I lived in the Canadian Rockies for 2 ½ years and now when friends and fellow travellers ask me for advice about the Canadian Rockies (i.e. What to see...what to miss, Where to stay...and what roads to take for better wildlife viewing, etc) I always tell them about this book (and one other - The Canadian Rockies SuperGuide by Graeme Pole).

The main reason this book leaves others like it (lonely planet, Frommer's, The Rough Guide, etc) way behind is because 'Even locals will learn something'. (Get yourself to the top of the Jakeroy Glacier trail and you'll get an understanding of how well this author knows the Rockies).

While most travel guides tell you about the mainstream tourists destinations, this book continues past those to inform the reader about the lesser-known (and in many cases...Better) areas of the Rockies. The benefit of this extra information is the reader will be able to explore the Rockies...and find their very own, special part of the Rockies...away from the 4 million per year tourist herds.

This is a 'travel guide' full of information on what to see, places to stay, places to eat, and much more - if that's what your after - you wont find better. ('ALBERTA and the NORTHWEST TERRITORIES handbook' and 'BRITISH COLUMBIA Handbook', by the same author, are also the best choices for your money).

(The Canadian Rockies SuperGuide - by Graeme Pole, is a great book for in-depth information about tourist sites, and certainly gets my recommendation, but covers nothing close to the range of information you will find here).

27 of 28 found the following review helpful:


An excellent source of information  May 08, 2001
This book was invaluable for our Spring 2001 trip through the Canadian Rockies. The book is obviously written with the aim of appealing to a wide range of travelers, and does so well. My wife and I have very different interests, but found that each evening we would sit down and study the next day's itinerary almost solely using this book--her searching out museums and a picking a spot to eat dinner and me looking for outdoor activities. As a retired historian, I was also pleased to see comprehensive coverage of the history of the region, along with dozens of interesting tidbits that helped make the trip more enjoyable. It was too early in the season for us to do much hiking, but the trails we did follow all came from this book and another, Canadian Rockies Trail Guide. I highly recommend this book to anyone traveling north through the Rockies region of our Canadian neighbors.

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:


Practical Planner for a Canadian Rockies Vacation  Sep 28, 2005 By D. S. Thurlow
Moon Travel's "Canadian Rockies Handbook" is packed with the practical information needed to plan a great vacation in the Canadian Rockies. In a well-organized format, the handbook covers how to get there, what to see and do, where to stay, and a nice slice of commentary on the various towns and other sites of interest. The discussion about accomodations includes a decent range of prices and facilities. The focus is on the area in and around Banff and Jasper National Parks, a stunningly beautiful area with endless opportunities for outdoor recreation, sight-seeing, and relaxation. The handbook includes maps and diagram that are sufficiently detailed to enable to visitors to get to the main points of interest. The handbook also provides information on popular hikes, golfing, and white water rafting, among other activities.
This handbook is highly recommended to anyone planning a vacation in the Canadian Rockies, even if they have visited the Rockies before. This handbook provides enough detail in a compact format that it may inform regular visitors on wonders they may have missed on prior trips.

7 of 7 found the following review helpful:


Good foundation handbook to have for the Northern Rockies  Jul 30, 2002 By Robert Merivel
I would augment it with another guidebook to balance reviews and recommendations. Moon Handbooks are great for the traveler on a "middle class" budget and will guide you to the "must sees" without the extra confusing fluff that other guidebooks include.

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:


An excellent resource  Feb 09, 2002 By Stacy Hansen
Not really a review, but a definite This Is a Great Book. I'd never heard of Moon Handbooks, but purchased this guide through Amazon and found it helped immensely on recent trip to Canada. Everything was included and the detailed recommendations covered everything from hiking to where to eat. If you're heading to the Canadian Rockies, buying this book is money well spent.

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