Post Hotel & Spa

About Post Hotel & Spa

By the ULTIMATE Ski Resorts Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Post Hotel & Spa stands on the banks of the Pipestone River in the village of Lake Louise, a Relais & Châteaux hotel that opened as the Lake Louise Ski Lodge in 1942. It pairs log-built rooms, suites and riverfront cabins with Temple Mountain Spa, a salt-water pool and a celebrated dining room and wine cellar.

A ski lodge on the Pipestone

Built in 1942 by the Banff guide Jim Boyce from logs cut in Revelstoke and at the headwaters of the Bow, the lodge was bought in 1947 by Sir Norman Watson, who dreamed of Alpine-style skiing in the Rockies, and later took the name Post Hotel. Today it sits in the village of Lake Louise, five minutes’ drive from the ski resort and from the lake itself, with Moraine Lake 20 minutes away and Banff 40.

Temple Mountain Spa and the pool

Temple Mountain Spa, open daily from 10am to 6pm, offers massages, body therapies, facials, nails and waxing, for guests aged 16 and over. The Roman-inspired indoor salt-water pool, open to the whole family, has a whirlpool and steam room alongside, open from 6am to 10.30pm, as is the fitness centre with Life Fitness cardio machines and free weights. The Library, with its grand fireplace, board games and books, is the hotel’s living room.

Rustic refinement in an iconic setting, in the hotel’s words.

Rooms, suites and cabins

Rooms run from the 296 sq ft Post Room 1 Queen to the 383 sq ft Post Room 1 King; rooms on the preferred side face the lawns, cabins and trees. Suites include the 472 sq ft Executive Superior Suite with a balcony and whirlpool tub, the 615 sq ft Executive Premier Suite and the 650 sq ft Executive Loft Suite, and family suites of 551–677 sq ft have lofts for children. By the river, cabins run from the 210 sq ft Whitehorn and the 455 sq ft Temple Cabin to the two-bedroom Pipestone Cabin of 1,300 sq ft and Watson House, four bedrooms over 3,000 sq ft. Many have wood-burning fireplaces; rooms have no air conditioning, as befits the mountain climate. Dogs are welcome in some rooms.

Eating and drinking

The Dining Room, rooted in classic European technique and seasonal Canadian ingredients, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner by the fire, with a casual elegant dress code at night. Chef’s Stübli offers a six-course tasting menu for just 20 guests each evening, with wine pairings from the head sommelier. The cellar holds more than 22,000 bottles and 3,800 selections, and can host private dinners for up to 12; winemaker dinners are held through the year.

Our advice: book a riverfront cabin or a suite with a fireplace, take the salt-water pool after skiing Lake Louise, and reserve Chef’s Stübli well ahead.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Post Hotel & Spa before you go.