Popular AB vacation towns that aren't as popular anymore

[curves2000]

I was having a conversation with some friends recently about the "decline" in popularity of some of Alberta's favorite vacation towns.

A few of us had recently visited places like Sylvan Lake in recent years and Invermere/Radium, BC etc.

These places used to be very very popular with Albertan's and would be happening all summer long with action.

Recent visits over the years is showing that they are not as popular as they once were.

Any locals here on CP have any insights in a broad sense? I know factors like Covid, inflation etc but this decline predates those things.

I know a lot of people bought vacation homes in places like Kelowna/Penticton and after the financial crisis people bought places in Arizona, Vegas and other places in the US

[Mr.Coffee]

Personal opinion but a lot of Canadian places have priced themselves out.

Like, no, other countries and places for the same price are the better bet. Going to Banff for example now is laughable. Rather go to Mexico or wherever else.

[blankall]

Vulcan?

They really went all in on that Star Trek thing, but the cardboard cut outs didn't have the lasting power they were hoping for.

[driveway]

If you haven't been to the gopher museum in Torrington, are you even an Albertan?

[blankall]

Sylvan Lake losing the waterslides has to be a huge blow.

As for Banff, they are seeing record numbers of visitors. Did it seem like fewer people from Calgary are going there? If so, probably just an effect from Calgary's booming population. As the number of Albertans increases, there's less opportunity and greater cost for each individual Albertan to visit Banff. If the place is expensive and packed, people will look at alternatives further away.

[curves2000]

As per usual my writing wasn't as precise as it should have been. I wasn't so much referring to Alberta/BC towns as a whole, more like once very popular places like Sylvan Lake & Invermere/Radium BC. They seem to have really died in popularity as a whole in recent years.

I just remember going to these towns in the summer months and it was jamming when I was growing up. Bars/Restaurants busy, people itching to go swimming in the water or other water activities. A friend who has a place in Invermere described the May long weekend as dead, last summer was "alright". Can't really find a bar to have a beer past 9 or 10 pm. No real night clubs

I can pinpoint some things such the decline in golf popularity in younger people, stricter drinking and driving laws, different nightlife mentality. A lot of people just stay home and watch streaming services or scan their phones etc.

It's interesting to see places that were once really popular, not nearly as popular even though they are very close to 2 large Alberta cities with strong incomes.

[RoadGame]

Did Invermere ever have nightclubs, let alone "real" ones though?

Property values and boat traffic may ebb and flow on a somewhat correlated basis with Calgary's economy but there is still construction and land development happening there. Frankly I think a little less traffic will improve the experience for the large majority of use cases... traffic downtown in summer can be appalling, bakery lined up down the street, Kinsmen beach packed cheek by jowl even during the later stages of the pandemic, on hot summer days the boat traffic and especially wake boats create so much chop it can be uncomfortable to ride in conventional motor boats... I'm not saying it should go back to being what it was in the '80s or anything but when it comes to tourist traffic I think there's a point beyond which more is not better.

Sounds like nightlife is pretty high on your list of priorities though? Perhaps through that lens Invermere/Radium aren't as popular as they once were but in a more general sense across multiple use cases I don't think there has been much of a decline.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by RoadGame

Did Invermere ever have nightclubs, let alone "real" ones though?

Property values and boat traffic may ebb and flow on a somewhat correlated basis with Calgary's economy but there is still construction and land development happening there. Frankly I think a little less traffic will improve the experience for the large majority of use cases... traffic downtown in summer can be appalling, bakery lined up down the street, Kinsmen beach packed cheek by jowl even during the later stages of the pandemic, on hot summer days the boat traffic and especially wake boats create so much chop it can be uncomfortable to ride in conventional motor boats... I'm not saying it should go back to being what it was in the '80s or anything but when it comes to tourist traffic I think there's a point beyond which more is not better.

Sounds like nightlife is pretty high on your list of priorities though? Perhaps through that lens Invermere/Radium aren't as popular as they once were but in a more general sense across multiple use cases I don't think there has been much of a decline.

Buds disco was a blast in the 80's!!

