Cantilevered up the side of Sulphur Mountain at 1,500 metres, the Rimrock has the strongest panoramic windows in Banff and reopens July 2026 as Rimrock Banff, Emblems Collection — Accor's newly minted luxury brand on a 320-room footprint above the Banff Upper Hot Springs.
"Cantilevered up Sulphur Mountain — the panoramic windows do half the work. Eden restaurant has long been the most ambitious dining room in Alberta."
The Rimrock occupies one of the most dramatic perches in any Canadian hotel — cantilevered up the eastern face of Sulphur Mountain at 1,500 metres, immediately above the Banff Upper Hot Springs and the lower terminal of the Banff Gondola. The original Rimrock opened in 1968 as a small motor inn; the current 320-room property was rebuilt in 1991 by Imperial Hotel Investments around the panoramic-window concept that defines the experience. The hotel closed in 2025 for a comprehensive renovation under Accor management and reopens in summer 2026 as Rimrock Banff, Emblems Collection — the launch property in Asia-Pacific for Accor's new ultra-luxury Emblems brand.
The 320 guest rooms and suites occupy the building's nine cantilevered floors. The Mountain View rooms (the larger inventory) face north-east across the Bow Valley toward Mount Rundle and Cascade Mountain — these are the rooms the hotel is sold on, and the floor-to-ceiling windows, generous in-room seating, and many private balconies make them the strongest valley-facing inventory in Banff. Forest View rooms sit on the opposite side facing the slopes of Sulphur Mountain and the larch trees. Suite categories include Junior Suites, the Eagle Eye Suites with corner valley exposure, and the Presidential Suite. The 2025–26 renovation has restyled every room category and the public spaces in a contemporary Canadian-Rockies idiom — pale wood, stone, and earth tones — while keeping the building's signature glass envelope intact.
Eden — the hotel's flagship restaurant — has long been the only AAA Five Diamond / Forbes Five-Star dining room in Alberta and the most ambitious tasting-menu address in the Canadian Rockies. The kitchen continues post-reopening with a refreshed concept and team, in the same dramatic chandelier-and-window dining room. Primrose is the all-day brasserie; Larkspur is the lobby lounge for valley-view evenings; the in-resort spa runs to 10,000 square feet with thermal pools, treatment rooms, and salon services. Year-round indoor pool and fitness; ski concierge during winter; and direct access to Banff Upper Hot Springs (a five-minute walk down the road).
The proposition is simple and honest: among Banff's full-service luxury hotels, the Rimrock has the best valley views, the most ambitious fine-dining programme, and the easiest access to the gondola and the upper hot springs. It is less iconic than the Fairmont Banff Springs and less in-town than the Banff Avenue properties, but for couples who value the view above all and travellers who want the gondola two minutes from the lobby, it is the obvious answer. The Emblems Collection rebranding is the most consequential luxury hotel news in the Canadian Rockies for a decade — bringing Accor's newest premium brand to its global launch on Sulphur Mountain.
For Banff honeymoons that prioritise view and seclusion over townsite convenience, the Rimrock is the answer. A Mountain View room facing Mount Rundle is the standard pick; an Eagle Eye Suite at the building's south corner is the upgrade. Eden tasting menu by candlelight is the dinner; the spa thermal pools are the morning after; the Banff Upper Hot Springs are a five-minute walk and easily accessed in evening robes from the side door.
Anniversaries here run on the same vocabulary — Mountain View room or Eagle Eye Suite, Eden for the milestone dinner, in-room spa treatments through the morning. The hotel's quiet remove from the Banff Avenue crowd is part of the proposition: arrive Friday afternoon, do not get in the car again until Sunday. Concierge arranges Lake Louise day trips, helicopter excursions, and dog-sledding through the partner outfitters.
The Rimrock sits 200 metres above the Banff Upper Hot Springs and shares the geology that supplies them — the on-site spa runs thermal pool circuits, indoor swimming, and a full treatment menu. The Sulphur Mountain trail to the gondola summit begins effectively across the road; the Banff Gondola is two minutes from the lobby; and the property's altitude (1,500 m) gives it the cleanest air and quietest evenings of any Banff hotel.
300 Mountain Avenue
Banff, Alberta T1L 1J2
Canada
Banff Upper Hot Springs 5-min walk; Banff Gondola 2-min drive; Banff townsite 7-min drive; Calgary Airport 90 min; Sulphur Mountain summit (gondola) 8 min
320 rooms & suites
Forest View from CAD 560/night
Mountain View from CAD 720/night
Junior Suites from CAD 1,200
Eagle Eye Suites from CAD 1,800
Presidential Suite on request
Rates indicative; reopening July 2026 as Rimrock Banff, Emblems Collection
Check-in: 4:00 PM
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Original opened 1968; rebuilt 1991; reopens July 2026 after Accor / Emblems Collection renovation
Eden tasting menu (long-held Forbes Five-Star)
Primrose all-day brasserie
Larkspur lobby lounge
10,000 sq ft spa & thermal pools
Indoor pool, fitness centre
Direct access to Banff Upper Hot Springs
Banff Gondola lower terminal 2 minutes
From CAD 560/night post-reopening. Mountain-view rooms and Eagle Eye Suites are the inventory to target — book six months ahead for July, August and Christmas weeks; three months for shoulder. Confirm reopening dates with the property before booking the first weeks.
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