Banff is a town within Banff National Park

Banff National Park

Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 in the Rocky Mountains. The park, located 110–180 kilometres west of Calgary in the province of Alberta, encompasses of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine...

 in Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. It is located in Alberta's Rockies

Alberta's Rockies

Alberta's Rockies comprises the Canadian Rockies in the province of Alberta, Canada. It is a region on the southwestern part of the province, along the British Columbia border. It covers all but the south of Census Division 15....

 along the Trans-Canada Highway

Trans-Canada Highway

The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...

, approximately 126 km (78.3 mi) west of Calgary

Calgary

Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...

 and 58 km (36 mi) east of Lake Louise

Lake Louise, Alberta

Lake Louise is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Improvement District No. 9 Banff . It is named for the nearby Lake Louise, which in turn was named after the Princess Louise Caroline Alberta , the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria, and the wife of John Campbell, the 9th Duke of Argyll, who was the...

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At an elevation of 1463 m (4,799.9 ft), Banff is the community with the second highest elevation in Canada after Lake Louise. It is surrounded by mountains, notably Mount Rundle

Mount Rundle

Mount Rundle is a mountain in Banff National Park overlooking the towns of Banff and Canmore, Alberta. The mountain was named by John Palliser in 1858 after Reverend Robert Rundle, who had visited the Banff area during the 1840s....

, Sulphur Mountain, Mount Norquay, and Cascade Mountain

Cascade Mountain (Alberta)

Cascade Mountain is a mountain located in the Bow River Valley of Banff National Park, adjacent to the town of Banff. The mountain was named in 1858 by James Hector after the waterfall or cascade on the southern flanks of the peak. The mountain has also been called Stoney Chief, which is related...

. The town is situated above Bow Falls

Bow Falls

Bow Falls is a major waterfall on the Bow River, Alberta just before the junction of it and the Spray River. The falls are located near the Banff Springs Hotel and golf course on the left-hand side of River Road....

 near the confluence of the Bow River

Bow River

The Bow River is a river in the Canadian province of Alberta. It is a tributary of the South Saskatchewan River, and is considered the headwater of the Nelson River....

 and Spray River

Spray River

Spray River is a short river in western Alberta, Canada. It is a tributary of the Bow River.Spray River originates in the southern area of Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies and flows north between the Spray Valley Provincial Park and the Bow Valley Wildland...

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The Town of Banff is the first municipality to incorporate within a Canadian national park.