Often times staying in a hotel or resort can be more of a function of necessity than enjoyment. Your average hotel room is usually one small room, with a bed, bathroom, and if your lucky a closet. While it fills a need and gives you a place to stay, it’s not normally very comfortable, especially if you are planning to stay in one place for a long visit. The Hidden Ridge Resort in Banff takes the typical hotel paradigm and flips it around. What if instead of staying in a tiny room, you could vacation in a fully furnished 3-bedroom condo and still be just minutes from downtown Banff, and all the great ski resorts? Oh and of course the property is pet friendly so you can even bring your favorite family friend with you!  Lauren and I were invited to review the Hidden Ridge Resort during our last visit to Banff, and we’re here to tell you what it’s all about.

When we first arrived at the Hidden Ridge Resort in Banff, AB Lauren and I had to pinch ourselves. Driving through the beautiful Canadian Rockies and Banff National park in the early winter was something out of a dream. Then we arrived at our resort and it looked like something you’d expect to see in a movie. Nestled just a few kilometers outside of the Banff Downtown area, the Hidden Ridge Resort provides gorgeous views of the surrounding mountains while still being conveniently located near all the fun attractions.

The check in process was quick and painless (as it should be) and we were pleased to be told that we we able to rent movies from the lobby and that they also provided firewood and kindling if you wanted to use the room’s included wood burning fireplace :-) On top of that our condo included a full kitchen, free Wi-Fi, and free bus passes to use with the Banff Transportation System. That last perk was something we weren’t expecting and it meant that we could just park our car throughout the whole stay and not have to worry about getting around!  While Lauren checked us in, I took the time to explore the lobby and quickly found my favorite place in the whole resort. The Pool! That’s right. Even though it was 20 degrees outside the resort still had 2 heated pools, a hot tub, and a sauna for use. The best part though, the crazy beautiful view!!

After exploring a bit, we decided to head to our room condo, to see what it was all about. The condo’s are styled like old log cabins and add to the surrounding area’s charm.

When we got into the condo, we found it to be warm, cozy, and inviting. Our unit was a 3-bedroom and it smartly separated 2 bedrooms on the bottom floor from the master bedroom on the top floor. It also included a sleeper sofa, which means that in total it could comfortably sleep 8. It had a real kitchen (which is awesome for anyone who’s ever tried to be a hotel microwave chef) and the rest of the floor was a dedicated living/blogging space.

The property is also incredibly dog friendly as they also included a little gift baggy with treats, and provided a fantastic pet bed. I guess if you count that, the unit really sleeps 9!

Being on the road full time, Lauren and I have stayed in our fair share of hotel rooms and other vacation properties. The fact that this resort is laid out like an actual condo made it very easy to get comfortable and relax during our stay. I could easily see us returning here for another stay in Banff, especially if we were planning on staying with friends and family. The full living space would make it very easy for a large group to spend time together in the room cozied up by the fireplace, while the kitchen makes it easy to prepare family meals or, just snacks. Overall our stay at the Hidden Ridge Resort in Banff exceeded our expectations and we would recommend it to you, if you were looking for a pet friendly place to stay in Banff.

For more information on the Hidden Ridge Resort in Banff, take a look at their official website. You may also want to take a look at the Banff  Lake Louise visitors site for fun things to do on your trip to Banff. You can also find the Banff Tourism Office on twitter @Banff_Squirrel – because c’mon who wouldn’t take travel advice from a squirrel ?!?!?:-)

note: while we were accommodated for our stay at the Hidden Ridge Resort, all opinions expressed are our own.

If you enjoyed this review of the Hidden Ridge Resort in Banff, you may want to take a look at these other Banff Related Posts.

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