Cathedral Mountain Lodge

This hotel is located in an amazing spot, right beside the river. You can live your luxury log cabin fantasy here. The room itself was amazing with an electric fireplace, with timber fireplaces available in other rooms. The room itself is quite tight as we had two large suitcases but we made it work. Great products too in the room, sadly didn’t get to use the bath! There’s a beach area on the river with a fire which was a great touch. Dinner was amazing and the food is a real stand out . We enjoyed great wine, soup and steak. We then relaxed by the fire afterwards. It’s a really great place to dine and the staff will attend to your every need with a smile :) As much as I wanted to love this place, the bed was incredibly squeaky. Unfortunately my partner and I are both light sleepers, so every time we turned the bed squeaked waking the other up. I’m surprised to not find other reviews with this feedback. Unfortunately neither of us slept very well at all. Other than the bed this was a 5/5 stay!!!

THE GOOD: 1. Decor 2. Trees, creek and amazing views 3. Food 4. Staff THE BAD: 1. Extremely noisy lodge kitchen extractor fan. It literally sounds like several semi trucks idling next to the cabin! I cannot stress this enough! 2. Noisy highway and train are very close by, they definitely disturb your sleep 3. Tiny room without enough room for luggage and only one luggage rack 4. Lights everywhere, you cannot control the outside lights on your porch 5. No mini fridge ADVICE: Definitely do not get a cabin anywhere near the lodge/restaurant; that extractor fan is horrendous! Avoid cabins #3, #4, #16, #17, #18, #19 We were in cabin #19 It’s a really cute place, I’m sad that we had a cabin in a lousy location I would definitely return to this hotel, but only if I could choose the cabin location. Owner should replace that loud kitchen extractor fan

Stayed here on the last 2 nights of our trip and for our 30th wedding anniversary. We were delighted by the location next to the river and nestled in the trees. The cabins are of high quality, comfy beds, even provided proper wine glasses. We were concerned it didn't have A/C but the nights got much cooler and we had no need to worry. There was a little noise from the nearby railway but we knew that before we booked and it was only occasionally. The chairs by the Kicking Horse river were perfect. Shame there was a fire ban so we couldn't have the fire by the beach area. The dining room was beautiful. We had our anniversary meal here and we were not disappointed. Really lovely surroundings, great service and food was perfectly presented. Loved ot here. Staff were super friendly and helpful. Having the complimentary shuttle and canoeing to Moraine Lake was such a special way to spend a day.

We were very excited about our one night stay in a 1 bedroom lodge with loft at the lodge in late June 2024. It was a very expensive night, over $1k. First - the positive - beautiful location (although a star knocked off for the close proximity to the trans canada and railway line and associated highway/rail noise), nice staff, great cozy cabins with fireplaces. Breakfast was very good, although if you are travelling with children expect that it may be a bit fancy for their tastes. Now the extremely disappointing... When we arrived and checked in, there was no verbal or written recommendation to avoid tap water consumption, so as would be the norm at any 5 star hotel in Canada, it did not cross our mind to stick to bottled water or avoid the tap water. My 12 year old son drank at least 1 or possibly more full glasses of tap water during our stay. Then, on the day of our departure, at check out, I noticed a big sign regarding a boil water advisory and “water not safe to drink”. It did cross my mind to be a bit worried, but I put it out of my mind until the early hours of the following morning, when my son came down with severe stomach cramps and a fever. After a sleepless night for our entire family , and a terribly uncomfortable night for my son, I called the lodge to follow up on the sign we had seen regarding the water. I spoke to the front desk staff, who apparently spoke to a manager who confirmed that the suspected pathogen in the water was E. coli. Based on his symptoms, I am quite sure (as an MD) that he was in fact contaminated with e coli. No manager came to speak to me on the phone, and after I hung up I realized that my contact number was never taken to followup on this potential significant public health issue. I reflected many times in the following days on this chain of events, and was quite disturbed on several levels. First, our extremely expensive night at the lodge ruined several days of our family trip with literally not even the courtesy or a sincere apology from the manager. E. coli contamination, especially in a child, is no laughing matter and I would have expected a little more concern and all around responsiveness . Second of all - how does this happen at a 5 star lodge charging $1k plus per night? If there is the potential of this significant pathogen in the water, why are guests not warned ahead of time or even better, why is there not an appropriate water filtration system? I sent the above concerns to the lodge directly before writing this review, hoping they would address, and its now been 5 days and counting and no response. So please think twice about booking here if you cherish your own health and value good communication at your 5 star lodgings!

A top notch experience while visiting the Banff area. We enjoyed this location better than downtown Banff due to its rural and upscale and more private atmosphere. All staff members we interacted with were professional, service oriented and friendly. The cabin was very clean and tastefully decorated in a modern, rustic way. We used the gas fireplace and enjoyed the Adirondack chairs on our porch when relaxing. The dining was superb. Breakfast’s were diverse and delicious. Dinners were some of the best we have had…. The flavors and presentation of all dinner dishes were unique and very tasty. We stayed 3 nights and wish we had time for more. We will be back!