Visitor Use Management in the Lake Louise Area

Consultation on visitor use management planning for Lake Louise is now complete. Thank you for participating!

Parks Canada is developing a visitor use management plan for the Lake Louise area in Banff National Park.

The Lake Louise area is one of Canada’s most beloved destinations. Since 2010, visitation to Banff National Park has increased by 34% and continues to rise. More people than ever are visiting and connecting with this special place. However, more vehicles and people cause increased congestion, crowding, wildlife conflict, ecosystem impacts and makes emergency response more difficult.

Parks Canada has used many tools to address this challenge, including shuttles, reservations services, paid parking, and behavioural marketing campaigns. With visitor and vehicle numbers expected to grow, Parks Canada is exploring a sustainable long-term approach to manage changing visitation patterns and meet the commitments set out in the 2022 Banff Park Management Plan.

What is visitor use management?

The Lake Louise Area Visitor Use Management Plan will provide a variety of tools and tactics to manage visitor use in the Lake Louise area in a way that protects nature and history, is safe for visitors and staff alike, and provides a positive experience when visiting.

In this phase, Parks Canada is identifying potential strategies and actions to help achieve desired conditions previously developed with staff, stakeholder and visitor input. The strategies and actions being considered could apply in a variety of ways and in different locations within the Lake Louise area.

Parks Canada’s visitor use management work is guided by an internationally recognized framework used by protected areas around the world. It is also guided by the Parks Canada mandate, the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan, and by a set of core principles shaped by feedback we received during previous engagement. Among these principles are:

  • ecological integrity and quality visitor experience
  • accessibility and affordability
  • collaboration with partners to support regional integration
  • data-driven adaptive management
  • fairness and transparency to maintain market competitiveness and support multiple business models
  • and environmental and financial sustainability

Get informed

  1. Visit the Lake Louise Visitor Use Management Plan website: Find visitor and vehicle statistics, current challenges, actions Parks Canada can and cannot propose, and a timeline of actions Parks Canada has taken to manage congestion so far.
  2. Read the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan: This roadmap guides decision-making in Banff National Park. It identifies the need for visitor use management in the Lake Louise area.
  3. Review the draft Lake Louise Area Strategy: Building on the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan, this strategy summarizes area challenges and calls for tactical plans including visitor use management planning.

Note: Planning and land use for the community of Lake Louise is being addressed through a separate Lake Louise Community Plan update process. This legislatively required plan addresses different issues and geographic areas.

What have we heard so far?

In 2024, Parks Canada asked Canadians what was important to them about the Lake Louise area. This feedback helped us set goals – desired conditions – for the future of this special place.

Consultation on visitor use management planning for Lake Louise is now complete. Thank you for participating!

Parks Canada is developing a visitor use management plan for the Lake Louise area in Banff National Park.

The Lake Louise area is one of Canada’s most beloved destinations. Since 2010, visitation to Banff National Park has increased by 34% and continues to rise. More people than ever are visiting and connecting with this special place. However, more vehicles and people cause increased congestion, crowding, wildlife conflict, ecosystem impacts and makes emergency response more difficult.

Parks Canada has used many tools to address this challenge, including shuttles, reservations services, paid parking, and behavioural marketing campaigns. With visitor and vehicle numbers expected to grow, Parks Canada is exploring a sustainable long-term approach to manage changing visitation patterns and meet the commitments set out in the 2022 Banff Park Management Plan.

What is visitor use management?

The Lake Louise Area Visitor Use Management Plan will provide a variety of tools and tactics to manage visitor use in the Lake Louise area in a way that protects nature and history, is safe for visitors and staff alike, and provides a positive experience when visiting.

In this phase, Parks Canada is identifying potential strategies and actions to help achieve desired conditions previously developed with staff, stakeholder and visitor input. The strategies and actions being considered could apply in a variety of ways and in different locations within the Lake Louise area.

Parks Canada’s visitor use management work is guided by an internationally recognized framework used by protected areas around the world. It is also guided by the Parks Canada mandate, the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan, and by a set of core principles shaped by feedback we received during previous engagement. Among these principles are:

  • ecological integrity and quality visitor experience
  • accessibility and affordability
  • collaboration with partners to support regional integration
  • data-driven adaptive management
  • fairness and transparency to maintain market competitiveness and support multiple business models
  • and environmental and financial sustainability

Get informed

  1. Visit the Lake Louise Visitor Use Management Plan website: Find visitor and vehicle statistics, current challenges, actions Parks Canada can and cannot propose, and a timeline of actions Parks Canada has taken to manage congestion so far.
  2. Read the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan: This roadmap guides decision-making in Banff National Park. It identifies the need for visitor use management in the Lake Louise area.
  3. Review the draft Lake Louise Area Strategy: Building on the 2022 Banff National Park Management Plan, this strategy summarizes area challenges and calls for tactical plans including visitor use management planning.

Note: Planning and land use for the community of Lake Louise is being addressed through a separate Lake Louise Community Plan update process. This legislatively required plan addresses different issues and geographic areas.

What have we heard so far?

In 2024, Parks Canada asked Canadians what was important to them about the Lake Louise area. This feedback helped us set goals – desired conditions – for the future of this special place.

Page last updated: 25 Aug 2026, 09:22 AM