Dining in Jasper
Savour the local flavour.
Explore Jasper's culinary scene. From hearty mountain breakfasts to an elegant alpine dinner for two - friendly pubs to charming cafes, this is creative Rocky Mountain cuisine at its finest.
For a mountain town with a population of approximately 5,000 permanent residents, Jasper has a surprising number and variety of restaurants. Visitors can choose from more than eighty restaurants. Whatever your preference you will be certain to find a restaurant that suits your taste with choices from gourmet and fine dining to casual and fast food.
There are many ethnic restaurants to choose from. Experience the Mediterranean while enjoying our mountain scenery by choosing from the Greek and Italian restaurants in town. For Asian food we have Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Indian restaurants offering an authentic taste of their country’s foods.
Jasper’s fine dining and gourmet establishments focus on ingredients sustainably grown and regionally sourced. You will find beef, lamb, venison, elk, bison and trout from Alberta, and wild salmon from British Columbia. All of these prepared with care and a flair that will excite your taste buds.
For a fast meal to give you more time to be out and about we have several options for hamburgers, chicken and sub sandwiches. If your day exploring has left you too tired to go out for a meal many of the restaurants offer a delivery service to anywhere in Jasper townsite. And if that isn’t enough, you can choose from many pizzerias, coffee shops, delicatessens and bakeries.
To check out more about some of Jasper’s restaurants click on Restaurants here.
Things to Do in Jasper
Jasper offers breathtaking biking, walking, and hiking trails, along with great paddling, fishing, and camping for all kinds of explorers. Adventurers can go horseback riding, backcountry camping, or try rugged mountain bike trails. Or take it easy and drive along the scenic Icefields Parkway. Elk, moose, mountain sheep, and bear are frequently spotted in the park. Winter fun includes skating, skiing, snowshoeing, fat biking, ice climbing, and the amazing Maligne Canyon Ice Walk.
Jasper’s recently completed Easy Trail System offers twenty kilometres of bike-friendly, multi-use trails easily accessed right from your doorstep! Visit lakes, beaches, and take in gorgeous mountain and valley views along the way.
Jasper has lots of opportunity for rugged backcountry and scenic front-country adventure. Just check with your hosts or with the Parks Canada information centre and they will help you to find an experience that suits your comfort level. Spend a day venturing beyond the highways. Do a day hike. Try some rock or ice climbing. Cross country ski across lakes or along trails. Paddle a canoe or a kayak down a river or on a lake. Drift down a river or shoot the rapids on a raft trip. All this and more awaits you when you visit Jasper, the largest Rocky Mountain National Park.
Watch awesome mountain scenery unfold as you drive the world-famous Icefields Parkway, or cycle along winding roads flanked by valleys and jagged peaks, looking for elk, bears, sheep and other wildlife along the way.
A wildlife search is one of the thrills of visiting Jasper. Depending on when you visit, you might spot black or grizzly bears, bighorn sheep, deer, mountain goats, cougars, wolves, coyotes, beaver and more.
Once the snow falls and ice forms, Jasper’s mountains, meadows, and rivers become a wintery spectacle. Enjoy canyon ice walks, pond skating, cross-country skiing, snowboarding, skiing, snowshoeing, fat biking, and wildlife watching.
Parks Canada has placed seven sets of red Adirondack chairs in quiet and scenic locations throughout Jasper National Park for visitors to enjoy the spectacular mountain and lakeside vistas. Each location provides an informative display that tells a great story about the landscape and history. The Red Chairs are there for you to discover. While some chairs are easy to find, others require more of an adventure and the GPS locations for each location are provided on line to help you find them all.
Click here to find the professionals who will take you on an experience of a lifetime in Jasper.
Shopping in Jasper
In spite of its size the Jasper business community offers a wide variety of shopping and services.
Pamper yourself at one of Jasper’s salons or spas, indulge in a piece of jewellery from one of our local jewellery stores, or perhaps buy some flowers for someone special. Several gift and souvenir shops offer something for everyone. You might want to try Friends of the Park, a non-profit gift and souvenir shop located in the information centre or the gift shop at The Jasper Yellowhead Museum.
Art can be purchased in local galleries ranging from beautiful work by local artists to art pieces created by renowned artists.
If shopping is going well, there are several banks and a currency exchange available.
Several clothing stores are located within the town-site providing casual to high end clothing and footwear. Need some sports clothes and footwear? This is the place for you.
For your pharmaceutical needs, there are two drug stores with pharmacists located in the downtown area.
Groceries can be purchased at two grocery stores and several convenience stores in town as well as a bulk and health food store.
Local hardware and general stores carry many household and camping needs.
Do you want to upgrade your camera? There are several camera shops in Jasper as well as developing services. An electronic store is also situated in the downtown area.
For the winter lovers there are shops that sell and/or rent ski and snowboard equipment. During the warmer weather months rent a bike or canoe and take in the view.
If you enjoy a glass of wine or spirit at the end of a day of sight-seeing or exploring, there are several liquor stores throughout town.
Click here to view more information about some of our local shops.Look Around – See Nature’s Best in Jasper
Jasper National Park has vast areas of pristine wilderness, awe-inspiring mountain scenery, and abundant wildlife. The town of Jasper is situated centrally within the park - think of the town as the hub, with spokes radiating out in various directions. Most of these scenic attractions are about an hour’s drive from town.
The road up the Maligne Valley is open all year long. Popular sights include Maligne Overlook, a viewpoint with panoramic views of the Athabasca valley, Maligne Canyon, with walking trails and bridges over the canyon, the Medicine Lake viewpoint with its postcard views, and, at the end of the road, Maligne Lake, with hiking, boating and fishing. In winter, guided ice walks are available in Maligne Canyon, and the lake is a popular spot for snowshoeing and ski touring.
Tour the northern end of the Icefields Parkway and see the alpine beauty of the glaciers and waterfalls in Jasper National Park. Driving from Jasper townsite to the Icefields Visitor Centre, a distance of 103 kilometres, takes a little more than an hour, but you’ll want to allow extra time for scenic stops en route. There are three lovely waterfalls – Athabasca Falls, Sunwapta Falls, and Tangle Falls. The Icefields Visitor Centre has spectacular views of the Athabasca Glacier, the Columbia Icefield, and numerous other glaciers on the surrounding peaks, many of which are among the highest in the Canadian Rockies.
If your visit to Jasper falls between mid-June and mid-October, a visit to Mount Edith Cavell is a must! The highest mountain in the Jasper townsite area, Mount Edith Cavell’s imposing north face and the Angel Glacier make this a sight not to be missed.
Mount Robson Provincial Park is easily visited from Jasper. Mount Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies, is an hour’s scenic drive, passing historic Yellowhead Pass on the Continental Divide and the beautiful green waters of glacial Moose Lake. There are two waterfalls in the Mount Robson area: Rearguard Falls and Overlander Falls.
Heading to the east of Jasper townsite, the TransCanada Yellowhead highway #16 follows the Athabasca valley heading towards the foothills, with beautiful views of the jagged, limestone peaks of the Front Ranges of the Canadian Rockies. A half-hour east of town, drive the Miette Road up the Fiddle River valley to Miette Hot Springs.
Closer to town, you can see serene lakes and mountain vistas along the Pyramid Lake Road, the Old Fort Point Road, the lower Maligne Road and the Lodge Road.
When viewing roadside wildlife, be sure to pull over carefully, well out of the driving lanes, and remain in your car. Do not feed, approach, or chase wildlife, for your safety as well as theirs.
So take some time, take your camera, and enjoy the natural beauty of Jasper National Park.
Click here to see our Jasper sightseeing experts
