Best Small Towns and Cities in Alberta?

ue · #1 Posted **Jun 5, 2009, 11:13 PM**

What are your favourites?

I like Camrose, as it has a larger old area, some cute little main streets, although stuff like Walmart is killing that. Even though a tourist town, Banff is nice too, and has lots of stuff to do. I've heard Athabasca is nice.

dmuzika · #2 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 6:45 AM**

I grew up in Camrose however I didn't fully appreciate the city until I started go to other cities and towns that are similar size and smaller. If it was closer to Edmonton I think you would see a lot more growth (however maybe that's a good thing that it hasn't mushroomed like Airdrie).

As for other small towns, I like Okotoks. I also lived in Rimbey for 6 months and it's a nice community.

Steve&M · #3 Posted **Sep 1, 2017, 7:50 PM**

What seems like a long time ago (early '80s) I lived in Okotoks. I liked it. Did a little tenting at the park too — great spot. A few years later I lived in Camrose for a couple of years. My son was born there. It's a great town too.

Regards,
Steve

mersar · #4 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 7:02 AM**

I'll have to say my hometown of Cochrane:

JHennicke on flickr - One of the side streets in the downtown

mjb84 on Flickr

We've so far managed to avoid Walmart (and its sounding like we may have inadvertently blocked their latest attempt as well), though Safeway and Canadian Tire did do some damage to the business community when they opened by refocusing where the retail core of the town was. The downtown is pretty well kept and thanks to local bylaws everything has a "western heritage" look to it, in some cases overboard towards the touristy view of it, but in most cases it gives it a distinct look.

Otherwise I'll have to say Lacombe is also a favorite of mine, like Cochrane its grown quite a bit but the downtown especially still has the small town feel to it. Some of the smaller towns west of it are also quite interesting to visit, I've found them to also seem more 'alive' then some similar sized communities in the southern part of the province even just from passing through them.

bigcitydude · #5 Posted **Sep 1, 2011, 6:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by mersar

I'll have to say my hometown of Cochrane:

JHennicke on flickr - One of the side streets in the downtown

mjb84 on Flickr

We've so far managed to avoid Walmart (and its sounding like we may have inadvertently blocked their latest attempt as well), though Safeway and Canadian Tire did do some damage to the business community when they opened by refocusing where the retail core of the town was. The downtown is pretty well kept and thanks to local bylaws everything has a "western heritage" look to it, in some cases overboard towards the touristy view of it, but in most cases it gives it a distinct look.

Otherwise I'll have to say Lacombe is also a favorite of mine, like Cochrane its grown quite a bit but the downtown especially still has the small town feel to it. Some of the smaller towns west of it are also quite interesting to visit, I've found them to also seem more 'alive' then some similar sized communities in the southern part of the province even just from passing through them.

my family absolutely LOVES Cochrane! we make it a point to always pass through on the way to and from BC. we always make sure we stop at MacKay's Ice Cream shop and this year hit Olive R Twist restaurant for supper before heading home! it's one of my favorite Alberta towns along with Canmore and Banff.

bigcitydude · #6 Posted **Jul 6, 2017, 6:27 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigcitydude

my family absolutely LOVES Cochrane! we make it a point to always pass through on the way to and from BC. we always make sure we stop at MacKay's Ice Cream shop and this year hit Olive R Twist restaurant for supper before heading home! it's one of my favorite Alberta towns along with Canmore and Banff.

yup Canmore is pretty nice! we love it there and usually take a rest stop at MacKay's for ice cream. shout out to Beaumont for one of the best towns in Alberta. very pretty there.

Airboy · #7 Posted **Jul 17, 2017, 4:36 PM**

St Albert for me. Small town feel but close to Edmonton. Hell I am closer to downtown that people living in Windermere.

lubicon · #8 Posted **Jul 17, 2017, 7:12 PM**

At over 65 000 people I'm not sure I would consider St. Alberta as small town/city.

S_B_Russell · #9 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 10:18 AM**

Athabasca is surprisingly cool.

