Icefields Parkway
Glaciers, turquoise lakes and grizzlies between Banff and Jasper
- Distance
- 180 mi
- 290 km
- Driving
- 4 hr 30 min
- excl. stops
- Suggested
- 3 days
- balanced split
- Stops
- 4
- curated
Distance and driving time are measured along the mapped route through the 4 stops listed below. Officially signed versions of famous routes often quote a longer figure, since they include promoted detours this line doesn't take.
Opens the planner with every stop loaded. Free, no card needed.
Day by day
Distances are measured along the actual road geometry, not straight-line. Drive times exclude stops, traffic and ferry waits.
Before you go
Best time to drive it
April to June, or September to October
Shoulder season. Warm enough to enjoy, and you avoid both the August heat and the worst of the coastal traffic.
Indicative costs
- We haven't compiled cost data for Canada yet.
Tolls assume ~65% of the distance on tolled road. Fuel prices move constantly: treat these as a range, not a quote.
Driving rules
Emission zones, mandatory equipment and licence requirements change country by country, and in 2026 several of them changed mid-year.
Every stop on the Icefields Parkway
- 1Banff
- 2Lake Louise
- 3Columbia Icefield
- 4Jasper
Worth a detour
Curated places within 25 km of the road.
Banff National Park
national parkCanada's first national park, featuring turquoise glacial lakes, towering peaks, and world-class skiing.
Jasper National Park
national parkThe largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, a designated dark sky preserve with stunning alpine scenery.
Peyto Lake Viewpoint (Icefields Parkway)
scenic viewpointA glacial lake in the Canadian Rockies famous for its wolf-head shape and unearthly turquoise colour, viewed from Bow Summit.
Icefields Parkway
famous roadA stunning 232-kilometer highway through the Canadian Rockies connecting Lake Louise and Jasper past glaciers and turquoise lakes.
Lake Louise
natural wonderA legendary turquoise glacial lake set against the Victoria Glacier backdrop, one of the most photographed landscapes in the Canadian Rockies.
Moraine Lake
natural wonderA glacially fed lake in the Valley of the Ten Peaks whose vivid blue-green waters once graced the Canadian twenty-dollar bill.
Columbia Icefield
natural wonderThe largest icefield in the Canadian Rockies, feeding rivers that flow to three oceans, accessible via the Glacier Skywalk and Ice Explorer buses.
Yoho National Park
national parkA park of towering rockwalls, thundering waterfalls, and the stunning turquoise Emerald Lake on the western slopes of the Canadian Rockies.
Kicking Horse Pass
mountain passContinental Divide crossing at 1,627 m on the Trans-Canada between Lake Louise and Yoho, where highway and famous Spiral Tunnels railway share a dramatic National Historic Site corridor.
Bow Lake
scenic viewpointVivid blue lake right beside the Icefields Parkway beneath Crowfoot Glacier and Bow Summit, with the red-roofed Num-Ti-Jah Lodge on its shore: one of the parkway's easiest and most beautiful stops.
Athabasca Falls
waterfallPowerful waterfall where the Athabasca River thunders through a quartzite gorge just off the Icefields Parkway in Jasper: short paved trails give close-up views of the churning canyon.
Maligne Lake
natural wonderA long glacial lake reached by a 44 km road from Jasper, known for boat tours to Spirit Island and roadside wildlife sightings.
Common questions about the Icefields Parkway
How long does the Icefields Parkway take?
The driving itself is about 4 hr 30 min across 180 miles (290 km). Most people spread it over 3 days: the day-by-day breakdown on this page splits it into balanced stretches rather than equal ones, so no single day is all driving.
How many miles is the Icefields Parkway?
180 miles, or 290 km, measured along the actual road rather than straight-line between towns.
When is the best time to drive the Icefields Parkway?
April to June, or September to October. Shoulder season. Warm enough to enjoy, and you avoid both the August heat and the worst of the coastal traffic.
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