Day 19 - Banff

Had a bit of a lie in, then ventured out to see Banff. The weather was lovely and sunny and there's a definite chill in the air, but we sat outside a cafe and had coffee and a muffin round a firepit. Banff is a really nice town, has a good vibe, although it might be different in the high seasons when it's rammed. Browsed the gift shops looking for presents to take home and then walked round the little farmer's market. Shared fab chips with pulled pork and ranch sauce from a stand run by a guy from Manchester 😀, sitting in the park by the river.

We then walked along the Bow River Trail to the "Surprise Corner Viewpoint", which is so-called because you come to a corner and suddenly there's an amazing view over the river to the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. It's the most enormous, castle-like hotel - very impressive, and I imagine very expensive. Banff is surrounded by mountains so the views are gorgeous everywhere 🏞️🗻⛰️.
Ooh, and we saw an elk 🦌!!!

Stopped for a sangria when we got back to town and then decided to have an early dinner, couldn't be bothered to go back to the hotel and get changed. It's been quite nice to be very casual since the cruise 😀. We found an Indian restaurant which had good reviews, and the food was excellent. Cheaper than most places we've eaten so far too.... always a bonus.

We were back at the hotel by 8pm so I went up to the roof to the hot pool and lay in there for half an hour. It felt so amazing being outside in the cold air, and in a wonderful hot bubbly pool. My idea of bliss!!!! Mark didn't fancy the pool tonight so I just chilled on my own and enjoyed the relaxation, contemplating the holiday and what a fantastic experience it's been. I feel so lucky ☺️.Læs mere