In shortLake Louise ski area sits across the valley from the lake. Top elevation is 2,637 m, with 991 m of vertical, 1,700 hectares of terrain, 170 named runs, 13 lifts and an 8 km longest run. The 2026-27 season opens tentatively on November 6, lifts run 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, conditions permitting, and season passes are valid to May 2, 2027.
2,637 mTop elevation
991 mVertical drop
170 runs, 13 liftsAcross 1,700 hectares
November 6Tentative 2026-27 opening
Lake Louise ski season dates and lift hours
The resort gives November 6 as a tentative opening date for 2026-27, conditions permitting, while Parks Canada puts the start of the Lake Louise ski season in mid-November. Early November hangs entirely on snow, and the mountain is rarely open top to bottom on the first weekend. If you want the full 991 m of vertical under your skis, aim for the second half of November at the earliest.
The back end of the season is long. Season passes for 2026-27 are valid to May 2, 2027, so late-April ski days sit inside the normal calendar here, and the cross-country trails run from November 1 to April 30, with dogs banned on certain tracks. A lift day here is 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, with the sightseeing gondola on a shorter clock of 10:30 am to 4:00 pm, both conditions permitting. In December that leaves very little daylight either side of the lift day, so get to the first chair.
- Monthly ranges for the Banff and Lake Louise area: November -8 to 1 C, December -14 to -5 C, January -14 to -4 C, February -12 to 0 C, March -8 to 4 C
- Dress for January, which bites hardest on the chair: average lows of -15 C, and -30 C as the coldest reading on record
- No snowfall totals are published for the hill; the tourism board grades it in words only, with large amounts on the peaks and ski hills, a moderate amount in the town of Banff and a little more in the hamlet of Lake Louise
| What | When |
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| 2026-27 season opening (resort) | November 6, tentative, conditions permitting |
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| Ski season start (Parks Canada) | Mid-November |
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| 2026-27 season pass validity | To May 2, 2027 |
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| Winter lift hours | 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, conditions permitting |
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| Winter sightseeing gondola | 10:30 am to 4:00 pm, conditions permitting |
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| Cross-country trails | November 1 to April 30 |
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Lake Louise ski terrain across the front side and the back bowls
The ski area covers 1,700 hectares, or 4,200 acres, with 170 named runs served by 13 lifts, a top elevation of 2,637 m and 991 m of vertical below it. The longest run measures 8 km, top to bottom. Two or three of those plus a lunch stop fills a short December afternoon.
Terrain is spread across two aspects, the front face above the base area and the open bowls behind the high ridge. Carry a trail map and watch the wind, because one lift ride can put you on a completely different snow surface. The front side is also where the views sit, back across the valley toward the lake and the peaks that close the far end of it.
Grades run from beginner through intermediate to expert, and the mix is wide enough that a mixed-ability group can ride the same lifts and split at the top. The official pages used here publish the run and lift totals without a percentage breakdown by difficulty, so read the grading off the trail map at the base. With first-timers in the group, keep the day on the lower front side and leave the ridge for later in the week.
Getting to the hill from the village and from Banff
The base area sits off Whitehorn Road, on the opposite side of the valley from the lake. The village on the valley floor holds Samson Mall and the Lake Louise Visitor Centre at 201 Village Road, and from there one road climbs 4 km to the lake while the other climbs to the ski base. The village, the ski base and the lakeshore are three separate stops, and in winter dark both climbs feel longer than the distance suggests.
Banff town is 62 km away by road. For skiers without a car, Roam Public Transit Route 8X works that corridor every day of the year, stopping downtown in Banff, in Lake Louise Village and at the Lake Louise Lakeshore, a trip Roam puts at about 1 hour 20 minutes. What it serves is the village and the lakeshore, so a Banff base means the bus plus a transfer at the bottom of the hill. Reservations are advised on 8X in the busy May to October months.
Arriving with ski bags, reckon on about 130 km and roughly 90 minutes behind the wheel from Calgary International Airport to Banff National Park, or use the shuttle buses that run from the airport to Banff and to Lake Louise. For a ski week, stay in the hamlet of Lake Louise: it cuts the daily drive to minutes and buys you the first chair without a pre-dawn start.
- Base area access: Whitehorn Road, across the valley from the lake
- Village to lakeshore: 4 km uphill on a side road
- Banff to Lake Louise: 62 km, about 1 hour 20 minutes on Roam Route 8X, daily all year
- Calgary airport to the park: about 130 km, roughly 90 minutes, with airport shuttles to Banff and Lake Louise
- Lake Louise Visitor Centre in the village: 9 am to 5 pm most of the year, closed December 25
The gondola, and what runs here in summer
In winter the sightseeing gondola runs 10:30 am to 4:00 pm, conditions permitting, which gives anyone in the group who is not skiing something to do. It keeps a shorter day than the lifts, so slot a non-skier's ride into the middle of the day.
