4. As the cornerstone to the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks UNESCO World Heritage Site, Banff and Jasper National Parks are home to a variety of species. Visitors will have the chance to catch a glimpse of eagles, elk, big horn sheep, mountain goats and if you dare black bears and grizzly bears gorging on grasses in the valleys they call home. Icefields Parkway connects the two national parks and is one of the world’s great drives. Along the journey you will be mesmerized by the stunning vistas, tranquil lakes, teaming waterfalls and towering peaks above. Quickly the 3-hour journey is complete and your camera is filled with unforgettable images.

3. The town of Canmore offers resort and residential lifestyle choices at Stewart Creek Golf & Country Club and Silvertip Resort – where PGA TOUR star Stephen Ames frequents – home to a brand-new luxury vacation club.

Down in the valley, Canmore Golf & Curling Club – the local club equivalent of the neighborhood bar on the popular TV sitcom “Cheers” – is a friendly, everyone-knows-your-name place, with a fun, playable course outside during summer and a sheet of ice for curling inside during winter (“To curl is to live!”). The club served as a headquarters and lounge for Nordic event athletes in the 1988 Alberta Winter Olympics.

2. Majestic, snow-capped mountains soar overhead in every direction, reaching upwards of 10,000 feet from the roughly 5,000-foot base altitude; the aesthetic is almost unfathomably striking and unforgettable. Icing on the cake comes in the form of the friendly hosts who are genuinely happy to welcome visitors and ensure they bask in the glory that is the pristine Canadian Rockies in Alberta.

1. The area’s golf-and-resort destination (www.canadianrockiesgolf.ca) – “Canadian Rockies Golf: Historic. Dramatic. Untamed.” – combines acclaimed courses (some of the highest rated in the country), convenient packages, and idyllic summer weather.  Resorts include The Fairmont Banff Springs and The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge where pampering, history and delightful amenities offer an exquisite counterpoint to the roughing-it options which proliferate in this majestic wonderland.