Animal lovers, don't miss your chance to discover the grizzly bear! Leaving Banff behind, you'll take a ride in a gondola for a great view of grizzly country, then take a chairlift to visit the grizzly refuge where you can observe an orphaned grizzly bear as it romps and plays in a natural bear habitat.
Visit the orphaned grizzly bear Boo, as he romps and plays in his natural habitat. Your guided sightseeing tour to the Grizzly Bear Refuge also includes stops at Emerald Lake, Takakkaw Falls and Kicking Horse Canyon.
Ride the gondola at Kicking Horse Mountain for an eagle's eye view of grizzly country, walk the summit trails and dine on a gourmet lunch at Canada's highest restaurant. Take a chairlift ride up to the sanctuary to experience an up-close visit with Boo, the resident bear of the refuge.
This tour is seasonal and only operates from June through to October.
A grizzly bear at close range! How could this trip be anything less than 5 stars? So amazing. The tour guide at the refuge was fantastic, and Neal Neil? E. was a wonderful guide for the day with a lot of knowledge. Several stops to and from the refuge were beautiful, and the gondola ride/chair lift ride were added bonuses.
Review by: thelastmove, September 2017
This was a really enjoyable tour with a very informative guide. The stops at Takakka falls and emerald lake were wonderful. Also really liked the gondola ride to the top of the kicking horse mountain and had a very nice lunch at the eagles eye restaurant. Then we rode the chair lift to the grizzly bear refuge which was a very lovely experience but sadly we didn't see Boo as he was hiding that day but that can't be helped._br/_ We had to meet at the parking lot behind the mount royal hotel and it would have been good if we had been told before hand that parking was not in the lot but had to find a space on the street
Review by: Bette G, September 2017
This was an excellent day tour! Chris was a fun, knowledgable and caring guide. He was a pretty amazing driver too. My sister and I enjoyed the smaller bus. Our noon meal and restaurant were a nice additon.
Review by: Nicola D, August 2017
Ed our tour guide was great . The tour was well organised and he was very informative . We had a great view if boo the grizzly and takkakaw falls was amazing !
Review by: Mary T, September 2016
This was a great tour. The tour guide was wonderful and very informative. The scenery was beautiful and Boo the grizzly bear was very cooperative. I would definitely recommend taking this tour!
Review by: Qinghua L, August 2016
Marvelous trip with tour guide Mike who is humorous and knowledgeable and from Australia!
Review by: Irma S, August 2016
Pam was an excellent tour guide. She was very informative and had a great personality. The scenery was beautiful. It was one of best tours I have been on.
Review by: Kathleen M, August 2016
Out tour director Pam was very informative and friendly...she made the trip fun wish there were more bears to see otherwise scienery and trip was great
Review by: Patricia B, July 2016
This tour was beautiful, informative and fun. Emma our tour guide was an excellent. During the time between stops she kept us entertained with information and thoughtful questions and stories. The falls were great. Boo the bear and his story was fantastic. The care takers there were caring and responsible. Boo is allowed to be as wild as non-dependent on people as he can be. Lunch was fabulous at Kicking Horse. This tour was heartwarming. The scenery amazing!
Review by: Nicholas W, July 2016
Pleasant enough but a lot of time driving in the bus. Cannot blame driver for bad weather though. Only 1 Grizzly Bear at the refuge which gives the lie to the name of the tour..... Overall enjoyable, but be prepared for several hours on the bus...
Review by: JOHN L, July 2016
This experience is the No.1 priority on any trip to Banff . From the early morning start the day was filled with awe-aspiring scenery of the Rockies. Sights of waterfalls/mountains to live long in the memory.The part of the day everybody was eagerly awaiting was the visit to the Grizzly Bear sanctuary to see Boo.On arrival the knowledgeable staff member explained the story of Grizzly Boo,after waiting about an hour the majestic animal strolled out of the undergrowth. Unforgettable !!
Review by: Catherine R, July 2016
I got a great video of Bou the bear. We had a delicious lunch at the top of Kicking Horse ski area. We saw all kinds of wild animals, gushing falls and lakes in all different jewelled colors. But the highlight of the trip was Emma. Our driver was patient, funny, informative and upbeat. Her navigation of those hair-pin turns was amazing. After I booked this trip, I was uncertain that it would be worth it. I was so wrong and am thrilled I didn't miss this tour.
