Jasper → Columbia Icefield → Banff
The one tour that actually collects you in Jasper — a narrated one-way run down the Parkway with the Ice Explorer, the Skywalk and a picnic lunch all included. Three hours on the Athabasca Glacier.
The Experience
Hotel pickup in Jasper, everything included, and the longest Athabasca Glacier allocation on the corridor.
If you are staying in Jasper and searching for an Icefields Parkway tour, you have almost certainly noticed that the results feel wrong — most of them turn out to depart from Banff or Calgary. That is not a search problem. It is the actual state of the market.
We merged four GetYourGuide location pools covering this corridor — 49 distinct tours — and filtered them by where the operator says it collects you, not where the title says it goes. The result is stark:
The corridor is overwhelmingly sold southbound from Banff. Many tours have “Jasper” in the title — “Wild Adventure to Jasper,” “Banff & Jasper National Parks Tour” — but the Jasper in those titles is the destination, not the pickup. They collect you in Calgary or Banff.
The tour featured above is the one that genuinely picks you up in Jasper. SunDog collects from 21 addresses across Jasper town and runs you south down the Parkway.
That is the honest shape of it. And it explains why the supply is what it is: the corridor is a one-way road between two towns, and the tourist flow runs mostly in one direction.
Most people searching “banff to jasper day tour” or “banff to jasper bus tour” want the reverse trip, and that market is much better served. Your options:
Pick by what you need at the end of the day: a bed in Jasper, a bed in Banff, or a bed you left this morning.
Everything, essentially — which is unusual on this corridor and is what justifies the $258:
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure. The operator’s exclusions list is empty.
Compare that with the $69–$75 coach tours, where the Icefield tickets are a separate purchase, and the price stops looking like an outlier.
The Ice Explorer and the Skywalk run roughly 1 May to 12 October (2026, weather dependent). A Jasper transfer booked outside that window still runs the road — and the Parkway in winter is genuinely spectacular — but the two glacier attractions this tour’s price is built around will be closed. Confirm current dates with the operator before booking a shoulder-season date.
Pickup at your Jasper hotel, south down Highway 93, drop-off in Banff or Lake Louise.
Twenty-one pickup addresses across Jasper town — the Astoria, Park Place Inn, Chateau Jasper, Tonquin Inn, Lobstick Lodge, Bear Hill Lodge, the Downtown Hostel, Connaught Drive and more. This is the part almost no other corridor tour offers.
Onto the Icefields Parkway with a narrated commentary and wildlife spotting, then 30 minutes at Athabasca Falls.
The Columbia Icefield, then the Glacier Adventure and the Glacier Skywalk — both included, not add-ons — plus a picnic lunch at a scenic spot. Three hours is the longest glacier allocation of any tour on this site.
Thirty minutes at Peyto Lake, past the Weeping Wall, Bow Lake, the Crowfoot Glacier and Saskatchewan Crossing, then 30 minutes at Lake Louise before drop-off in Banff or Lake Louise. This is a ONE-WAY tour — you do not return to Jasper.
Photo Gallery
Athabasca Falls, the Columbia Icefield, the Weeping Wall, Peyto Lake and Lake Louise.
Book Your Experience
Select your preferred date and time. Instant confirmation — free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Only one of these collects you in Jasper. Read the row marked 'Picks you up in' before anything else.
| Feature | THE ONLY ONE Jasper → Banff (Picks Up in Jasper) | Banff → Jasper (One-Way North) | Banff & Jasper Return Day Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | From $258/per person | $246 | From $69 |
| Picks you up in | Jasper — 21 hotel addresses | Banff or Lake Louise | Banff, Canmore or Calgary |
| Drops you off in | Banff or Lake Louise | Jasper | Back where you started |
| Icefield + Skywalk tickets | Both included | Check listing | Buy separately |
| Time on the Athabasca Glacier | 3 hours | En route | 1 hour (Ice Explorer) |
| Lunch | Picnic lunch included | Check listing | Not included |
| Best for | Moving from Jasper to Banff | Moving from Banff to Jasper | Seeing the corridor and coming home |
| Rating | 4.7/5 (41 reviews) | 4.7/5 (69 reviews) | 4.7/5 (348 reviews) |
| Book Now | View Tour | View Tour |
More Options
Read the direction carefully. Only the featured tour picks up IN Jasper — the tours below run the corridor from Banff or Calgary and either finish in Jasper or return the same day.
TICKETS INCLUDED
BEST SELLER
#1 SELLING DAY TRIP
Guest Reviews
"Although a long day, it was well worth it plus the convenience of not having to waste a day just travelling. We visited Athabasca Falls, Athabasca Icefields and Skywalk, Weeping Wall, Bow Lake, and Lake Louise plus other roadside points of interest including Tangle Falls. Norm was a mine of information and used many interesting anecdotes and appllied these to some of the sites we saw and visited. We thoroughly enjoyed the day."