0773|=\ · #10 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:24 PM**

My favorite Alberta small towns:

Bentley
Alliance
Waterton
Bragg Creek
Fort Macleod

Small Cities/Large Towns:

Drumheller
Brooks
Camrose
Lacombe
Cochrane
Peace River

Wrecker · #11 Posted **Jun 8, 2009, 4:42 PM**

Westlock has 2 neat museums
Tractor museum (200+ tractors) http://www.canadiantractormuseum.ca/
Pioneer museum has 3 large exhibits Gramaphones (150+), vintage guns (100+), and Aladdin (oil) lamps (140+) http://www.kalynacountry.com/1/busin...Pioneer-Museum

Athabasca is also a neat setting, as well Vilna has some cool little things http://www.historicvilna.ca/

Link to the your town series
http://tv.travelalberta.com/?I=yourt...TOKEN=92986240

unbjames · #12 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 2:07 AM**

Jasper imo ... less crowded than Banff, outdoor rec opportunities abound, lots of fine dining and shopping (esp in the Beauvert Promenade at JPL) ... all in a town with 4500 permanent residents!

Disclosure: I live here now, moved from Edmonton 1 month ago!

Oliver Klozov · #13 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 5:48 PM**

There should also be a qualifier for Banff, Jasper and Waterton.

ie. Parks Canada's Need-to-Reside clause. You can't just buy a house and move there; you have to be actively employed as well or living with someone who is.

My faves -

Major Cities: I like em both

2nd tier Cities: #1 - Red Deer, #2 - Medicine Hat

Small cities: #1 - Cold Lake, well at least the part that used to be the Town of Cold Lake that is.

#2 - Camrose, #3 - Drumheller

Towns: Lots I like, hmmmmmmmmm.......
Crowsnest, Sundre, Raunchy Monkey House, Cochrane, Hardisty, Vermilion, Athabaska, Peace River

Hometown of Canmore is real nice but I know the local politics so it is a s***hole to live in and even worse to try and run a business in.

wild wild west · #14 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 5:52 PM**

I was actually really impressed with Fort MacLeod when going through there last summer. Liked the historic buildings. I also like Drumheller.

b31den · #15 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 6:15 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oliver Klozov

Hometown of Canmore is real nice but I know the local politics so it is a s***hole to live in and even worse to try and run a business in.

I completely agree. The stuff you read in the local newspapers is unreal. They give off a vibe that if you weren't born & raised in Canmore then you are a second-class citizen who should GTFO.

Pretty poor mentality for a town that has no real industry and is totally reliant on second-home owners and tourists.

Overall Canmore has the most douche factor of any place I have ever visited or lived in.

Oliver Klozov · #16 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 6:45 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by b31den

...They give off a vibe that if you weren't born & raised in Canmore then you are a second-class citizen who should GTFO. ...

That's getting to be fairly minor now. Lots of them cashed in and moved to Cochrane. I hope they feel as unwelcome there as they made others feel here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by b31den

Pretty poor mentality for a town that has no real industry and is totally reliant on second-home owners and tourists.

Ain't that the truth

Quote:

Originally Posted by b31den

Overall Canmore has the most douche factor of any place I have ever visited or lived in.

Love it

When it comes to nimby's, hypocrites, eco-fascists and enviro-weenies, Canmore's got that market cornered.

Worst are the hypocrites. eg. People profess to be all-caring about the environment and then go for a walk with their dog down a trail not bothering to pick up the feces as they go and then get to a wildlife corridor and let their dog off-leash (forbidden) to chase deer and elk. Rules are great .........for other people. "My dog is different".

As for the politics, I swear Tooker Gomberg must have 50 relatives in this town.

Calgarian · #17 Posted **Jun 17, 2009, 5:27 PM**

I hate small towns, My parents live up by Three Hills and I get depressed every time I go into that town.

Phil McAvity · #18 Posted **Jun 18, 2009, 7:53 PM**

Does anything smaller than Calgary and Edmonton count as a small city?

ue · #19 Posted **Jun 18, 2009, 10:02 PM**

Red Deer, Grande Prairie, Fort McMurray/Wood buffalo, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Sherwood Park (Edmonton), and Saint Albert are all small cities. We have no ones in between. Technically places like Camrose, Leduc, Cochrane, and MacLeod are all cities, but really they're what 30K and under?

0773|=\ · #20 Posted **Jun 19, 2009, 2:17 AM**

Actually Macleod and Cochrane are not cities. Neither is Sherwood Park. The smallest official "city" in Alberta (by population) was Drumheller, but they've reverted back to "town" status I believe. There are numerous towns and municipal districts (including Cochrane, Okotoks, Canmore, Wood Buffalo) that are much larger than some places in Alberta with "city" status.

Cities in Alberta:

Calgary
Edmonton
Red Deer
Lethbridge
St. Albert
Medicine Hat
Grande Prairie
Airdrie
Spruce Grove
Leduc
Lloydminster
Fort Saskatchewan
Camrose
Brooks
Cold Lake
Wetaskiwin

Largest non-cities are Fort Mac and Sherwood Park.