Jasper

Jasper is a town of about 4,600 people (2016) in Jasper National Park in the Alberta Rockies region of Alberta, Canada.

For other places with the same name, see Jasper (disambiguation).

Understand

History

Jasper House was a North West Company fur trade outpost established in 1813 on the York Factory Express trade route to what was then called "New Caledonia" (now British Columbia), and Fort Vancouver in Columbia District on the lower Columbia River. It was later taken oven by the Hudson's Bay Company.

Jasper National Park was established in 1907. The railway siding at the location of the future townsite was established by Grand Trunk Pacific Railway in 1911 and called named Fitzhugh after a Grand Trunk vice president[9] (along the Grand Trunk's "alphabet" line). The Canadian Northern Railway began service to Fitzhugh in 1912. The townsite was surveyed in 1913 by H. Matheson. It was renamed Jasper after the former fur trade post. An internment camp was set up at Dominion Park in Jasper from February 1916 to August 1916.

By 1931, Jasper was accessible by road from Edmonton, and in 1940 the scenic Icefields Parkway opened, connecting Lake Louise and Jasper

Get in

Located in the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, Jasper is the shy cousin to bold, brassy Banff and offers a more serene experience. Approximately four hours north of Banff and four hours west of Edmonton, capital of the province of Alberta. Most people enter the park via Edmonton.

It can be reached by road or train. Highway 16, the Yellowhead Highway, connects Jasper to Edmonton (via Hinton and Edson), which has an international airport and is served by many major airlines. It also connects to Kamloops, B.C. and Prince George, B.C. to the West. Highway 93, the Icefields Parkway, connects south through the Rockies to Lake Louise and onto Banff. Drivers will have to pay for a park admission pass as the town of Jasper is in Jasper National Park. There are bus and train connections from Edmonton, Banff and Vancouver.

Via Rail has scheduled trains to 🌍 Jasper station (XDH  ^IATA) from Edmonton, Kamloops, Vancouver and Prince Rupert.

Park entry fees

All visitors stopping in Jasper park (even just for gas or in the town) require a park permit. If you are driving through non-stop, the pass is not required. Day passes and annual passes are available, see Jasper National Park#Fees and permits for details.

Get around

There is no public transit. A few taxis and rental cars are available, and bikes can be rented in the summer.

Hitchhikers report that getting a lift in Jasper is very easy.

Jasper is small enough that most places can be easily walked to. Tour companies offer bus service to most of the major tourist destinations including Maligne Lake, The Columbia Icefields and Miette Hot Springs. The two major companies in town are Brewster and SunDog. Both these companies offer similar tours at the same price. The only difference is the size of the tour group: Brewster uses large buses (seating approx. 50) and SunDog has smaller vehicles (seating approx. 12).

See

• Many attractions in Jasper National Park are a short drive away.
• 🌍 Jasper Information Centre, 500 Connaught Drive, ☎ [phone]. 

Do

• Rent a bike. Plenty of sport shops offer bikes, which are a great way to see the area.
• 🌍 Jasper Tramway, Whistler's Road, ☎ [phone]. Cable-car to great views of the area from Whistlers Mountain. The hike from the upper station to the summit is not too difficult with only a few steep sections, however do not forget this is high mountain area and you can be in cold clouds very quickly, even in the summer. Should not really venture too far from the board walk if you are in T-shirt and flip-flops, although some idiots do. 
• 🌍 Marmot Basin, 1 Marmot Road, ☎ [phone]. Cross-country and downhill skiing 

Buy

• Connaught Dr.. Full of souvenir shops, clothing stores, and jewellery stores. 
• Patricia St.. A few more practical shops. 

Eat

Most of the hotels in or near Jasper have restaurants that will meet or beat your expectations for dining in a small community. Some are higher-toned than others, but across the board food is generally very good and portions tend to be hearty. In addition to the hotel restaurants, the town has several noteworthy dining spots as well as numerous restaurants catering to the hungry but penny-pinching skiers and other visiting outdoors-folk.