"It was a very fast-paced excursion; everything was excellent. The tour guide was very good, fun, approachable, and it was a pleasure to share the trip with him."
"well organised, very informative, saw Los of beautiful places and got to my destination while on a beautiful tour. Driver was excellent and very relaxed"
"Sean is engaging and knowledgeable. He showed us the best of Icefields Parkway, perhaps the most gorgeous drive I've ever taken. He put in a 12 hour day with grace humor and consideration for all of us participants. We were delayed by 35 minutes by a vehicle malfunction. The vehicle Sundog gave us had several minor glitches such as inability to charge phones"
"Had a brilliant day. Shaun our guide was fantastic and informative all day long! Saw some wonderful sights along the route. Would definitely recommend for getting between Jasper and Banff."
"The trip is GREAT! Our guide Noam is very knowledgeable and responsible. Really love all the great stories that he shared. The sceneries are gorgeous!"
"If I had to do the same trip every year for the rest of my life, it would be this one. The drive alone was spectacular with incredible mountain views, wildlife and non stop natural scenary. To top it off, the guide was incredible, full of knowledge and friendly banter. He kept the energy up for 12 hours. It is expensive and the food was acceptable. We only booked this trip to get from Jasper to Banff, but got so much more on the way."
"This was an excellent trip. Dave, our guide, is extremely knowledgeable and very informative. He showed us so many special places. We did not want the tour to end."
Read all 41 verified reviews
See All ReviewsRated 4.7/5. Hotel pickup across 21 Jasper addresses, drop-off in Banff or Lake Louise, and the Glacier Adventure, Skywalk and picnic lunch all included. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure. Starting from $258 per person.
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Which tours really depart Jasper, why there are so few, and how the Banff-to-Jasper direction works.
Barely. Of the 39 corridor tours on this site, only two actually collect you in Jasper — against 28 that pick up in Banff and 25 in Calgary or Canmore. Many tours carry Jasper in the title, but that is the destination rather than the pickup: 'Wild Adventure to Jasper' and 'Banff & Jasper National Parks Tour' both collect you in Calgary or Banff. The featured SunDog transfer is the one that genuinely picks up in Jasper.
No. It is a one-way transfer, by design. You are collected at your Jasper hotel and dropped in Banff or Lake Louise at the end of the day. It exists for travellers moving from Jasper to Banff who want the Parkway to be the journey. If you need to sleep in Jasper tonight, this is not the right booking — and there is no equivalent guided return.
For a genuine one-way with your luggage, the From Banff/Lake Louise 1-Way Sightseeing Tour to Jasper ($246, 69 reviews) mirrors the featured tour in the opposite direction — you do the Parkway with a guide and end up in Jasper. That is the true 'banff to jasper bus tour'. If you want to return to Banff the same day, several coach tours reach Jasper National Park and come back, but you get the road and the Icefield rather than time in Jasper itself.
Yes — the 2-day and 3-day Calgary itineraries cover Banff, Jasper and the Icefields Parkway without the punishing single-day drive. They are the sensible option if you want to see both parks properly rather than sprint the corridor.
From 21 addresses across Jasper town — the Astoria Hotel, Park Place Inn, Chateau Jasper, Tonquin Inn, Lobstick Lodge, Bear Hill Lodge, Jasper Downtown Hostel, Connaught Drive, Patricia Street and more. That breadth of Jasper hotel pickup is the thing almost no other corridor tour offers.
A fully narrated tour, hotel pick-up in Jasper with drop-off in Banff or Lake Louise, the Glacier Adventure and the Glacier SkyWalk activities, a picnic lunch, and small group sizes. The operator lists no exclusions at all. That is what the $258 buys — compare it with the $69 coach tours where the Icefield tickets are a separate purchase, and the price stops looking like an outlier.
Athabasca Falls (30 minutes), the Columbia Icefield (1.5 hours), then three hours on the Athabasca Glacier with a picnic — the longest glacier allocation of any tour on this site — plus Peyto Lake (30 minutes) and Lake Louise (30 minutes), passing the Weeping Wall, Bow Lake, the Crowfoot Glacier and Saskatchewan Crossing en route.
Yes, identically. The Ice Explorer and the Skywalk run roughly 1 May to 12 October, weather dependent. A Jasper transfer booked outside that window still runs the road — and the Parkway in winter is genuinely spectacular — but the two glacier attractions the price is built around will be closed.
Still have questions? Email us at info@icefields-parkway-tour.com