Banff Hotel Prices Push More Rockies Travellers Toward Cochrane

As hotel prices in Banff and Canmore continue climbing, tourism officials in Cochrane say more visitors are using the town as a cheaper place to stay while exploring Alberta’s Rocky Mountains.

The shift comes as accommodation costs in Banff and Canmore remain far above pre-pandemic levels.

Hotel prices across the Bow Valley have remained elevated in the years following the pandemic tourism rebound. Provincial hotel industry data shows average daily room rates and hotel revenues in Alberta’s mountain parks region surged after COVID-19 and have stayed high in recent years.

In 2025, total hotel room revenue reached $676.3 million, up from $440.9 million in 2019. The growth came as Banff & Lake Louise Tourism increasingly promoted a “high-value guest” approach focused on attracting visitors who stay longer and spend more.

This shift has increasingly frustrated some Alberta travellers who say trips to Banff and Canmore are becoming too expensive.

One Facebook post in the Banff and Canmore Visitors group by Ingrid Bredt complained about rising Canmore hotel prices, saying: “These are the prices in Canmore for one night stay in a hotel during June! The $250 one is a hostel!! Wasn’t that long ago that we were paying well under $200 for one night in Canmore. We live to hike, but these prices are outrageous!”

Previous reporting from Bow Valley Insider found the average hotel rate in Banff was $453 per night in 2025. During peak summer season, prices climbed much higher. In July 2025 alone, the average nightly rate reached $729.

Explore Cochrane, the tourism board for the Cochrane and Ghost Lake region, says the trend is also showing up in local tourism data, particularly among international visitors.

“Our hotels and tourism operators are reporting visitors choosing Cochrane as a base for trips into Banff and the Rockies,” said Callandra Caufield, executive director of Explore Cochrane.

The organization says international visitor spending in Cochrane increased by 79% between 2022 and 2025, while domestic visitor spending rose 28% over the same period.

International visitors are also staying longer in the community, with average trip lengths increasing by 25% between 2023 and 2025.

Short-term rental data also points to growing overnight tourism activity in nearby communities outside the Bow Valley.

Short-term rental analytics platform AirROI estimates Cochrane currently has more than 300 active short-term rental listings, with occupancy rates near 50% and average nightly rates around $170. By comparison, Canmore short-term rentals average roughly $330 per night with occupancy rates above 60%.

Online travel forums increasingly feature travellers recommending communities outside the Bow Valley region as alternatives.

“If you can’t afford a stay in the mountain parks definitely go with Cochrane,” TripAdvisor user Jul R. wrote in the site’s Calgary travel forum. “You can easily get to Canmore and then Banff via the 1A highway in 50 minutes.”

Cochrane sits roughly 45 minutes east of Canmore and has increasingly positioned itself as both a destination and a place visitors can stay while exploring the Rockies.

Travel Alberta and Explore Cochrane increasingly promote the town as an alternative place to stay for travellers visiting Banff and the Rockies.

“By developing additional emerging destinations, we expand opportunities for Albertans to explore their own backyard, creating more space for international visitation in legacy destinations,” Travel Alberta’s Tourism Development Zone strategy states.

Caufield said affordability may initially attract some visitors to Cochrane, but many travellers are also looking for experiences beyond Banff alone.

“Cochrane offers visitors something increasingly rare in globally recognized tourism regions: the opportunity to enjoy the Canadian Rockies while also experiencing the character, culture, and landscapes of Canada’s West,” she said.

For some travellers, that also means avoiding the high accommodation prices increasingly associated with staying directly in Banff or Canmore.