• 🌍 Becker's Gourmet Restaurant, ☎ [phone]. French / Canadian cuisine 
• 🌍 Dead Dog Bar & Grill, 404 Connaught St, ☎ [phone]. $7 burger & fries, happy hour on Fridays, 
• 🌍 Earls, 600 Patricia St, ☎ [phone]. Western Canadian cuisine. A restaurant and bar in one, this can get fairly packed out. The staff aren't fantastic, but the food more than makes up for the wait to be seated. 
• 🌍 Jasper Brewing Company, 624 Connaught Dr, ☎ [phone]. Unique in Jasper, beer is brewed on-site. 
• 🌍 Kimchi House, 407 Patricia St, ☎ [phone]. Korean cuisine. 
• 🌍 North Face Pizza, 618 Connaught Dr, ☎ [phone]. Excellent pizza, great after a day at Marmot Basin! 
• 🌍 Sayuri's Japanese Restaurant, 410 Connaught Dr, ☎ [phone]. Japanese cuisine, sushi. 
• 🌍 Something Else, 621 Patricia St, ☎ [phone]. A Greek restaurant that serves up a variety of cuisine, and pizza. 

Drink

• 🌍 Hearthstone Lounge and Champs Sports Lounge (Sawridge Inn), 82 Connaught Drive, ☎ [phone]. Hearthstone Lounge (10:30AM to 10PM) offers appetizers, soups and a wide selection of light meals. Cocktails, wines by the glass, fine draught beer. Unique furnishings, large flat screen TVs, stone fireplace. Champs Sports Lounge (4:30PM to midnight) offers food and drink, Wednesday night karaoke, UFC fight nights on large flat screen TVs, NHL games and playoffs. $9-$20 (lunch, dinner). 
• 🌍 Villa Caruso, 640 Connaught Drive (Corner Hazel Ave), ☎ [phone]. Steak House & Bar 

Sleep

Budget

In the summer, there is excellent camping in the campgrounds operated by Parks Canada. Throughout the year, it is possible to stay in private home accommodation - rooms or suites in residents' homes. Prices vary, but standards are high - full details of what is available can be found in the tourist office in town, or at . Hostelling International runs a series of hostels throughout Jasper National Park. Jasper International is the closest to town (7km south-west from Jasper on Whistlers Road, and is open all year), and four Wilderness Hostels which cater more towards trekkers and those people who "enjoy getting in touch with nature."

• 🌍 HI-Jasper, 1 Skytram Road (turn west off highway 93 just south of the townsite), ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. Check-in: 1PM-11PM, check-out: 11AM. Open all year. This large 78-bed hostel was the original ski lodge in Jasper and has a good communal feel that is sorely lacking in many big-city hostels. It is the closest budget accommodation to the Jasper townsite and a great base for hikers. In winter, staff transform the surrounding property into a snowboarding terrain park. The large deck makes a great place for a BBQ in summer and there's an outside bonfire year-round. The hostel has a full kitchen, laundry facilities, tv room, comfortable common room, running water, showers, electricity, and very friendly staff. Be warned though, the dorms are BIG: 48 beds in the co-ed dorm and 30 beds in the female dorm can make for loud night. Bring earplugs. $40/person for HI members, $44/person for non-members, 4 private rooms are available too. Bookings recommended in summer months. 
• 🌍 Pine Bungalows, 2 Cottonwood Creek Road, ☎ [phone]. Cabins in the woods. Elk are known to roam the site. Picnic tables and camp-fire facilities next to accommodation. Near the river so do not forget your mosquito spray. 
• 🌍 Whistlers Campground (3 km south of Jasper town off the 93.). 
• 🌍 Wapiti Campground, Highway 93 (3km south of Jasper). Campground for tents or caravans with water stations, flush toilets and hot showers. (updated Aug 2017)
• 🌍 Wabasso Campground, Highway 93A (17km south of Jasper). Simple campground for tents or caravans with water stations, flush toilets but no shower. Reservation possible as well as "First arrived first served" 21$ for a tent site. (updated Aug 2017)

Mid-range

There are numerous motels and inns within the town, as well as in Hinton, just outside the eastern entrance to the park.

