Banff and the Bow Valley is where most Alberta van trips should start, and Tunnel Mountain Village II above the townsite is the night that anchors one. Pick the region, book the night, then book the van. That order matters more here than in most places, because the campground is what runs out and not the van. Lake Louise is a day trip from that pad, and the frontcountry loops fill right through summer.
The Banff page carries Lake Louise and the south end of the Icefields Parkway. Canmore is Spray Lakes and Bow Valley Provincial Park, the same road one town east of the gate.
Calgary holds Kananaskis and Peter Lougheed, which is the fork to take when you do not already have a Banff site. Elkwood and Boulton Creek are the reservable nights at the Kananaskis Lakes, and Drumheller and the badlands are the day east of the city on that same page.
Kananaskis sites go through Alberta Parks, 90 days out as of August 2026. Highway 40 over Highwood Pass stays closed December 1 through June 14, so an early-June trip stops at the lakes. May and September are the quieter shoulders on either side of the crush.
For a night west of Calgary before you reach any park, Cochrane and Okotoks are the two foothills starts.
Icefields Parkway and Jasper
The parkway runs Lake Louise to Jasper, 232 km, and the night at the far end is Whistlers or Wapiti by the townsite. Services on that road run early May to mid-October, which is what decides whether this fork is open to you at all.
Maligne Lake Road and the rest of the valley are on the Jasper page. Waterton is the southern park, prairie running straight into Upper Waterton Lake, and that trip starts from Lethbridge.
Elk Island and Edmonton
A week that starts around Edmonton starts at Astotin Lake instead. Elk Island is 48 km east on Highway 16, and the campground season there is short enough that it sets your dates for you. Bison use the park road, and you stay in the van while they do.
The Edmonton page has Elk Island and Wabamun. Sherwood Park is the town page east of the city, with the powered pads at Miquelon Lake. If you need a night on the Calgary to Edmonton drive, Red Deer is the midpoint, out at Sylvan Lake.