[nfotiu]

Originally Posted by curves2000

I can pinpoint some things such the decline in golf popularity in younger people, stricter drinking and driving laws, different nightlife mentality. A lot of people just stay home and watch streaming services or scan their phones etc.

Golf seems to be booming and more popular than eve with young people.

[Bigtime]

Judging by the tweets I saw at the end of the long weekend there was no shortage of Albertan's trying to drive back from the Columbia valley. Gridlock.

[Erick Estrada]

Invermere/Radium are just okay. If you don't golf I personally don't see the allure of Invermere in particular. Keep driving a few hours and Revelstoke is a much nicer place to visit.

[Cappy]

You mention stricter drinking and driving laws; but i would mention that young people are by-and-large drinking far less than previous generations. That could have a marked impact.

Also, i find more people nowadays are saving for bigger, more lavish, insta-worthy vacations vs more frequent vacations close to home.

Finally, in places like Invermere and Sylvan, there are not a lot of hotels or rentals other than shelling out for a multimillion dollar home on Airbnb. Many of these places are also owned by families - perhaps the disco in Invermere was bumping in the 80's but now that group have their own young children and there is a bit of a age gap for the party crowd

[Derek Sutton]

I will add that this applies to Montana as well. Whitefish and Kalispell were go to places for Albertans but just not as many go down there anymore, yet they are busier (and much more expensive) than ever. Many Americans have discovered the area in recent (covid) years and are moving to and touring the area like never before. Great Falls was also a popular get away but I think people have finally realized that it is just a dump.

[calf]

I want to know what the heck happened to prices in Banff. Hotels on Banff Ave that would be 200-300/night are closer to 600-700.

The Rimrock is closer to $1,100/night...Banff Springs about $1,800. They were expensive before, but not close to that. It's unreal.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Derek Sutton

I will add that this applies to Montana as well. Whitefish and Kalispell were go to places for Albertans but just not as many go down there anymore, yet they are busier (and much more expensive) than ever. Many Americans have discovered the area in recent (covid) years and are moving to and touring the area like never before. Great Falls was also a popular get away but I think people have finally realized that it is just a dump.

I have some buddies that have lived in Spokane since the 90's and that Spokane Valley has kind of blown up over the last few decades as it the new communities keep edging closer and closer to Coeur d'Alene which is one of the fastest growing US cities.

[Roughneck]

Family has had a place out by Invermere since the 80s and it seems as busy as ever whenever I go out there. Maybe the Boomers went to the nightclubs in the 80s, but then they had kids and stopped, drinking at their own places is cheaper and better. When I was a teenager into my early 20s there was never any desire to go to a bar or anything like that. Hang out on a boat, on a beach, on a deck, anywhere other than needing to find a way to get a dozen people in and out of town.

[Table 5]

When we went to Montana last year it felt like half of California had moved in. I don't blame them though, it's a beautiful state.

[Dan02]

Originally Posted by calf

I want to know what the heck happened to prices in Banff. Hotels on Banff Ave that would be 200-300/night are closer to 600-700.

The Rimrock is closer to $1,100/night...Banff Springs about $1,800. They were expensive before, but not close to that. It's unreal.

As more people look to travel and more places where tourists want to go restrict growth of their tourist industries the inevitable result is travel to high demand areas becomes something only the rich will be able to afford.

The vast vast majority of the worlds population don't have the means to travel still. As more countries develop an upper class the middle class that used to be able to travel in more developed countries will be priced out.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by Table 5

When we went to Montana last year it felt like half of California had moved in. I don't blame them though, it's a beautiful state.

Prior to Covid we would go down to Whitefish quite a bit for ski trips but haven't been recently. I was told that Texans had discovered the resort during Covid and it became really popular and busy with people traveling up from Texas.

[Bill Bumface]

Invermere seems utterly overrun to me. Driving there or back on the "normal" days is now awful.

I used to head out to Shuswap a lot as a kid, I can't even imagine how painful that drive must be now on a long weekend Monday (not to mention terrifying with the suicidal Albertans trying to make it home 30 minutes faster than everyone else).