Comparisons
Glacier or Banff: How to Choose, and How to Do Both
November 2, 2026 · 6 min read
Glacier National Park (opens in a new tab) in Montana and Banff National Park in Alberta are in the same mountain range, about 410 km apart by road with one border crossing. They run very differently. Glacier is a wilderness with one road across it and small seasonal villages at its edges. Banff has a real town inside the park, and its most famous lakes are now reached by bus. That difference should decide your trip more than the scenery does, and the cost for non-Americans has changed the sums since January 2026.
West Glacier, Montana
West Glacier (opens in a new tab) is a village of 221 people at the west entrance, and the only Glacier gateway with an Amtrak station. Going-to-the-Sun Road (opens in a new tab) starts here and runs about 50 miles to St. Mary, crossing the Continental Divide at Logan Pass (opens in a new tab), 6,646 feet. It takes about two hours without stops, and a full day with them.
The catch is the calendar. The full road opened between June 13 and July 13 in each of the past seven years, and on June 22 in 2026, so a trip that depends on it should start in July. In 2026 Glacier dropped vehicle reservations, limited Logan Pass parking to three hours from July 1 to September 7, and ran a ticketed shuttle to the pass. The rules for 2027 had not been announced when this was written; what is known so far (opens in a new tab) is on the Montana guide.
For restaurants, a walkable downtown and a ski hill, many visitors base themselves about 28 miles from the west entrance in Whitefish (opens in a new tab), which has Whitefish Mountain Resort (opens in a new tab) above it.
St. Mary and Many Glacier, Montana
St. Mary (opens in a new tab) is the eastern end of the road, a seasonal village with 54 year-round residents on the edge of the Blackfeet Reservation. It is the side to sleep on if hiking is the point, and the side nearest Canada.
Many Glacier (opens in a new tab) is a separate valley to the north, reached from outside the park, and many of the east side's best-known hikes start there. The Grinnell Glacier Trail (opens in a new tab) is about 5 miles one way with about 2,600 feet of climbing, or about 3.7 miles if you take the boats across Swiftcurrent Lake and Lake Josephine. It ends at a glacier you can walk up to, but the upper section can hold steep snow well into summer.
Banff, Alberta
Banff (opens in a new tab) is the reverse of West Glacier: a full town inside the park, with hotels, restaurants and public transit, and a visit that works without a car. The Banff Gondola (opens in a new tab) climbs Sulphur Mountain in eight minutes to a terminal at about 2,280 meters. Johnston Canyon (opens in a new tab), about 25 km northwest on the Bow Valley Parkway (opens in a new tab), has catwalks through a limestone slot canyon, and it is a much shorter outing than anything comparable at Glacier.
It also works in winter, which Glacier's high country does not: Going-to-the-Sun Road closes over the pass, while Banff has three ski areas within reach of town.
Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, Alberta
Lake Louise (opens in a new tab) is where Banff's convenience stops. Parks Canada says its parking lot often fills before sunrise, and Moraine Lake Road is closed to personal vehicles all year. For most visitors that means a reserved shuttle from the free Park and Ride at the Lake Louise ski resort. In 2026 the Lake Louise service ran from May 15 and the Moraine Lake service from June 1, both to October 12. Parks Canada released 40% of seats in mid-April and the rest at 8 a.m. Mountain Time two days before each departure.
So both parks ration their best-known view. Lake Louise and Moraine Lake do it with reserved seats, Logan Pass with short-stay parking and a shuttle, and either way the morning needs planning in advance.
What it costs
Prices below are 2026 rates for Glacier (opens in a new tab) and Banff (opens in a new tab), with Canadian figures in Canadian dollars.
- Glacier, US residents: $35 per private vehicle for seven days, or the $80 America the Beautiful pass.
- Glacier, everyone else: the same $35, plus $100 per person aged 16 or over. Two Canadian adults in a car pay $235. Four pay $435, so the $250 non-resident annual pass is the better buy for a carload, though passes have their own coverage rules worth reading first.
- Banff: C$12.25 per adult per day, or C$24.50 for a family or group of up to seven in one vehicle, with youth free. The C$83.50 adult Discovery Pass covers a year. Parks Canada waived admission from June 19 to September 7 in 2026, and you should not assume that returns in 2027.
For a week, a non-American couple pays US$235 at Glacier against C$171.50 at Banff at the daily group rate, so check this first if you are not a US resident.
Doing both
The drive from St. Mary (opens in a new tab) to Banff (opens in a new tab) is about 410 km, roughly 5.5 hours without stops or a border queue, by way of the Carway crossing and Calgary. From West Glacier the direct route is longer, about 545 km and 7 hours, so plan to leave from the east side. Drive Going-to-the-Sun Road west to east first, sleep in St. Mary, then head north.
There are two crossings near the park, and both need a passport. Carway, on US-89 and Alberta Highway 2, is open all year and is listed at 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Chief Mountain is seasonal: May 15 to September 30 in 2026, and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. only between June 1 and September 7. Check both border agencies before a shoulder-season trip.
Chief Mountain is also the road into Waterton Lakes National Park, Glacier's Canadian neighbor and half of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, created in 1932. It makes a sensible overnight between the two.
Fly in for this route if you can, since Calgary (opens in a new tab) is on the way and about 135 km from Banff, and allow a week: three days at Glacier, one on the road, three around Banff. With more time, carry on up the Icefields Parkway to Jasper (opens in a new tab) and the Athabasca Glacier (opens in a new tab).
Which one fits your trip
- Want to spend your days on long trails and don't need a town at night? Glacier, sleeping on the east side at St. Mary.
- Need to manage without a car? Banff.
- Planning a trip before July? Banff, since Logan Pass may not be open.
- Have a family of non-US residents and a tight budget? Banff, or buy the annual pass before you reach Glacier.
- Want one drive that is the trip by itself? Glacier, for Going-to-the-Sun Road.
- Planning a winter trip? Banff for the skiing, with Whitefish as the Montana alternative.
- Have a full week in July or August? Both, in the order above, using the three-day Glacier itinerary (opens in a new tab) for the first half.