Hello again, I have been MIA for a year (Whoops). Welcome to 2023 and spring! My oh my, how spring break trips have changed. We wanted to get the kids out of the city for a little spring break type getaway and we chose to spend it in Jasper at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge.
I hadn’t been to Jasper since Mike brought me home to meet his family [circa 2013] and neither of us had ever stayed at Fairmont JPL. As some of you may know I am a loyal Fairmont guest and I was very excited to explore the Jasper Park Lodge.
Arriving at JPL was pretty great, we stumbled across a group of about 15 elk grazing beside the road leading up to the main lodge and the kids were thrilled. Granted Graham was under the impression they were just “very large deer”.
Check -in was a breeze and the main lodge was beautiful. They even have a nice waiting area where you set your dog up (if you brought one) while you are at the check in desk. For those of you that aren’t familiar with JPL, it isn’t a typical Fairmont property. There is a main lodge and several cabins and other out buildings throughout the property. We stayed in one of the estate cabins to a have a bit more room for the kids. I will say I had trouble reading the map and finding out exactly how to get to our cabin but luckily after a few loops around the valet guys pointed us in the right direction.
The cabin definitely had a hunting camp rustic feel but it had more than enough space for us for the weekend. Once we got into the cabin, the team had left us a fruit basket and a little treat bag of macaroons and chocolates which B+G wasted no time eating. Our cabin was situated with a partial waterfront view and was a 1 min walk to the main lodge – I was very happy with the location.
After we got unpacked we booked it over to dinner at Orso on property. Our server was very knowledgeable and really engaged with the kids. The views were AMAZING. At JPL kids eat free if they are under 6 and every restaurant has a separate kids menu (which I love). At Orso our kids got some amazing food (Caesar salad, the best cheese sticks I’ve ever had, spaghetti and pizza). Mike and I each got a steak and shared some a la carte sides.
Post dinner we took the kids for a swim in the outdoor heated pool – which they loved. The JPL provides pool noodles, floaties, and kick boards which is really great for families that may not pack their own. They also have an outdoor hot tub which our kids may have loved more than the pool.
After pool time we all crashed for the night. For our first morning at JPL we headed up to the main lodge for breakfast. Mike and I both agree breakfast may have been our favorite meal at the property. They have the separate kids menu which has everything from chocolate chip waffles to cheesy scrambled eggs. We ate here both mornings and tried out the benedict, a salmon dish, green juice and of course – coffee. Not to mention our server had a son G’s age so he spent a lot of time engaging with G.
After breakfast we took the kids back for some pool time, and as we were the only family awake we were the only guests in the pool which was nice.
During the day we opted to try and be “outdoorsy”, packed up the kids and headed to Athabasca Falls. It was about 30 minutes from JPL. While it was warmish and everything was melting there was quite a bit of ice on the trail so we only made it through the first little bit – but the views were incredible. I would love to do it again during the summer – it is a perfect for families. The path is pretty much paved and there are guard rails / fencing on either side. 100% recommend.
After our mini hike we stopped into town at Jasper Brewing for lunch. I’m not a big beer drinker but Mike sampled a few while I stuck to the gin cocktails. We ordered the burger, chicken sammie and the kids ordered chicken fingers and a grilled cheese. The food was great, I would definitely go back. After lunch we headed to scoop and loop to grab some ice cream (a recommendation from our server). They had a large selection of flavors and the perfect scoop size option for kids. We also tested out Patricia Street deli for takeout sandwiches – also highly recommend this place. They have outdoor patio seating but it was a bit to chilly to sit.
In the afternoon we decided to take the kids on the trail around the lake on property at JPL. It is around a 3k trail, with tons of picturesque stopping points. There is even an area that has a stop where you can grab binoculars to take a closer look at the surrounding peaks. (This is an easy trail for kids as well).
We spent the rest of our time at JPL swimming and eating.
Overall I would say JPL was very family friendly and probably a great spot for summer trips. I highly recommend staying here if you have kids under the age of 6. I would also say, bring a cooler with yogurts, snacks and drinks – our kids wake up starving and the restaurants don’t open until 7 AM.
Happy Traveling!
AK
The Blake Rose Life 