I like fun and this was definitely a fun time. From boarding to leaving the ship ride was about an 1 hour and a half. My wife and friends enjoyed the whole experience. For me, anything or event that encourages picture taking is perfect. The views on Lake Minnewanka were perfect. This should be on everyone's 'must see / do list' Remember you are in a National Park, so you must get a parking pass for the park...or you WILL get a ticket. Luckily... we came by bus tour. No cars to worry about. The staff at the Lake are amazing from the moment you arrive. You can hike trails, rent canoes or kayaks or take the boat ride. Dress warmly, as it gets cold in the winter months and the water is NEVER warm! Our wonderful guide made sure to explain that to us. There was a nice vibe between the crew and visitors. Another nice piece to this trip. This was simply relaxing and what else could you be looking for on a vacation than to do something that puts a smile on your face and allows you to sit back and relax. It was nice to stand outside the back of the boat and enjoy the view. Their only restriction was to keep the count no higher than eight. Even with a full boat it worked out just fine. I can't recommend this delightful boat tour enough and encourage all to take it if time permits. KUDOs to the team at theLake Minnewanka Cruise read more

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I think i expected more of a speed boat than a tour boat when I booked it so was a bit disappointed, but it wasn't a bad way to spend an hour. Lake Minnewanka is beautiful and we took this cruise on the most gorgeous day. We had 8 people on our boat tour, which seemed to be less than usual. Our tour guide told us all about the lake and some fun banff stories for about 30-40 minutes, then we stopped for about 5-10 min to take pics on the deck and then rode back in silence. It was a beautiful hour on the lake, but i found myself wishing we used that time to walk around town or do another hike instead. We were told parking at Lake Minnewanka is impossible (like all parts of Banff), but we did get pretty lucky with a spot right away. We also ate lunch at their snack shack which wasn't anything special (hot dog for me and a ginormous slice of pizza for my husband), but convenient. Overall, a fine experience since the weather was so gorgeous, but not one I'd repeat if back in Banff. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - View from cruise - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

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GREAT Tour & the guides were informative & answered all our questions. It was a great learning experience as well. Thank You!

We really enjoyed our 1.5 hour cruise. Our guide was able to explain a lot of the history while we viewed the lake and the canyons around us. read more

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Jenna was an amazing tour guide and Emily was an amazing captain. So impressed with Jenna and how much knowledge she had about the lake!! Pretty view. read more

Awesome way to not only explore the waters of Lake Minnewanka, but to learn about its rich history as well! The tour was interesting, educational, and filled with beautiful scenery. We were on a fairly full tour and had our seats assigned to us when we got our boarding pass. Even though the seats were assigned it wasn't too difficult to move around to the other side of the boat if you wanted a different view. You could also head out to the back of the boat and stand outside to enjoy the view. We booked our tour through Pursuit and got a package with the Banff gondola ticket to save some money, great option since both were fun! read more

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Had such a fun time on the lake this afternoon, it was informative and relaxing. Great captain Mackenzie and tour guide Kanji! Would recommend! read more

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Overall an informative tour about the history of Lake Minnewanka and a chance to get to see a big section of the lake. Not super exciting for my teenagers but a great option for older adults or young kids. It was a little pricey but it was cold, raining and snowing so it was nice to have something to do which was enclosed. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

Lake Minnewanka is just amazing! It's a must see for everyone! Remember you are in a National Park, so you must get a parking pass for the park...or you WILL get a ticket. The staff at Lake Minnewanka are amazing...try and get on Jo and Kristen's boat.., both are amazing! Here are some views during my visit. You can hike the trails, rent canoes or kayaks or take the boat ride. Dress warmly, as it gets cold in the winter months and the water is NEVER warm! read more

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Absolutely breathtaking. Amazing guides and captains as well! Once in a lifetime opportunity read more

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Very organized, professional staff and clearly marked signs make this mini adventure of Lake Minnewonka so enjoyable. Our guide and boat captain were really lovely. I enjoyed all the stories and pictures that our guide shared with the tour. It was a great experience. The cafe near the lake serves yummy treats. You can grab a quick bite before your boat ride. There are bathrooms there. They were ok, not the best and certainly not the worst. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - View from boat - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

The beer cruise was a phenomenal way to try a few local brews and see the landscape from a different angle. Plus the tour guides had some great stories about the history of the lake. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

Banff National Park is one of the most gorgeous parks in the world, so you can imagine that a boat tour in one of the lakes will be a great time as well. This boat tour came as part of the Banff adventure package we purchased, which included four of the greatest things you can do in the park: the gondola, skywalk, icefield adventure, and this boat tour. If you are only going to do one or two of these things and not get the package, I'd definitely recommend doing the icefield adventure before any of the rest (it was definitely the coolest). While the boat tour was relaxing and enjoyable, it's just more of a normal experience than sliding down in a once-in-a-lifetime ice vehicle. I highly recommend booking this one-hour boat tour at the end of your trip. We'd been doing so much hiking, driving and adventuring, so being relax in a boat while hearing wonderful park stories was super nice. Our boat was small, which was nice because we could all hear our guide very well. We took the English-speaking tour and our guide was interesting, funny and engaging. He shared a really entertaining story about a particular bear in the park and it's the story we brought back to tell everyone (it's CRAZY but you have to go to hear it!). For this tour, you'll need to drive to the Lake Minnewanka Boat Dock to show your ticket and line up for your boat. The area was pretty and there were outdoor bathrooms as well. On the way out of the park, there was even a bear sighting! read more

