Last updated on May 4th, 2025
Prince of Wales Hotel, Waterton Lakes National Park
Visit Waterton – Prince of Wales Hotel
Prince of Wales Hotel – This hotel is rustic, but you don’t have to stay overnight to enjoy the hotel. When you visit Waterton Lakes National Park, try the Prince of Wales pub or the restaurant and enjoy the lovely lake and mountain views. Indulge in afternoon tea. The view from the Prince of Wales Hotel is amazing. The hotel overlooks the town of Waterton too.
Hike up the Bear’s Hump Trail, which starts at the entrance to the Prince of Wales. You can look back down over the Prince of Wales Hotel and the town of Waterton. Then visit the nearby village of Waterton. Stroll the shops and restaurants, see the Visitor Centre and the waterfront. Walk to Cameron Falls.
View from Prince of Wales Hotel
Visit Waterton – Lake Cruise
Lake cruises on Waterton Lakes – take a two hour lake cruise on Waterton Lakes from the town of Waterton to Goat Haunt in the USA. You don’t need a passport for the return trip voyage. Visit the Goat Haunt Ranger Station and the Peace Pavillion marking the international border. Hikers who have cleared US customs can hike south through Glacier National Park. Goat Haunt has no vehicle access.
You can also take the boat shuttle between Wateron and Crypt Landing. From there, many tourists hike to Crypt Lake. The hike includes climbing a vertical ladder on a steep section of the hike and wedging your way through a narrow tunnel to reach Crypt Lake.
Bison Paddock, Waterton Lakes National Park
Waterton Bison Paddock Loop
Waterton Bison Paddock Loop – Waterton Lakes National Park keeps a herd of bison near the lake. The Bison Paddock Loop is on the rolling prairies along Highway #6. Private vehicles can drive on the loop among the bison. The road through the open range Bison Paddock enclosure is gravel.
Waterton Lakes National Park, © Pixabay / JoeBreuer
Visit Waterton – Cameron Lake
Drive the Akamina Parkway to Cameron Lake. Look for bears and wildlife along the route. Canoes, kayaks, paddle boards and peddle boats are available for rent at Cameron Lake during the height of the tourist season. Unfortunately, the 2017 Kenow Wildfire burned many of the trees at Cameron Lake. The recovering undergrowth has turned the lake trail into more of a brush maze walk.
Lake Cameron, © Pixabay / JoeBreuer
Red Rock Parkway
Drive the Red Rock Parkway and then get wet hiking through the Red Rock Canyon stream. This area has become extremely popular with tourists. The Red Rock Parkway starts about 10 minutes north of Waterton off Highway #5.
Waterton Weather
Waterton Lakes National Park has unpredictable weather. The summer weather in Waterton really only extends to July and August. Snow is possible any month of the year. Fall brings cold weather by late September. Winds from the Pacific funnel over the Rockies and drop over Waterton Lakes onto the prairies, which makes Waterton one of the windiest places in the world.
Prince of Wales Hotel, Waterton Lakes National Park
Get to Waterton
You need a car to get to Waterton Lakes National Park. The park is just over 3 hours south of Calgary, Alberta and 3.5 hours from Great Falls, Montana. Some visitors start in Glacier National Park in the States and then drive an hour north from St Mary over the Canadian Border to the town of Waterton. The Canadian Highway #5 ends at Waterton. The highway is maintained year round, but the town closes almost completely in the off season. In the summer months, there is also access to Cameron Lake in the park on a paved road known as the Akamina Parkway and to Red Rock Canyon on the Red Rock Parkway.
Hikes in Waterton National Park
Bear’s Hump – From Highway #5 at the entrance to the Prince of Wales Hotel hike a steep, well marked trail for a half hour. At the top enjoy views down to Waterton Lake, the Prince of Wales Hotel and the village of Waterton. Be careful at the viewpoint edge, as there are no guardrails.
Crypt Lake – Catch the shuttle boat from Waterton to Crypt Landing. Then hike about 6 hours return, including a vertical ladder climb and a narrow tunnel traverse.
Cameron Lake to Waterton – Take a shuttle to Cameron Lake and then hike 12 miles on the Carthew-Alderson trail back to Waterton. If you only want to do part of the hike, drive to Lake Cameron and hike to Carthew Lakes. Then retrace your path to your vehicle at Cameron Lake.
Try These When You Visit Waterton
- Big Scoop Ice Cream Parlour
- Afternoon Tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel
- Waterton Park Cafe
Visit Waterton – Accomodation
- Prince of Wales Hotel – historic Great Northern Railway building and furnishings
- Waterton National Park Camping – make your reservations well in advance
- Bayshore Inn Resort and Spa
- Waterton Glacier Suites
- Waterton Lakes Lodge Resort
- Aspen Village
Visit Waterton – Background
Waterton Lakes National Park is in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. This Canadian National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Great Northern Railway built the magnificent Prince of Wales Hotel here in 1927. Waterton shares its southern border with the northern edge of Glacier National Park in Montana. The two national parks form the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. The Kenow Wildfire in 2017 burned a substantial portion of the forests in Waterton Lakes National Park.
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