Ultimate Guide to Exploring Jasper with Kids this Summer

Every summer, we make our way to Jasper a handful of times, and experience the magic of walking across Jasper Lake with the kids, taking a float tour with Jasper Rafting Co. or spending time marvelling at the clear water at Lac Beauvert.

Summer road trip season is here - is Jasper on your radar? Here's what to do with kids in Jasper this Summer:

Kid-Friendly Rafting with Jasper Raft Tours Kid-friendly in mind, you can take kids two and up on the Jasper Raft Trip through Jasper National Park on the Athabasca River. The two to three hour round trip passes through multiple sets of smaller rapids (class two) and calm stretches of water for you to enjoy the view (and dry off if you’re in the end of the boat). 

The oar powered rafts are comfortable, easy to get in and out of, and give you the perfect place to ask questions of your guide. While the guide takes care of the rowing, you can enjoy the scenery, learn a few local facts and keep your eyes open for wildlife. 

Chase Waterfalls at Athabasca Falls The entire area at Athabasca falls is perfect for kid-friendly exploring. The 23m tall falls feature an easy to walk interpretive area, and if you’re feeling brave, you can venture down to the bottom of the falls for a different vantage point. It’s incredible (and free) to get a close-up look at the falls features, the potholes and the canyon. You’re going to love the nooks and crannies.

Stargaze at the Top of the Skytram Families with children ages 6+ can visit the top of the Skytram, with an expert from the Jasper Planettarium for an exclusive stargazing and dining experience on the Skytram. You'll get 1km closer to the stars, and have the chance to view hate night sky through one of hte most powerful telescopes in the Canadian Rockies, in one of the darkest skies in the Rockies.Available Saturdays through September and October, you can get a closer view at a meteor, or the Northern Lights, and experience the Skytram under a dark sky. This one is on our list for next month, and we can't wait to experience the top of the mountain.

Jasper Skytram (during the day) We can't visit Jasper without a visit up the Skytram to try and spot marmots, marvel at the gorgeous mountain views, or this time around, get lost in the clouds. Even if it's cloudy when you visit, it's magical. This time around, we may not have had the view, but we did get the chance to walk into the clouds - and we made it up further the mountain than we've ever made it before with those little three-year-old feet.

Take a Motorcycle Sidecar Tour with Jasper Motorcycle Tours Yes, I'm serious. This motorcycle tour will take you on a one or three hour adventure, and let you feel the wind in your hair (er, helmet), staying cozy with a heated vest while you ride (yes, that's a real thing). Jasper Motorcycle tours have tours suitable for families (go with the shorter version) and our three year old rode comfortably in the side car, after getting suited up in her motorcycle leathers.The coolest part about the tour is that it's so customizable to what you've seen, and where you've been, in Jasper. In our case, we hadn't spent very much time up on the ski hill road, so we rode up and learned about 'The End of the World' trails, which leads us to the next thing to explore with your kids.

Explore the End of the World Trail This is one of my favourite kid-friendly trails because a. the trailhead is short (like five minutes walking with a three year old short) and the views are incredible. Bear in mind that you are travelling to a literal cliff lookout, so prepare any adventurous kids with safety information before you reach the lookout. There are trails to either side, for further exploring past the lookout - again, be safe. The trail gets pretty popular in the afternoon for a 'secret' trail, so consider heading out first thing in the morning for a more quiet experience.

Visit Ana Lea's Candy Lane You can't visit Jasper without making a visit to the candy store. Whether you're choosing classic Kool-aid packages, or you find a PEZ dispenser on the full wall of PEZ characters, it tops the list for our kids when we visit. I mean, I can't blame them, with that selection. Plus, Ana Lea's Candy Lane has the weirdest selection of sodas that we've ever seen. TIP: Don't forget to pack masks when you visit Jasper - masks are mandatory in all spaces when you're walking around in the townsite.

Path of the Glacier at Edith Cavell Another relatively easy, but uphill, trek, this is another trail that's perfect for families visiting Jasper. The glacier views at the top, and the glacier pond below you, it's absolutely lovely during any season, but during fall there's the gorgeous contrasting colours of the changing trees, and the cool glacier blues. Plus, the drive up to Edith Cavell is one of my favourite drives in Jasper.

Take a Wildlife Discovery Tour with Sundog Tours We've done the wildlife tour multiple times while in Jasper, but never during the fall season. Every time we've experienced this tour, it's been so much more than a wildlife tour - it's been an inside glimpse into the stories and local spots, where you may have never discovered without a local guide. It's the chance for children to come up close and personal with animal artifacts, have all of their questions answered, and have a local guide bring you to the spots where you're most likely to see wildlife.You have the chance to see: elk, deer, bear, moose and mountain goats on the tour.

Our experience was so much more than animals, we discovered three new lookout points that we had never noticed, our leader was a local expert, and entertained the kids with ghost stories that they're still talking about, a week later. This time around, we didn't have luck with the wildlife - but we learned so much about the local area, foraged for wild berries, visited Medicine Lake, and had an impromptu family photo session at Lac Beauvert.

Hike: Source of the Springs Trail in Jasper While exploring Pocahontas Campground area, there are many things that you can explore. The ‘Source of the Springs’ trail is a short trail along Sulphur Creek leading to the natural sources of the Miette Hot Springs in Jasper National Park. This stroller-friendly trail is a kick off to bathing in the hot springs (check and make sure they’re open before your visit), and is a cool way to discover the original destination of the hot springs.

Here are some of our favourite kid-friendly places to eat in Jasper: 

Jasper Brewing Co. Your kids are going to love the spaghetti from the kids menu. Generous portions, with great options to go if you're not yet comfortable spending time indoors in a restaurant (we opted for take out, and had plenty of room at Jasper Inn & Suites for the kids to eat in our suite).

Coco's Cafe. Delicious breakfasts, packaged to go. Soft scrambled eggs, delicious sourdough toast, and breakfast potatoes that are so flavourful. Chai lattes, coffee and the perfect morning start before an adventure, there is a socially-distanced small-scale patio, and if you can't find a spot there, you can grab and go, for a breakfast picnic.

Jasper Pizza Place. Don't skip the barbecue chicken pizza, it's our go-to while we spend in Jasper. This time around, we tried the hot chicken and waffles (it was spicy, so if you're ready for some spice, try it!)

Athabasca Hotel. Come hungry if you're having breakfast at Athabasca Hotel. It's the largest order of side pancakes, for kids, that you're going to find in town. Fluffy pancakes, delicious omelettes that could feed two people, or one really hungry person, and heaping skillets are what you'll find at this local hotspot. One of Jasper's earliest buildings, the Atha-B, has been there for over a hundred years. The breakfast, decor, vibe, we're here for all of it.

We were hosted by Tourism Jasper to create this feature guide.