I’m planning a 1 week trip to Banff/Lake Louise in July. I haven’t been there since 1975. We will be looking for long day hikes. Has anyone got any tips on where to hike and nice hotels?
Bears. A couple of years ago the rangers recommended hiking in groups of 4 or larger.
Walk around Lake Louise.
Our winter ski route from Lk Loise ski area Skoki Lodge: http://www.skoki.com/
Skoki Lodge is situated in a beautiful high alpine region in Banff
National Park. The eleven kilometre trail from Lake Louise to the
Skoki Valley makes Skoki Lodge an ideal destination for hikers and
skiers of all levels. From Skoki Lodge one can access breathtaking
mountain ridges and alpine lakes, or explore five different adjoining
valleys.During the summer months, the beautiful alpine flowers paint the
landscape, while towering peaks against summer skies welcome you as
you make your way to and around Skoki.
Moraine Lake Lodge would be my choice, although I have only dined there.
As Edgar advised, you must not hike alone. I thought it was groups of six that are advised. Moraine Lake Lodge has a meeting point (a sign) where people gather to hike together. I imagine there are such points for other trailheads.
As the others have mentioned, it's not a good idea to hike alone these days. Bears are not the only hazard - Cougars could also be a risk. Here's a recent story that describes this - https://globalnews.ca/news/4235863/cougar-attack-alberta-family/ .
Hotel availability in July will likely leave you with very little choice. In April, we stayed at the Falcon Crest in Canmore and would recommend it. As for hikes, there are good descriptions with photos on the blog at hikebiketravel.com. I like the Plain of Six Glaciers hike at Lake Louise. Not hikes, but definitely visit Athabasca Falls and the Columbia Icefields. The snow coach tour that takes you right onto Athabasca glacier is cool (pun intended).
If you're talking about next month, start looking for available rooms and see what's left. You're going to a very popular area in high season.
There are beautiful areas for hiking everywhere and lots of information at the TI in Banff. Maybe they have a website.
We took a great and inexpensive bus tour with Key West Tours from Vancouver. It was 1/3 the cost of the overpriced Canadian Rail tour.
Nice hotels? Chateau Lake Louise. It's one of the old-world Canadian Pacific hotels. Plus, its location on Lake Louise could not be more spectacular.
Even if you don't stay there, take a look. At minimum, they'll have hiking info for you. We stayed there and went on numerous hikes with excellent hiking maps.
The Canadian Rockies are practically in my backyard ... If you're talking about July 2018 in Banff/Lake Louise, you may have left your planning too late for availability at any hotels (let alone "nice hotels"). You may have to be lucky to even find rooms in nearby Canmore, Alberta for over $300 Cdn per night - depending on your dates. If you're considering signature properties like the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel or the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, you could be looking at rates upward of $900 Cdn per night!
Tip: Many first-time international visitors to Banff/Lake Louise time their trip around the dates of the Calgary Stampede (July 6-15, 2018), which adds to the congestion in Banff/Lake Louise during July. Also, June 30 to July 2 is our Canada Day holiday weekend so that may have been booked up long ago.