Something Huge Is Happening Over Banff

Hi Everyone! Here's What’s Happening This Week!

If January ever needed a reminder that it knows how to impress, this is it. The Quadrantids meteor shower peaks tonight, bringing fast, bright shooting stars to mountain skies. It is one of the strongest displays of the year, and even with a bit of moonlight in the mix, there is still a real chance of catching something special if the clouds cooperate.

Back indoors, the food scene is doing what it does best this time of year: bringing people together. A popular Peruvian and Chilean cuisine workshop sold out quickly and has already opened extra spaces after strong demand. Think shared cooking, bold spices, and the kind of evening that feels more like a dinner party than a class.

Jasper is also leaning hard into January, turning the quiet season into a playground. With winter activities, local events, and plenty happening around town, it is a good reminder that this is one of the best months to experience the mountains without the rush.

There is plenty more happening this week. Dive into the event listings below, or check out the detailed events page on our website.

• Banff in January: Read this before planning your trip!

• Banff in February: What you need to know!

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🌤️ Today’s Weather

Banff: Mostly cloudy with light snow, high -1 °C and low -7 °C.
Canmore: Mostly cloudy with light rain or snow, high 3 °C and low -5 °C.
Jasper: Mainly sunny, high -5 °C and low -11 °C.

👉 For a complete up-to-date forecast for the week ahead, visit our Weather Page.

🏔️ Plan Your Trip

Visiting Banff in Winter With Family: What to Know

Winter in Banff and Lake Louise can be magical for families, but it works best with a slower pace and a bit of planning. Cold temperatures, shorter daylight hours, and tired kids all mean it’s smart to balance outdoor adventures with warm, low-effort experiences. The good news is that winter here offers plenty of activities that feel special without requiring full days outside.

Choosing the right base makes a big difference. Staying in Banff keeps things walkable and reduces driving, while Lake Louise works well if skating, winter scenery, and quiet evenings are a priority. Many winter highlights, like Johnston Canyon ice walks, sleigh rides, tubing parks, and gondola rides, are well-suited to families because they’re guided, short, or easy to adjust based on energy levels. Booking key activities in advance helps avoid last-minute stress during busy holiday periods.

With realistic expectations and a flexible plan, winter can be one of the most memorable times to visit the Rockies as a family.

Eating Well in Banff: What to Know Before You Go

Food in Banff is more than just refuelling between hikes. Where and when you eat can shape your days just as much as what you do outside. Restaurants book up quickly in peak season, especially for weekends, evenings, and popular spots inside historic hotels. Planning a few meals in advance can save you from long waits or settling for whatever happens to be available.

Banff offers a wide mix of dining experiences, from casual breweries and distilleries to food tours, cookouts, and high-end tasting menus. Some experiences work best early in a trip when energy is high, while others are perfect for a slower evening after a long day outdoors. Location matters too. Staying central makes it easy to walk to dinner, while experiences outside town may need advance booking and transport planning.

If food and drink are part of how you like to experience a place, building them into your plans early makes the whole trip feel more relaxed and rewarding.

👉 Read the full guide | Book a tour

🏕️ Quiz

Yesterday’s Question

Which lake is shown in the photo, famous for its frozen ice bubbles in winter?

✅Answer: 2) Abraham Lake

Abraham Lake is famous for its frozen ice bubbles, while Lake Minnewanka and Bow Lake are popular Banff-area lakes to visit year-round.

🏔️ Fresh from the Rockies

🌠 A meteor shower is peaking over Banff this weekend. The Quadrantids hit their peak Jan 3-4, delivering one of the year’s best sky shows. Yes, the supermoon crashes the party, but bright fireballs could still steal the spotlight.

🌏 Midweek and Friday dinners just got an upgrade. Crave Banff is rolling out speciality buffets featuring Taste of Asia on Wednesdays and Rocky Mountain flavours on Fridays, all served in a newly refreshed, warm, and inviting dining space.

⛷️ Winter fun takes over Jasper this January. For two weeks, the mountain town transforms into a cold-weather playground packed with skiing, sleigh rides, hockey action, food and drink specials, and plenty of reasons to linger longer.

🍽️ This food workshop sold out - then added more spots. Demand was wild for this hands-on cooking night, so a few extra seats just opened for a Chilean and Peruvian cuisine workshop where you cook together, eat together, and leave with leftovers.

👀 Why Canmore is burning piles on purpose. The Town is sharing an up-close look at ongoing fireguard work, explaining how controlled pile burning reduces wildfire risk and supports a safer, healthier landscape.

🍽️ Community Dinners are back for 2026. The beloved free weekly meals return to Jasper starting Jan 11, serving up warm food, friendly faces, and that unbeatable small-town feeling every Sunday through March. No signup, just show up hungry.

🔥 Banff’s biggest winter festival returns Jan 16 to Feb 8. SnowDays delivers snow and ice sculptures, skijoring chaos, evening events, and nonstop winter vibes across Banff and Lake Louise. This is peak Rockies winter, fully dialled in.

⭐ Most Popular Last Issue

🥾 Canmore’s hidden trails face a major crackdown. Alberta wants to close hundreds of unofficial "pirate trails" around Canmore, rewriting decades of free-form hiking and biking in the name of wildlife protection and reshaping how locals move through the Bow Valley.

🎸Events, Activities & Live Music

📅 Today’s Events are listed below. To view future events, visit our website.

BANFF EVENTS | CANMORE EVENTS | JASPER EVENTS | BANFF HAPPY HOURS | CANMORE HAPPY HOURS |

Saturday, January 3

13:15 | Wild Life Distillery Tour | Wild Life Distillery | Canmore

15:00 | Live Music Afternoon | Three Bears | Banff

15:30 | Park Distillery Tour | Park Distillery | Banff

18:30 | Candlelight: Tribute to Adele | Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel | Banff

19:00 | Hockey: Canmore Eagles | Canmore Recreation Centre | Canmore

19:00 | Adventure Film Collective | Canmore Brewing Company | Canmore

20:00 | Live Music Night | St. James Gate | Banff

20:30 | Candlelight: Tribute to Coldplay | Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel | Banff

22:00 | DJ Raven on the Decks | High Rollers | Banff

22:00 | Grant Kanigan: Live | Rose & Crown Restaurant & Pub | Canmore

22:00 | Apricity: Live | The Drake Screaming Retriever | Canmore

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