Everyone should have a white Christmas once – this place has my vote

Sometimes, the best way to enjoy Christmas is to escape everything that leads up to it. Late last year, I traded the chaos, the planning, and the constant pressure for “catch-ups” (which seem to kick off earlier and earlier) for a winter adventure in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

I start my journey in Calgary, with a horse-drawn carriage ride through the snow-covered fields of Heritage Park Historical Village. Snow begins to fall as we set off, the flakes catching in the horses’ manes like crystals. Hooves tap steadily as the jingle of sleigh bells rings softly through the stillness. It’s an outrageous cliche, and I’m here for it.

“Once upon a Christmas” in Calgary’s Heritage Park.

I’ve timed my visit for one of the three weekends in December when the 53-hectare park transforms into Once upon a Christmas, a storybook celebration set against the backdrop of an early-1900s prairie town. Everything is bigger, brighter and more Christmassy than I expected. The snow is deep and crisp, wreaths are the size of truck tyres, and moose-antler hats are the height of fashion.

I take in a show at the “Opera House”, a lofty name for a log cabin band hall dating back to 1898, where the musical melodrama is less The Nutcracker and more about two arctic explorers competing to be the first Canadian to reach the North Pole.

I leave the Christmas markets with my backpack bulging like a Santa sack. Hot chocolate in hand, I settle in front of an open fire pit, blissfully content with my bold getaway; I’ll be home well before December 25, with enough moose-themed Christmas trinkets to keep my family entertained, plus a special surprise, an ugly knitted jumper for my husband. The delight on his face will be worth the trip alone.

Many years ago, I’d swapped Sydney’s December heat for a Christmas ski holiday in North America with my young family. This time I’m travelling solo, but regardless, a white festive season is something that everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime.

A snowglobe dinner at Calgary Zoo is straight out of a Christmas movie.

It’s like the first time you watch Miracle on 34th Street, and suddenly you believe in the magic of Christmas all over again.

But this is Alberta – not New York City - and they do things a little differently here. While dining in a snow globe at Calgary Zoo was straight out of a Hallmark Christmas movie, the pre-dinner ritual of competitive axe-throwing was a plot twist I didn’t see coming.

From Calgary, I board the Brewster Express shuttle (where’s the crystal chariot when you need one?) for the 130-kilometre drive along the Trans-Canada Highway to the Fairmont Banff Springs, my luxury home for the next three nights. Rising above the snow-dusted forest like a fantasy castle, its turrets stand stark against the looming mountain backdrop.

As enchanting as it is, this grand old dame is distinctly Canadian, a testament to the nation’s rail history. Built in 1888 by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), it was part of a strategy to boost tourism in the Rockies by creating luxury hotels in scenic spots along the rail line.

The castle-like Banff Springs Hotel in winter.

“Christmas at the Castle” begins on December 5, with an advent calendar of themed events including everything from campfire experiences to making toffee popsicles in the snow, bedtime stories with Mrs Claus to a private good night visit from Santa.

Forget the Christmas card fantasy. This is a full-speed Polar Express into every storybook, Christmas movie and fairytale you’ve ever imagined, all wrapped in a bear hug only a Canadian can give.

I enjoy maple cream cocktails beside a fire pit on a rooftop terrace, dine on prime rib Alberta beef in The Vermillion Room restaurant (the resort has 13 places to eat and drink) and soak in a thermal spa amid the snow. I could easily stay cocooned here forever, but an ice walk through Johnston Canyon – one of the signature attractions of Banff National Park – calls.

It’s minus 17 degrees. I have cleats strapped to my boots for grip and my new woollen thermal is making me itch like a bear in poison ivy. My progress is more awkward penguin shuffle than confident march. “You need to show the cleats who’s boss,” says our guide Neil Evans from Discover Banff Tours. We haven’t even left the car park yet.

The walls of Johnston Canyon, near Banff.Credit: Norris Niman

We trek for an hour – past rock walls draped with icicles, over snowy bridges, and through a cave-like tunnel – to the 30-metre-tall Upper Falls, frozen in time like a winter masterpiece. At any moment, I half expect a raven to arrive with news of Winterfell.

Back in Banff,the Christmas markets are filled with artisanal products and mulled wine, while the Hot Chocolate Trail leaves me buzzing from a sugar-rush. For this sweet-tooth, the winner is a toss between the toasted coconut hot chocolate served at Mountain Folk Coffee Co and the Bueno Smash at the Uprising Bake Shop. Across town, more than 30 restaurants and cafes are whipping up festive-themed hot chocolates.

The highs continue that evening as I ascend Sulphur Mountain, the Banff Gondola whisking me to the summit to witness “Nightrise”, a dazzling multi-media show of lights, projections and soundscapes. Dinner at Sky Bistro is the icing on top, err, the mountain.

It’s under a cloud-free blue sky that I set off from Banff for the 50-minute drive to Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, the second palace-like railway hotel in the Rockies to be built by the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Chateau Lake Louise: a rink for ice skating and hockey, complete with an ice bar, is about as cool as it gets.

I’ve arrived early, but a Christmas miracle means not only is my room ready, but I’ve been upgraded to a junior lake-view suite. There’s even a Christmas tree in my room. There are so many Christmas trees – standing tall in the lobby, sprouting along stairwells, forming festive forests in the hallways – each one dressed to the nines and sparkling like a Swarovski crystal.

I’m torn between spending time in my room, mesmerised by the view of frozen Lake Louise, hiding out in the hotel’s antiquarian bookstore or enjoying live music in the ballroom. But it’s the lure of high tea in the Fairview Restaurant, with its sweeping views of the saw-toothed Rockies, that wins me over.

Afterwards, I burn off the house-made scones and devilled egg sandwiches with a hike across the frozen lake, the sharp air filling my lungs as I crunch across the ice. Next, it’s time for a snow-shoeing tour with a mountain guide, where we explore the hidden trails in the snowy slopes above the lake.

Later in the season, sections are cleared and groomed to create a rink for ice skating and hockey. Complete with an ice bar, it’s about as cool as it gets. And then there’s the annual Ice Magic festival (a five-day event in late January, complimentary for hotel guests) where blocks of ice are transformed into whimsical sculptures by professional ice carvers. It’s almost impossible to reconcile this frozen expanse with the emerald blue lake I’ve seen on summer postcards.

On the way back from my snow-shoeing tour, I stop to watch a group of small children throwing snowballs – all ruddy cheeks and swaying pompoms – and for a moment, I feel the pull of my own grandchildren back home. I guess it’s never too early to start planning the next festive escape.

THE DETAILS

STAY
Fairmont Banff Springs is a landmark hotel in the heart of the Banff National Park. A Fairmont Mountain View King room starts from $C829 ($916) during December.

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Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise has 539 rooms and suites, with a Fairmont Mountain View King room starting from $C499 ($551) during December. The hotel is currently undergoing renovations, including a new lakeshore wellness centre due to open mid-September, 2025.
See fairmont.com/banff-springs

TOUR
Discover Banff Tours offers a four-hour Johnston Canyon ice walk, from $C99 an adult/$C62 a child ($109/68). See banfftours.com

FLY
Air Canada offers direct flights between Sydney and Brisbane to Vancouver with connections to Calgary. See aircanada.com

The writer was a guest of Destination Canada (canada.travel), Tourism Calgary (visitcalgary.com), and Banff & Lake Louise Tourism (banfflakelouise.com).