A Trip To Kananaskis Mountain Lodge!
We recently decided to take a quick family vacation to the mountains. We had never stayed in Kananaskis before so we were all VERY excited to head to The Kananaskis Mountain Lodge.
This is the hotel that has the famed Nordic Spa. Due to COVID-19 restrictions; unfortunately the spa and the water park area were closed but that didn’t stop us from having a great time. I cannot believe how family orientated this hotel was. (**At the time of posting the water park and spa are both open for bookings only for hotel guests with restrictions ; please contact the hotel to secure your spot)
While checking in we were given a map of all the trails around the hotel (there are A TON!) and an itinerary of the things happening at the hotel over the weekend. LIKE CAMPFIRES! More on that later.
THE ROOMS
There are lots of different options when it comes to rooms at the lodge. The family rooms would be most ideal for a family like ours because of Lilly, our 15 month old. She still naps during the day. So if you have the option I would def recommend that.
Because our booking was a bit last minute - the only rooms left were mountain view Queen rooms; aka a normal hotel room. Which suited us just fine. LOTS of room to play around and for a baby crib ( Lilly is still only 15 months so she is still in a travel crib). The view from the room was the fire pit and the girls loved that. And the mountains of course - I loved that.
The one room concept is always a little challenging for nap times / bed times but you make it work ha! We all had a little nap when Lilly had to go down during the day. Close the curtains, everyone quiet, and while she stood up in her crib for about 10 minutes being like “ What is going on here” ? She eventually settled down and went to sleep. Just never make eye contact LOL . We were even able to watch TV once she had gone to sleep.
TIPS FOR TRAVELLING WITH BABY: Bring a crib sheet from home; it smells familiar and lets them settle down easier. Also bring a music machine. The music drowns out other noises (like TV if you want to watch it) and we found it helped her sleep way better! Any other comforts from home (stuffies, blankets etc) are always helpful. We try to separate us from the crib as much as possible ( sometimes you luck out and get a really big bathroom - yes we’ve put the crib in the bathroom before).
The thing I always remind myself is to keep my expectations low. The baby is not going to have the naps like they do at home. But if they get a bit of a nap - hey its better than if they don’t. We don’t really have set bedtimes while on vacation but try to keep it reasonable. If all else fails - get outside! Something about the fresh air and change of scenery; I swear if makes any cranky kid (and adult ha!) snap out of it.
ACTIVITIES
As I mentioned when we checked in the staff was so friendly and gave us a ton of ideas as to what we could do with the girls. One of the things they had going both nights of our stay was “Fireside” nights. From 5pm-8pm there were campfires going on. When we arrived we were given the cutest little box full of everything we would need to make our own s’mores!
TRAILS
There is a huge trail system all around the hotel with tons of great viewpoints as well as great opportunities for that perfect shot! Ask for a map at the front desk. One trail we checked out was called “TROLL FALLS”. It is about a 5 minute drive from the hotel and extremely easy to find.
TIP FOR TROLL FALLS : Park in the parking lot and when walking make sure you turn left after the bathrooms. Don’t walk down all the way along the power lines.
We put Lilly in the carrier and Kennedy (who is 4) was able to walk it. It would take a normal person I would say around 30-40 mins to do this. With a family; I would say double that cause you know- snacks, breaks, everything takes longer.
The incline is not too steep and the waterfall at the end was awesome. There is also lots of fun things along the way to check out including some teepees! Many told us there were actual trolls hidden in the woods too that you could look for but I tried really hard and didn’t see any ha. That does’t mean they are not there.
EATING AT THE LODGE
A heads up- there is not an abundance of places to eat in Kananaskis Village right now. I didn’t know this ha! However the options you do have are great. Eating at the hotel is the most convenient and I didn't find the prices too bad. There is the Blacktail Bar, Market Cafe and Forte Restaurant as well as in room dining.
TIP FOR EATING AT THE LODGE: Eating at Forte was great because (when dining at the restaurant) kids under 6 eat free. Kennedy had the mac & cheese and Lilly ate the chicken fingers and both were delicious. So good I forgot to take a picture. Whoops.
We also had a pizza and a burger from their In Room dining menu. Both great - especially the burger (and it was HUGE).
If you need more - Canmore is a short drive away as well.
TIP FOR BREAKFAST: We also brought Instant oatmeal (Quaker) for the mornings. When the girls get up they are HANGRY so its great to just put in a coffee cup, boil some water (there is an electric kettle in each room) and have the girls eat that while we get ready for the day.
COVID 19 PRECAUTIONS
I feel like I should include this part just because; if you’re like me; you’re still a little nervous to travel. And that’s a good thing. We should still exercise extreme caution. I found the precautions the lodge is taking to be great. Hand sanitization stations everywhere, mask protocols and social distancing reminders. Numerous times I saw staff cleaning high traffic areas and during our fireside nights making sure there were no more than 10 at a fire and moving guests to another fire if so (which only happened once). Guests were courteous; keeping their distance and wearing masks.
I hope this little blog helps if you are thinking of a trip to Kananaskis Village!
The Kananaskis Lodge is offering 30% off on bookings until mid June by following this LINK HERE.
We thoroughly enjoyed our weekend. Thank you to The Kananaskis lodge for hosting us; we can’t wait to come back!
xoxo Jacks