Review by: Rosemary K, July 2016
This was a great tour! Our Hostless was a fantastic driver, narrator and all round best guide for this trip. I think Discover Tours should give this trip some more information for potential guests: great scenery, great bus, wonderful narration and lovely lunch with a fantastic view. Best of all: our hostess. She was a lovely comment on all things good with your company.
Review by: Lynda S, July 2016
This was purchased as a gift for my nephew's 21st - he was desperate to see a Grizzly while in Canada. His feedback was very lukewarm - there was one bear ? at the refuge and it was asleep the whole time - the restaurant stop for lunch however was a winner!
Review by: Albert G, June 2016
Unfortunately Boo was having an 'off' day and stayed in his den so never got to see a grizzly bear and .as we were on a coach tour, could not take up the offer of another tour later. So grizzly bear sighting not always guarenteed!
Review by: Stephen W, June 2016
This tour was booked for 2 reasons - visit Lake Louise and Boo the orphaned bear - not a cheap tour for 2 at 365 Aus dollars. We were really really annoyed that you changed from visiting Lake Louise to Lake Emerald not a satisfactory alternative. The contact at Banff advised it was never an option to go to Lake Louise on this tour so I believe the advertising on your site was misleading. I assume you will not print this as a review but I didn't know how to contact you with the complaint.
Review by: Nancy Fischer R, June 2016
We had a great small group tour with our guide Rob, who was very knowledgeable about the area and wildlife. It was very well organized, and we very much enjoyed the experience, seeing and learning about orphaned grizzly, Boo.
Review by: Yean H, November 2015
This tour is really fun. You got to see a beautiful waterfall, a nice restaurant for lunch, couple lifts and bear! It is really worth it
Review by: Peter S, September 2015
Excellent guide/driver made sure our group had amazing experience. Faultless!
Review by: Natalie C, September 2015
Excellent trip , great informative guide and we got see Boo the bear. Recommended
Review by: Richard P, July 2015
I would have rated this tour higher, but the description is a little bit misleading. It should be mentioned within the tour info that there could be a chance of not sighting Boo at all. We did get to see Boo for about 5 minutes, only his head and from about 100 meters away - definitely not up close and personal. I cannot fault Jordan our tour guide, he was great as was the rest of the tour. The lunch venue was stunning and the views to die for and the meal was great also. We did another tour in Vancouver and got to see Grizzly bears a lot closer. I could not recommend this tour if your desire, like ours, was to see bear up close.
Review by: Stephen C, July 2015
The best of the bunch. we had a wonderful guide/driver called Becky, she was absolutely fantastic!_br/_
I can't say enough about this trip we did so much, Lake Louise was lovely, the Spiral railway, the gondola ride and lunch at the top was spectacular, the food and view were both amazing._br/_
The highlight of the trip was Boo, he came out to play and we got excellent photos. Then on the way back a stop at a beautiful waterfall. Well done Becky I bet you were tired we all dozed on the way home._br/_
You must do this trip.
Review by: Margaret B, June 2015
LOVED IT!!! Visited some gorgeous lakes Lake Louise and Emerald Lake and loved seeing Boo, the grizzly bear. Lunch, which was included, was also of high quality. Great tour and well worth the money. Tour guide, Becky, was so friendly and could answer all the questions which were thrown at her.
Review by: stuart f, August 2014
excellent tour, full value for money. guide was excellent; knowledgeable, patient and did everything possible to make the trip memorable. Lake Louise was fantastic, the gondola ride to the mountain top restaurant was terrific and the food and service were excellent, as were the views. Piece de resistance was getting up close to the grizzly bear, "Boo". Absolutely loved the complete day! Would heartily recommend.
Review by: jj, December 2013
ok.
Review by: fleurette g, August 2013
FABULOUS DAY- Great introduction to BANFF AREA by the guide and from there on the day just got better._br/_
The visit to the ski park in GOLDEN was an eye opener followed by a great lunch at the restaurant. _br/_
We were "' BLESSED '" as we obtained great photos of the bear and a very informative talk from the staff_br/_
working at the refuge. Finally a visit to the waterfall in the national park capped what was a GREAT TIME._br/_
I'm sure everyone who was on the tour feel the same about the high standard set by the guide who made_br/_
all of us fell VERY WELCOME.