Went out last night with Ben and Hayden and had an absolute blast! Very knowledgeable, personable and funny guys! Cannot recommend enough! read more

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Lake Minnewanka is absolutely massive and the 1 hour cruise gets you much further out than the canoes possible could. We did this a part of a package with the glacier tour and the Banff gondola. Its honestly hard to pick a favorite experience because they were all awesome. I really enjoyed having the tour guide with us. Gina was super friendly and a great story teller. She made us feel at ease and the captain driving was great as well. They took us to the far end of the lake in the back country and turned off the boat and did fifteen seconds of silence and it was probably the best fifteen seconds of my life. It was so unbelievably peaceful to just stare out at the crystal clear water and the trees. Learned a lot about the area and the First Nations and it was a really moving experience. Honestly would do the tour over just for that time at the back of the lake, especially at sunset (we did it in the afternoon). read more

A bit different than duck tour. The guide told stories of the lake like a National Park docent. Boat ride itself was not that long. Water color was so green and impressive. I asked how deep the water was, she said deepest is 500 m, most of the part is 100m deep. About the color she explained with the words glacier, minerals in the ice remains as powder deep in the water, depends on the sun ray going through the particles, the water looks emerald green, etc. Another beautiful place. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

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Lake Minnewanka ("Water of the Spirits" in Nakota Indian language) is a glacial lake located within an easy 5 km drive from the Banff Town Site. The lake is 28 km long and 142 m deep, making it the longest lake in the mountain parks of the Canadian Rockies (the result of a power dam at the west end). The lake is fed by the Cascade River and other streams from the Mountains above. The western end of the lake can be reached by following Lake Minnewanka road from the Trans-Canada Highway. Boat tours are available near the parking lot and it is kind of fun to get out on the water. In addition, a hiking trail runs along the northern shore of the lake, passing Stewart Canyon and six back country campsites. It's all a pleasant diversion from nearby tourist hordes and a nice warm up for all the other choices that this wonderful National Park offers. Dams were built in 1912 and 1941 to supply the Banff Town Site with hydro-electric power. The most recent dam (1941) raised the lake 30 m and submerged the resort village of Minnewanka Landing that had been present there since 1888. Because of the presence of the submerged village, submerged bridge pilings, and submerged dam (the one from 1912), the lake is popular among recreational scuba divers. read more

I very much enjoyed out boat tour and think it needs to be a trip added to any Banff holiday. I would recommend getting there early before your tour begins as parking is limited during the busy seasons. We were lucky to get a space while there were many more cars circling the car park. Once you are on the boat it is very comfortable and although I cannot remember our tour guides name he was a great guide and answered all questions. He told us about the infamous local bear named 'The Boss' who is so big that not even being hit twice by a train can bring him down. He is too big to walk comfortably through the forest so often walks across the train tracks where he has been hit not once, but twice by a train. The train driver was devastated after hitting him so contacted the authorities to go and check on him but when the rangers got there 'The Boss's' GPS tracking showed he was already 5 miles away with not even a scratch. He also eats other bears, which is where his nickname comes from. The lake itself is very beautiful and you will hear all the tales that make it a wonderful tour to go on. read more

Visited Lake Minnewanka this morning and it was beautiful! We arrived around 10am and the parking lot was already packed, we got one of the last spots. Would recommend either getting there early or taking the public transit bus "Roam". We signed up for the boat tour which was very informative. There are also several other options to rent boats, kayaks, or canoes to take out onto the lake. The prices seemed reasonable. There is also fishing options which you must purchase a Parks Canada Fishing license. read more

Lake Minnewanka Cruise - Boating Near Me - Banff, Alberta

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Awesome boat tour. You get to actually really learn the history of the area and the lake and surroundings. The captain who talks and talks is hilarious and really is good at getting your attention on the information he wants to share about Minnewanka and other associated places and info. The view is amazing and beautiful! It's a must see tour. You can go outside to the back of the boat and take really nice photos of the lake and the surrounding mountains. Purchased the ultimate explorer package for $150 and this was one of the 4 tours included. Definitely worth it. read more

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Rented a boat for an hour. Everything went super smooth and there relaxed on the timing so if you have to slow down due to the current and get back in an hour and 10 mins there relaxed won't charge extra. Great pricing too! read more

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Friendly, professional and informative staff. I would have liked some outside seating options, but it was a nice summer day and had it not been I would have appreciated the enclosed boat. Lots of large windows that open so lots if breeze. Beautiful scenery. I am from Calgary so it was nice to see the area from a different perspective. Suitable for families. We used Air Miles vouchers for 2 of our 3 tickets so very affordable but if not it would have been the typical tourist prices which are always a bit high for what you get. If you are hosting out of towners get the Brewster pass or other bundles that include the cruise and other local attractions and save. Good over all - No regrets. read more

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