• 🌍 The Crimson, 200 Connaught Dr, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. Motel with wi-fi; rooms are spacious, although rather dark, with clean bathrooms. Hot tub, conference facilities, lounge and restaurant. Includes buffet breakfast with fruit, cereals, bagels, muffins, croissants, many types of bread, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, sautéed potatoes, French toast and pancakes. $200. 
• 🌍 Austrian Haven B&B, 812 Patricia St, ☎ [phone]. Owned by a friendly and welcoming Austrian lady. Two rooms, big comfortable beds, excellent views of the mountains around Jasper. 
• 🌍 Château Jasper, 96 Geikie St, toll-free: [phone]. Hotel, restaurant and conference facilities. $140-462. 
• 🌍 Jasper Inn Alpine Resort (Best Western), 98 Geikie Street, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 11AM. Cozy fireside accommodation and casual fine dining. $93-413. 
• 🌍 Lobstick Lodge, 94 Geikie Street, ☎ [phone]. Restaurant, five hot tubs, indoor pool. Fall has the cheapest rates (<$100 is common), while summer is high season (June - August). 
• 🌍 Maligne Lodge, 912 Connaught Ave, ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. $86-473. 
• 🌍 Marmot Lodge, 86 Connaught Drive, ☎ [phone]. Heated indoor pool, sauna and whirlpool. Kitchen suites. $70-260. 
• 🌍 Mount Robson Inn, 902 Connaught Drive, ☎ [phone]. Two storey motel style inn, 80 rooms and suites, air conditioning, cable TV. $94-325. 
• 🌍 Patricia Lake Bungalows, Pyramid Lake Road, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone], fax: [phone]. Rooms, suites and cabins at lakeside at end of private road. Grill and camp-fire facilities as well as small children's playground and canoe hire for the lake. Great location out of town. $100-355. 
• 🌍 Sawridge Inn, 76 Connaught Drive, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. 153 rooms, most with private balcony and mountain view. Conference Centre, Hearthstone Lounge, Champs Sports Lounge, Mountain Wellness Spa, indoor pool, hot tubs, jacuzzi, sauna, fitness centre and business centre. $115-360. 
• 🌍 Tonquin Inn, 100 Juniper Street, ☎ [phone]. Good quality motel style rooms. Very good restaurant on site. 
• Columbine House, 1118 Patricia Street, ☎ [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. Check-in: 4 p.m., check-out: 11 a.m.. C$125 - C$160$. (updated Jan 2019)

Splurge

• 🌍 Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Old Lodge Rd (turn south off highway 16 just east of the townsite, and make a quick right after crossing the river), ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone], fax: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]. The best-known hotel in Jasper, this grand old hotel is one of the most famous and storied mountain resorts in Canada. Started as a tenting site in conjunction with the Grand Trunk Railway in 1915, it has grown into a destination resort. $400 and up. 

Stay safe

Bear-proof dumpster

Bear-proof dumpster instructions

Bears looking for food are a potential problem. The city has installed bear-proof garbage cans and business use bear-proof dumpsters.

It is a good solution until the bears learn how to read!

Go next

• VIA Rail runs routes through Jasper, which you can often include as a free stop-over if heading between Vancouver and Edmonton.
• It is also popular to travel down to Columbia Icefield, Banff National Park, Lake Louise and Banff along the very scenic Icefields Parkway, making stops at Athabasca Falls, Peyto Lake, Crowfoot Glacier, and Bow Lake.
• Mount Robson Provincial Park. The park's namesake peak is the highest in the Canadian Rockies at 3954 metres. Mount Robson Provincial Park is 217,200 hectares of stunning mountains, valleys, and waterways. Forests of spruce, fir, balsam, cedar and alder are home to an abundant array of wildlife including mountain goats, moose, deer, elk, marmot and squirrels and chipmunks. The Rearguard Falls of the Fraser River is the furthest migration point of the Pacific salmon.

Routes through Jasper

Vancouver ← Clearwater ←	W  E	→ Hinton → Edmonton
Prince Rupert ← McBride ←	W  E	→ END
Prince George / Kamloops via ← Mount Robson Prov. Park ←	W  E	→ Hinton → Edmonton
END ←	N  S	→ Columbia Icefield → Banff