Review by: ACHIM S, September 2012
GREAT WEATHER,GREAT TOUR DIRECTOR,FINE COMPANY AND ABOVE ALL ONE OF THE FINEST DAYS OF OUR LIVES-THANK YOU
Review by: Lorna Alison S, July 2012
Anick our guide was fantastic, she had a wealth of knowledge which she freely imparted as we travelled along. She had folders with additional information which she passed out at the appropriate time. Despite the weather we had a fantastic day - despite a power outage we got to see Boo as the ranger drove us up the mountain in an all terrain vehicle. Missed our lunch at top of gondola due to weather but Anick worked hard to source alternatives. The trip was wonderful and we saw so much in addition to just Boo - very interesting. We had a very personalised tour as sadly the trip had not been very publicised, but we certainly preferred it.
Review by: John V, September 2011
We had a successful day in terms of bear spotting and the weather added to the splendour of the day.
Review by: Judi N, September 2011
Great trip - Andrew was a great tour guide and knew lots of interesting information about the area and Bou the grizzly. The bus was comfortable and lunch was excellent. Bou was the highlight of the day - he came right up to the fence so we got an excellent view of him. Definitely go on this tour!
Review by: christopher s, September 2011
An excellent tour! Our guide Hugh was very knowledgable about this part of Canada and passionate about bears. We called at Lake Louise, the Takakkaw Falls and saw the Spiral Tunnels, which are part of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The highlight, after lunch at the highest restaurant in Canada, was definitely seeing Boo the Grizzly Bear in his refuge. He obligingly sat at the fence whilst one of his "keepers" told us all about him. He seemed very content in his twenty acre reserve which you have to reach by ski lift. The bus was not too big and the company seem to really care about the environment. I would recommend this trip to anyone interested in wildlife. A wild black bear obligingly crossed the road in front of the bus on the way down from visiting Boo. This trip was the highlight of our visit to Canada.
Review by: Kelly L, January 2011
Absolutely superb. We had a small group visit to the refuge and fantastic sightings of Boo bear in his natural habitat. Due to the end of season and a few areas of the tour unavailable the tour company replaced them with other points of interested which were amazing.
Review by: Kelly L, October 2010
Absolutely superb. We had a small group visit to the refuge and fantastic sightings of Boo bear in his natural habitat. Due to the end of season and a few areas of the tour unavailable the tour company replaced them with other points of interested which were amazing.
Review by: BORTOLOTTI S, October 2010
This was my favourite excursion! Great tour leader , very nice spot where we had lunch.
Boo was stunning, he took the bath during our visit and our photos are outstanding!
Review by: BORTOLOTTI S, September 2010
This was my favourite excursion! Great tour leader , very nice spot where we had lunch.
Boo was stunning, he took the bath during our visit and our photos are outstanding!
Review by: Graham E, August 2010
we had a great time on this tour. Our guide Marci picked us up from the hotel and we were the only ones so had a very personnel tour.Marci was very knowledgable and really loved her job.you could tell.She went out of her way to make us feel special and give us a wonderful experience.we saw lots of wildlife and wonderful scenary which would have been easily missed without the knowledge of a good guide.We had a really good time with Boo the bear who came and sat sooo close we could almost touch him.It was one of the best days of our time in Canada.Well done Marci and thank you for being so kind when my husband was sick. The Emmotts from Australia
Review by: Helen M, July 2010
This was a very good tour, the bear appeared and that for me was the main item. Not so keen on all the spiel that went with seeing Beu, but it was a good day out, must admit in the whole time in Canada wild life was definitely not on show, and this was the only opportunity.
Review by: Anonymous, July 2010
Four of us boarded the blue bus with our driver. Lucky us, we were the only ones on the tour. We were offered water, binoculars, umbrellas and even biscuits as part of the tour. Our guide was truly knowledgeable and shared with us recent newspaper clippings about bear adventures in the area and told us a lot about bears in general. We had a couple of chair lift rides which were very pleasant considering the weather. Thanks to the binoculars we even saw 2 black bears at the very top of a tree just near the chair. Due to the weather our plans changed slightly but with no drama. We still had a beautiful lunch in a lovely restaurant and no time was wasted as the order was put through ahead of our arrival. When we visited the Grizzly Refuge we thought that perhaps we wouldn't get to see Boo. There was an electrical storm that was threatening to close the area early. However, the staff at the Refuge did their utmost to bring Boo out of hiding. Sure enough out he came and we managed to take a lot of great photos. What a highlight of our trip! Special thanks to our guide and the local tour company who clearly care about their guests. We would certainly recommend this tour!
