Moraine Lake Lodge, Banff National Park, Canada

Where it is

You'll find it where Moraine Lake Road runs out, some 14 kilometres and a steady climb above Lake Louise village, deep in Banff National Park. The road is closed to private cars in season, but staying guests are given access; the lodge contacts you 30 days before arrival with the details.

Banff is about an hour away and Calgary airport two and a half to three hours. Some of the Rockies' best day walks begin a few steps away: up through Larch Valley to Sentinel Pass, or the gentler path to the Consolation Lakes.

Cabins and rooms

This is a small place, with rooms and cabins for one or two guests only, built in warm timber in classic national-park style, with fireplaces and comfortable beds. Book a Lakeshore Cabin if you can: waking to the Ten Peaks from your own doorstep is the whole point.

The lodge makes its own electricity, so there is no in-room refrigeration, and the emphasis is on peace rather than gadgets.

Dining and the rest

The dining room, which honours the 1890s explorer Walter Wilcox, serves breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner with Canadian produce such as Alberta beef and game, and a fireside lounge is the place to swap trail stories. There is no spa, pool or hot tub.

Instead, the lake is your amenity: guests can take the lodge's canoes out free of charge, and a naturalist leads daily interpretive walks. Because the shoreline is crowded by day, plan to walk, paddle and photograph early and late, and rest by your fire in between.

The moment

Dawn on the Rockpile, watching the sun light the Ten Peaks summit by summit over a mirror-calm lake. Then, at the other end of the day, a canoe and an empty lake, with only the drip of the paddle under the glaciers.

Why we chose it

No other hotel gives you Moraine Lake at its quietest. It is expensive and simple, with no spa or pool, but for walkers, photographers and anyone who wants one of the world's most famous views to themselves, it is unique.

Pair it with Emerald Lake Lodge across the Continental Divide in Yoho, and finish with a few nights on the coast for a Canadian journey.

When to go

The lodge is open from 1 June to 1 October. July and August bring the most vivid water colour, the warmest days and the most visitors, during the North American school holidays. Ice can linger on the lake into June.

For travellers free to choose, September is the sweet spot: the summer crowds have thinned, and in mid to late September the larches of Larch Valley turn gold. Late June is also quieter, with long days and snow on the peaks. Book early whatever you choose; there are very few rooms.

The longer stay

Two or three nights here are enough to walk Larch Valley, paddle at dawn and dusk and take a naturalist walk. Build a longer Rockies trip around it: a few nights at Emerald Lake in Yoho, the Icefields Parkway north to Jasper, then on to Vancouver or the rail journey west.