We stayed at the Banff Gate Mountain Lodge & Spa before they had to change the name from "Royal Club International at the Banff Gate Mountain Lodge & Spa" to "Chateau World at the Banff Gate Mountain Lodge & Spa"

It was nice enough. They had (and I believe still do) a special deal when you went through their website www.royalclubinternational.com OR www.chateauworld.com) If you sit through a 90 minute presentation, you can stay at this location for 3 days and 2 nights for only $99.

Take the time to research the presentation so that you know what you are walking into though. If you would like to know more about the presentation, just visit travelclubscams.info.

This had to be the worst establishment in the province of Alberta. I'll start with what I saw first, a tiny hovel of a motel that is situated with a picturesque view of the "TransCanada Highway". The description on the website takes hyperbole to a whole new level.

Secondly, I called not once but twice to make sure the accomodations would be adequate for 6 individuals, and was given assurances that it would be fine. Not a chance that 6 people of any age, height, or weight could fit into one of those tiny rooms. Not only could the individuals not fit but we found it impossible to fit 4 people and their bags in the place (we had to leave our luggage in the car). The beds will fit one person of average size or two small children at best.

Our second bathroom had a room in it that clearly was intended to be a shower but hadn't been completed, instead of a shower head there was a light, and a drain in the ground. The only logical reason for this is that all other available monies used for building had gone to purhasing the two cheesy china settings that were set up at the dining room table (which would only be accessible to persons 4 feet or smaller).

The claim that the motel is even remotely "close" to Banff is another blatant fabrication of the truth (unless a 15 minute drive or a 50 CAD cab drive is what people consider "close"). Calling the motel a "Lodge and Spa" is a joke (unless a indoor pool the size of a hot tub is a spa).

On a scale of 0 to 10...i would rate this hotel a 1 (only because it had heat). Furthermore I would rather sleep in a car then stay at this horrid motel ever again in my life - and if anyone who reads this attempts to stay there - you have been warned.

We stayed at the Chateau World Canmore (CWC), which is five minutes from the Banff Gate (BG) but operated by the same company. Overall, it is a perfectly acceptable place to stay if the purpose of your visit is mainly to enjoy the amenities, of which there is none on site.

My wife, our five-year-old son and I stayed there during the Thanksgiving (U.S.) week. We went there mainly to tour the Banff and Jasper National Parks and to ski and did not much care about what amenities were on site because we were so exhausted at the end of each day after sightseeing or skiing. We got this deal for a two-bedroom unit through a discount program that we were pressured into by some timeshare salesmen when we were in Cancun a couple of years ago (basically you get to use timeshare units that are in low demand). As we discovered, CWC has a hotel side and a timeshare side; the timeshare side has no access to any amenity of the hotel side, except that we got to use the wireless Internet provided by the hotel side because our unit is closest to the hotel side and and weak, but uninterrupted, reception of the wireless signal. You can look through a fence at the steam from the hotel's ourdoor Jacuzzi :(

The unit itself is fairly reasonable, with oak-patterned laminate floor and is very clean. Two bedrooms are separated by the utility room and the only bathroom or the unit. The bathroom is very small, with a washer and dryer in it. The living/dining area is fairly large, and there is sofabed in the livingroom portion. There being only one small bathroom, however, the unit is really not suited to have more than a family of three or four. The kitchen is basic but adequate (we ended up eating in every single meal because were to too tired to go out to the restaurants. By the way, Canmore has at least two large, excellent supermarkets, both nearby).

As mentioned earlier, there is no amenity on site for the time-share side, but you can go to the BG to use what's there. In fact, you check in and out your timeshare unit at BG. There is a small pool (more suited for just soaking and fooling around than actually swimming), gym, sauna, Jacuzzi, billiard/game room and wireless Internet access. You can also check out and DVD or video tape at the main desk without charge (our unit had both a VCR and DVD). Everything seems clean and well maintained, and the staff there was very friendly.

In short, if you just want a basic place to stay near Banff, CWC would be a reasonable choice.

We reserved a two bedroom unit at this resort for a week-end at the end of September. The fall colors were beautiful, and when we awoke on the Saturday, we discovered that it had snowed in the night. This made the scenery even more spectacular.Two couples shared this unit. We found it to be very comfortable, especially the beds. There were two large bedrooms and a complete bathroom upstairs. The downstairs had a cozy sitting and dining area, a partial bathroom (with a stall for a shower but no tiles or fixtures yet), and a well equipped, full kitchen. There was a T.V. in each bedroom and one with a DVD player downstairs. A lovely fireplace with gas insert heater was most enjoyable. Our unit faced north. so we had a great view of the mountains out the front window, and a peaceful forested area out the back.The unit was very clean. Apart from a shower that tended to run hot and cold, and the sight of construction on some new units( unavoidable and temporary of course), we loved the place. It also has a spa area which we did not use. A vehicle is required to go into Canmore and to Banff. We will definitely go back.