The summer operation is a separate season. Through 2026 it opened on June 5 and closed on October 11, running 9:00 am to 4:30 pm daily and lifting riders to 2,101 m, with the Wildlife Interpretive Centre in Whitehorn Lodge, a short walk from the top station, included with a summer gondola ticket. That season has finished and the summer gondola is scheduled to return in spring 2027, so a visit now is a winter visit. Details on the ride and the summit are on the gondola page of this site.
Wildlife viewing from the slopes belongs to the warm half of the year. Bear viewing runs early April through November, with the heaviest feeding from September to November, and grizzlies are watched from the enclosed cabins and the open chairs. The minimum distances set by Parks Canada hold in winter as much as in summer: 100 m from bears, wolves, cougars and coyotes, and 30 m from deer, elk, sheep and moose. Feeding or disturbing an animal breaks park law.
Lake Louise Summer Gondola
Coming back in summer, the gondola ride lasts 1 to 5 hours, from CAD 64, and carries you to the summit viewpoint with the Wildlife Interpretive Centre included with the ticket. It runs in the summer season, so it is not an option on a winter trip.
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Should you plan ski days here on a multi-day trip
Plan ski days at Lake Louise if you want size and a long season. The 1,700 hectares, 170 runs and a pass window valid to May 2, 2027 give you room for several days without repeating yourself, and the 8 km run alone is worth a morning. Skip it as a half-day add-on to a sightseeing trip, because the 62 km from Banff plus the climb to the base eats the time you came for.
If your week takes in more than one of the area's ski hills, the corridor drive decides the shape of your days. Basing in the hamlet of Lake Louise puts you minutes from this hill and 62 km from the town; basing in Banff reverses that; and Route 8X covers the corridor daily all year if you would rather not drive. Pick one base for a short trip and split the week if you have more than four or five days.
February adds a reason to be at Lake Louise that has nothing to do with the lifts. Ice Magic lands on February 3 to 7, 2027 at Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, sitting inside SnowDays, which runs January 21 to February 7, 2027. Tickets are required for 2027 and there is no parking at the site, so plan on the provided shuttle once you are off the hill; the ice castle only goes up once the ice reaches 16 to 18 inches thick. The seasonal picture across the whole year, skating included, sits on the winter page of this site.
One driving caution if you head north from the village: on the Icefields Parkway snow tires or chains are required from November 1 to March 31, and whenever the road is snow or ice covered, there is no cell coverage, and in winter no services at all over the 230 km between Lake Louise and Jasper.
Questions people ask
Can you skate on Lake Louise during the ski season?
Yes, once the lake freezes. Mid-December is the usual point at which it freezes solid, according to the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, and the natural rink on the ice is run by the hotel rather than by Parks Canada. The tourism board highlights evening skating there, with the rink lit after dark.
Can I hike to the teahouses on a winter trip?
No. Parks Canada rates the teahouse routes above the lake as unsafe avalanche terrain from November through mid-May, and cautions that a signposted winter route is not automatically a safe one. Both teahouses are listed as closed November through May. Keep the walking to the lakeshore and the groomed cross-country tracks, which run November 1 to April 30.
Is Moraine Lake open while the ski hill is running?
No. Personal vehicles are barred from Moraine Lake Road the whole year, and the permitted users are Parks Canada shuttles, licensed commercial operators, holders of an accessible placard and Moraine Lake Lodge guests; even then the lake is reachable only from early June to mid-October. The community of Lake Louise and the lakeshore stay open year-round, so a winter trip takes in one lake.
How cold does it get at Lake Louise in midwinter?
Midwinter cold peaks in January in the Banff and Lake Louise area, where average lows sit at -15 C and the coldest reading on record is -30 C. Monthly ranges run -14 to -5 C in December, -14 to -4 C in January, -12 to 0 C in February and -8 to 4 C in March. Dress for the lower end of those ranges on the upper mountain, which is colder than the figures measured down in the valley.
Can I get to the ski area without a car?
Up to a point. Roam Public Transit Route 8X operates every day of the year along the corridor, calling downtown in Banff, in Lake Louise Village and at the Lake Louise Lakeshore, with Roam quoting about 1 hour 20 minutes end to end. The bus serves the village and the lakeshore, not the ski base on Whitehorn Road, so allow for a transfer at the valley floor. From the airport side, shuttle buses link Calgary International with Banff and with Lake Louise.
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