Wildlife on the Bow: Big Canoe Tour

Embark on a scenic canoe tour on the Bow River in Banff and discover animal habitats, behaviors, and conservation efforts. Spot bald eagles, elk, muskrats, and even a resident beaver. Learn about wildlife encounters and the challenges they face. Perfect for families!

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Wolf Street & Bow Avenue - Canoeing along the Bow River in Banff provides the perfect vantage point for spotting Canada’s famous wildlife. As you paddle, enjoy working as a team with your fellow paddlers while a guide navigates the big canoe and shares stories about animal habitats, behaviours and conservation. Learn best practice for wildlife…
What's Included
  • Paddles and Life Jackets
  • Goods and Services Tax (GST)
  • Live commentary on board
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Food and drinks
  • Hotel pick-up and drop-off
Additional Information

Experience the charm of the Bow River from our 12-passenger canoe. Embark on an early evening Big Canoe tour and gather interesting insights about the life and conservation of animals. Leave behind the buzzing Banff streets and plunge into the bosom of nature. Revel in the fun of paddling through the picturesque Bow, all the while watching out for the…

Location
Wolf Street & Bow Avenue
Please park at the Banff Train Station and walk to the Banff Canoe Club
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(65 Ratings)
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Keldi123
Sep 27, 2024
Enjoyable paddle on the River Bow - My friend and I thoroughly enjoyed canoeing on the river Bow. We were travellers from Australia (68 & 70 years old) and had no trouble paddling. We got to see an elk, eagle & ‘Barry the beaver’. Commentary was excellent (sorry I can’t remember the fella’s name it was a couple of weeks ago). I was astounded to read a previous negative comment where the person in part stated ‘ Firstly it is very much a DIY trip, if you don't paddle you don't move!! I wonder if they thought the paddles were for decoration? Anyway, we enjoyed it and would recommended
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jocko1974
Aug 28, 2024
Relaxing evening on the Bow - A wonderful, relaxing and informative evening canoeing along the Bow River. The sights and tranquility and the freshness of the air were so enjoyable. The river was calm and a recent rain storm was passin over making this a relaxing experience. We caught a glimpse of a beaver and might have seen more of it if not for an adult female calling out. Jacob our guide is knowledgable and relaxed making this a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Clay
Aug 24, 2024
Evening Wildlife Tour - Received free parking right in front of the canoe club location. The view was gorgeous while waiting for our tour. There were 11 people in our party. We received a fun introduction about The Banff Canoe Club and got to hear about where the other families were from. Bree was our tour guide, she did an amazing job. She shared a lot of info about the wildlife and the mountain range. We didn’t have to paddle a lot, the current was easy. She asked questions and was very attentive to listening to the tourists. We spotted elk, ducks, and unfortunately no beavers.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Robyn_m
Aug 18, 2024
Great experience! - Very calming experience after a long day of hiking. We saw some beavers, loon and Heron. Cam was our guide, super friendly and shared lots of interesting facts!
Review provided by Viator
Lesley-ann
Aug 16, 2024
Relaxing on the river - We had a fantastic trip with our excellent guide Alec keeping us entertained on the way. He had a vast array of animal sounds to go along with his extensive knowledge of the river and its wildlife. At one point he did an Elk sound and lo and behold the next moment we saw an Elk at the riverside! We very briefly spotted a black bear and also followed a Beaver for quite a while and got to see him eating on the riverbank. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dave
Aug 12, 2024
Experiencing the Bow River on the Big Canoe - Our morning canoe trip in the big canoe was a highlight during our Banff vacation. Our guide Jade was knowledgeable, fun and passionate. We definitely recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rochelle7782
Aug 6, 2024
Trip highlight! - This was a trip highlight for my family of four! Our guide, Jacob, was friendly, knowledgeable and had a great sense of humour! We got very lucky and got to see a young bear who was meandering along the bank of the river…we were able to watch the bear for a long time, staying with him as he walked along! This was the ideal way to see a bear up close! We also saw some beavers, and beaver lodges. The river itself is a gorgeous turquoise hue. I highly recommend this experience!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sheree_f
Aug 4, 2024
Fantastic staff, Beautiful river tour!! - This was a wonderful tour! The views were incredible and our guide, Nieve (spelling?), was fantastic! She gave us lots of local history facts and made every effort to make the trip as individual as possible. I would definitely book this trip again a the views from the water were just incredible!
Review provided by Viator
Vlr49
Sep 22, 2024
disappointing - The paddles were too long, so kept hitting the ones infront and behind, even when everyone was actually rowing in time with each other. Canoe often felt as if it was going to roll over. Views along river okay, but nothing spectacular. Saw a couple of beavers but no other wildlife.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tm130914
Sep 20, 2024
Extremely disappointed. - We were a group of 4 and joined up with another group of 3 plus the guide. There was another boat at the same time of departure who had 8 people and it is very strange that we never saw them again - did they go to a different/better area? The whole trip was extremely disappointing and definitely not good value for money, would not recommend. This was made especially worse as due to unforeseen circumstances we had to cancel the previous day and then had to pay a 40% uplift to go the next day due to the cancellation. Absolutely ridiculous!! When we complained and explained our situation for the cancellation we were met with the same answer, we just work here and just follow the rules!! Come on guys you can do better than that. Firstly it is very much a DIY trip, if you don't paddle you don't move!! We saw virtually no animals or birds apart from one beaver and one bird. The guide was not very clear in her vocal delivery (we were at the front of the boat) and we could hardly hear her comments. On the way back we didn't have to paddle much as the current carried the boat. But there was nothing to see so we all just sat quietly in the boat until we returned to the dock!! Frankly a waste of money and time as we could have walked along the shore to see the same.
Review provided by Tripadvisor