Pick your superlative. This classic Canadian ski town, located inside the gates of Canada's Banff National Park, is popular in winter, but it's absolutely electric in summer.

Jaw-dropping views are everywhere you look. Just when you thought you've seen it all, turn around and prepare to be amazed all over again. The peaks soar against cobalt skies, wildflowers clustered in the valley and clinging to every outcropping. A living painting, and every once in awhile an elk will saunter lazily across your canvas.

Hiking. Great golf courses. Take a horseback ride. Sit on a sun-swept porch and toast the cow moose grazing on the lawns outside your restaurant. It's ideal for horseback riding. It is also good for simply relaxing while riding on glassed-in gondolas as you're whisked up the mountain to drink in the Rockies.

Banff is easy on travelers. Calgary has an international airport, and there's a pleasant 1.5-hour drive to the Banff townsite on the uncrowded, four-lane Trans Canada (#1) Highway.

Shuttles leave regularly from the airport, and rental cars are available. In fact, cars are recommended for touring Banff's National Park and the surrounding Rockies.