Wildlife and campfires at Whistlers Campground

Our campground here in Jasper, Whistlers Campground, is hugely popular. 🇨🇦🏕️ It’s enormous, with almost 800 campsites, and in summer it’s basically full every single day. It’s nearly impossible to just show up without a reservation. After the big wildfire in 2024, many of the facilities are brand new. The toilet buildings are modern, and there’s also a playground, a food truck and a small outdoor amphitheatre with events. But it’s mostly the nature and the impressive mountains that make the campground so special. 🏔️❤️ And there’s plenty of wildlife too. We see elk wandering around the campground every day, and every now and then bears pass by as well. 🧎🐻 Even though Whistlers Campground is far above average for Canada, there’s no pool, restaurant, bouncy castle or any of the facilities we often see at campgrounds in Europe, Australia or the USA. That’s just how camping culture is in Canada. Canadians love the more primitive form of camping. It’s all about ‘back to nature’. It’s completely normal to stay at campgrounds without both electricity and toilet buildings, and that’s why most of the sites here at Whistlers Campground are also without power. The campfire is an important part of the experience. Evenings with marshmallows, sausages and good stories around the fire are almost a tradition. For many Canadians, the limited facilities aren’t a shortcoming – they’re part of the experience. 🔥🌲 Both tents and motorhomes are incredibly popular here, and a lot of families own either a motorhome, a caravan or a tent. It’s clear that camping is a big part of Canadian culture. 🇨🇦🏕️ It’s especially inside the national parks that the campgrounds are extra simple. Tomorrow we’re driving out of Jasper National Park, and after a long search we’ve found a campground with a few more facilities. 🤣🏕️