasn’t even busy!

By the time we were leaving though, things did start to pick up slightly – but definitely not as busy as Lake Louise!

This is one of my favourite spots to skate in Banff because it is usually a little less busy, and in the past there has been a fun ice track someone cleared off that you can follow, instead of a bunch of little mini circular rinks.

Johnson Lake is pretty close to Two Jack Lake and Lake Minnewanka, which makes it a great choice if you were hoping to skate on multiple lakes in one day.

8. Spray Lakes

Another lake option that is popular among locals – the Spray Lakes! They are a little more “out of the way” than the other lakes listed, but are still so beautiful and a perfect place to enjoy a day outside in the mountains.

The Spray Lakes are located in Spray Lakes National Park in Kananaskis Country, meaning you will need that Kananaskis Conservation Pass to park here.

I can’t comment too much on this spot as I have never actually skated here myself, but I have gone dogsledding in the Spray Lakes before, which is amazing!!

9. Cascade Ponds

The Cascade Ponds are a lovely place to skate if the ice is good. I love this area in the summer, and skating at the Cascade Ponds in the winter is just as awesome.

The scenery here is super pretty as you can see Cascade Mountain, and there are a few bridges that make the area super picturesque.

This spot is located on the same road you take to get to Johnson Lake, Two Jack Lake, and Lake Minnewanka. So if conditions are bad here, you can always check out the other lakes that are further down the road!

10. Goat Pond

Goat pond could be an awesome place to skate – although it is located in Kananaskis rather than Banff (so again, you need the Kananaskis Conservation Pass!).

When I visited Goat Pond with the intent to skate, it was covered in snow. A lot of snow.

I don’t think this is a very common place to skate, therefore, I wouldn’t recommend driving the whole way here with your heart set on skating – unless it hasn’t really snowed for the season yet, or you have a shovel and are okay with digging out a whole new section to skate on. But still thought it was worth the mention!

12. Lac Des Arts

This lake is huge and a great option for skating on! It is located near a factory though, so if you’re trying to get awesome photos with the mountains, you will have to pay attention to angles – but if you’re just looking to skate, it’s a great choice!

13. Outdoor Rinks

If you’re looking to skate but don’t want to on a frozen lake, Banff also has regular skating rinks you can choose instead. Check out The Fenlands Meadow outdoor rink or the Banff Recreation Grounds Outdoor Ice Rink!

For an indoor skating rink, head to the Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre!

Ice Skating in Banff Summary

Ice skating is one of the best winter activities in Banff you can do!

You can choose to skate on one of the frozen lakes in Banff, or head to one of the normal outdoor rinks!

Make sure you dress warmly and be prepared for changing weather, bring a shovel if you’re heading to a rink that may not be cleared, and always check the ice thickness before skating.

My favourite lake to skate on is Gap Lake, followed by Johnson Lake! I also love to spend time in Jasper National Park during winter as well, and there are great ice skating spots there too!

Thanks for reading! Hopefully, this guide on wild ice skating in Banff was helpful!. Please remember to always skate with caution, as ice thickness can change over the course of the winter!

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Read More on the Canadian Rockies:

• Banff Bucket List
• Jasper Bucket List
• 45 Things do in Banff This Winter
• Your Guide for Planning a Trip to Canada’s Rockies