Review by: Graham E, July 2010
we had a great time on this tour. Our guide Marci picked us up from the hotel and we were the only ones so had a very personnel tour.Marci was very knowledgable and really loved her job.you could tell.She went out of her way to make us feel special and give us a wonderful experience.we saw lots of wildlife and wonderful scenary which would have been easily missed without the knowledge of a good guide.We had a really good time with Boo the bear who came and sat sooo close we could almost touch him.It was one of the best days of our time in Canada.Well done Marci and thank you for being so kind when my husband was sick. The Emmotts from Australia
Review by: , July 2010
Four of us boarded the blue bus with our driver. Lucky us, we were the only ones on the tour. We were offered water, binoculars, umbrellas and even biscuits as part of the tour. Our guide was truly knowledgeable and shared with us recent newspaper clippings about bear adventures in the area and told us a lot about bears in general. We had a couple of chair lift rides which were very pleasant considering the weather. Thanks to the binoculars we even saw 2 black bears at the very top of a tree just near the chair. Due to the weather our plans changed slightly but with no drama. We still had a beautiful lunch in a lovely restaurant and no time was wasted as the order was put through ahead of our arrival. When we visited the Grizzly Refuge we thought that perhaps we wouldn't get to see Boo. There was an electrical storm that was threatening to close the area early. However, the staff at the Refuge did their utmost to bring Boo out of hiding. Sure enough out he came and we managed to take a lot of great photos. What a highlight of our trip! Special thanks to our guide and the local tour company who clearly care about their guests. We would certainly recommend this tour!
Review by: Debra S, September 2009
Boo was amazing! As close to a real encounter as I wanted. So natural--nothing like visiting a zoo. All of the "giants of the Rockies," as our terrific guide called the mountains, were fantastic!
Review by: Andrew H, September 2009
Picked up on a clean comfortable bus. Our guide proved to be as full of interesting information as she was enthusiastic. Our first stop was Lake Louise, then we took a trip up a gondola to look down on the Bow Valley in a blizzard. We continued on through the Rockies, across the Continental Divide and stopped to view the spiral tunnels where we saw a train so long it was still going past us as the engines first entered the tunnels and then exited into the valley below.
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On to the Takakkaw Falls which were breath-taking. An excellent lunch followed, pre-ordered with four options and ready as we arrived at the restaurant.
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Then the highlight of the day, being met by a 600lb 6 foot tall Grizzly bear who stood and stared at us from no more than six feet. He graced as with his presence for more than an hour and a half, scratching his back against his favourite tree and settling down to snooze in his hollow. Arrived back exactly when we were told we would.
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We cannot recommend this company or our guide on the day highly enough. Book this trip, you won't regret a single minute of the day.
Review by: Mark N, September 2009
The whole trip was great. There was so much to see and do. It was an amazing day, and definitely worth it.
Review by: Debra S, August 2008
Boo was amazing! As close to a real encounter as I wanted. So natural--nothing like visiting a zoo. All of the "giants of the Rockies," as our terrific guide called the mountains, were fantastic!
Review by: Andrew H, October 2007
Picked up on a clean comfortable bus. Our guide proved to be as full of interesting information as she was enthusiastic. Our first stop was Lake Louise, then we took a trip up a gondola to look down on the Bow Valley in a blizzard. We continued on through the Rockies, across the Continental Divide and stopped to view the spiral tunnels where we saw a train so long it was still going past us as the engines first entered the tunnels and then exited into the valley below.
_br /__br /_
On to the Takakkaw Falls which were breath-taking. An excellent lunch followed, pre-ordered with four options and ready as we arrived at the restaurant.
_br /__br /_
Then the highlight of the day, being met by a 600lb 6 foot tall Grizzly bear who stood and stared at us from no more than six feet. He graced as with his presence for more than an hour and a half, scratching his back against his favourite tree and settling down to snooze in his hollow. Arrived back exactly when we were told we would.
_br /__br /_
We cannot recommend this company or our guide on the day highly enough. Book this trip, you won't regret a single minute of the day.
Review by: Anonymous, August 2007
The whole trip was great. There was so much to see and do. It was an amazing day, and definitely worth it.
Review by: Mark N, August 2007
The whole trip was great. There was so much to see and do. It was an amazing day, and definitely worth it.
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