Do I need a park pass to drive the Icefields Parkway?

Yes — the entire route lies within Banff and Jasper National Parks. A Parks Canada Discovery Pass covers both parks and is valid for a full year.

Is fuel available along the route?

There are no gas stations on the parkway itself. Fill up in Lake Louise or Jasper before you start. Saskatchewan Crossing has limited fuel, but it is not guaranteed.

When is the best time of day to drive?

Early morning (6 – 9 am) and late evening (5 – 8 pm) offer the best light, fewer tour buses, and the highest chance of wildlife sightings.

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Road Trip

Icefields Parkway

The most scenic drive in the world, according to almost everyone who's done it.

Overview

There are drives, and then there is the Icefields Parkway. For 232 kilometres, Highway 93 traces the Continental Divide through a landscape that feels borrowed from another planet — glaciers spilling from peaks, lakes of impossible blue, and wildlife that treats the roadside as its own.

Built during the Great Depression as a relief project, the parkway opened in 1940 and has since become the defining road-trip experience of the Canadian Rockies. Every kilometre is a postcard: Bow Lake mirrors Crowfoot Glacier at dawn, Peyto Lake's viewpoint delivers a wolf-head shape of turquoise, and the Athabasca Glacier lets you walk on ice older than recorded history.

Parks Canada advises at least two full days, but three is better — it gives you time for the hikes, the viewpoints, and the long silences that this landscape demands. Wildlife is abundant: elk, bighorn sheep, black bears, and the occasional grizzly. Early mornings and late evenings are the best times to spot them.

Day by day

The itinerary

A suggested route designed to balance driving time with the stops that matter.

Lake Louise to Saskatchewan Crossing

Start at Lake Louise, detour to Moraine Lake at dawn, then follow the valley past Bow Lake, Peyto Lake, and Waterfowl Lakes before reaching the Crossing.

The Columbia Icefield

Drive onto the Athabasca Glacier with an Ice Explorer, walk the Skywalk, and hike to Wilcox Pass for a panoramic view of the icefield.

Athabasca Valley to Jasper

Cruise past Sunwapta and Athabasca Falls, scan for moose in the wetlands, and arrive in Jasper for a sunset at Pyramid Lake.

Signature stops

Don't miss

Columbia Icefield

Peyto Lake viewpoint

Athabasca Falls

Lake Louise

Where this road leads

Related destinations

All destinations →

Alberta

Good to know

Frequently
asked.

Practical answers from travellers who have driven this route.

Do I need a park pass to drive the Icefields Parkway?: Yes — the entire route lies within Banff and Jasper National Parks. A Parks Canada Discovery Pass covers both parks and is valid for a full year.
Is fuel available along the route?: There are no gas stations on the parkway itself. Fill up in Lake Louise or Jasper before you start. Saskatchewan Crossing has limited fuel, but it is not guaranteed.
When is the best time of day to drive?: Early morning (6 – 9 am) and late evening (5 – 8 pm) offer the best light, fewer tour buses, and the highest chance of wildlife sightings.