Aurora

Drinks: NO Alcohol in the drinks when you pay for mixed drinks and double the cost for another shot.
All seasoned drinkers male and female (adults in their 30’s/40’s) ordered mixed drinks and all drinks were made with water or water and sugar from a bottle. There was no alcohol in them. Went to a pub — same thing. Asked for a well known beer brand by bottle and sold a very lower /​cheaper brand at the same cost $ 5.50.
Music — great but extremely loud — hearing damage loud. Good blend of music.
Laser lights — great!
Décor and bathroom — great!
Dancing drunk guy — great!
Was there with a tour group from Vancouver, BC. Treated us like fools.

This place was 1 star away from being awesome b/​c at the end of the evening a major deusche security guy kicked one of the girls out at our table for laying and resting for a minute. No warning to anybody in the group — the security guy just threw her out and then of course her group of girls were forced to follow her out. MAJOR party foul! It was my friend’s bachelor party and we were the only group doing it up like Bosses. (models and bottles) We talked to management and of course they apologized for the lame situation, but it was too late — the entertainment value was gone. Fortunately, the Aurora management team discounted the bill in the end.
Beyond that, 10 korean doodes from Los Angeles had a blast in Banff Village. A bachelor parties in Calgary/​Banff in the winter is surprisingly fun.

The aurora is actually a very nice bar inside, but my experience there was lack lustre. My boyfriend asked for a water for me and the bartender poured it and begrudgingly put it on the bar with an eye roll. Also, they over serve patrons. I saw a lot of people sitting on the benches and table, pretty much passed out. At least a quarter of the people either left, or were kicked out before the main acts even got on stage. Also, a lot of people that went outside to smoke or to get fresh air were denied re-​entry. At the end of the night we had lost one of our coat check tickets, and the girl told us we had to wait until everyone left or come back the next day when they opened at 9. When we called the following night and described the jacket, we were told there was nothing there. I doubt anyone picked up a ticket in a dark bar…

Definitely my nightclub choice for Sunday funday! I like how there is the back area where you can sit down or play pool so you aren’t stuck on a crowded drunk dancefloor, I dont like dancing so Aurora is definitely a favourite because there are lots of areas to just hang out. Nice and friendly staff on the door & behind the bar!

The Aurora is a scummy hole in the wall full of too drunk people who can’t find anything better to do in Banff. The place needs a revamp!

I wish I could remember people as vaguely as I remember you Aurora because you got me DRUNK every time I stepped foot into your place.
The first time was over 8 years ago. 8 years for a popular club? Congratulations Grandpa. Speaking of firsts, you keep your mouth shut about «the deal» that went down that night!
The recent time, well your jerk wad bouncers decided to make fun of me for not having my driver’s license and for being a boy scout and bringing my citizenship card. Yeah I was as cute as I was when I was 13 you dicks.
Am I glad Gabe A left a mess in your bathroom for his stag.
Booze, Music, Patrons. All the same price, vibe, tourists. I’ll give you +1 for having a pizza stand right beside your coatcheck.

No bad for a small town.
Very interested that this place actually serves pizza inside the club, but who knows how good it actually was. I certainly wasn’t adventurous that night, considering that I got the stomach flu during my trip :(
The layout was quite large with somewhat of different sections to this clubs. There was about 4 bars that I could see, small DJ booth, and loud ear busting speakers. Something that the clubs should look into: better ventilation and better speakers. The DJ had a pretty good track selection and mixing, but it seems like a lot of people here love dubstep. The DJ would tease a little dubstep in here and there, not like the other club which pretty much switched gears and only played dubstep on the second half of the night.
The staff was a hit and miss. Some where friendly and some looked like they wanted to kill someone. Bouncers were cool and chill. The vibe of the club was pretty good and not overly packed. They played top 40s, mixed with some electro (some main stream trance/​house), and dubstep remixes.
They also a pool table on one side and plenty of room on that side to chill and there isn’t a dress code here if you’re wondering.

There’s a trick to this place, but I’ll get to that later.
There are a lot of different elements to Aurora. After paying cover (was $ 8) and coat check and coming down the stairs, you’re faced with two of those elements. On the right, there’s a nice lounge area with tables, a pool table and a bar. You’re separated from the dance floor by half a wall that creates a nice space to have a drink with others (the whole place is loud, so expect to yell) but still feel like part of the larger group in the other room.
That other room hold Aurora’s dance floor. It’s a decent size, set in front of a stage where the DJ was set up, and sectioned off from some seating by a waist-​high divider that runs along its perimeter. This gives a nice space for taking a break from dancing without becoming totally disconnected, or for people who just want to watch other people dance. The bar is nice and well stocked, and the bottle service area has some great lights and comfy couches, but the rest of the space kind of feels like a big warehouse painted black. Not especially impressive. The first night we were there, we had met some pirates, had some fun, but ultimately hadn’t fallen in love with the place and were ready to leave.
So what’s the trick? Well, on a whim (and on our way out), we looked through a small doorway we hadn’t noticed before. If you’re in the area at the bottom of the stairs, and facing the dance floor, it’s to the left. And it’s like walking into another world. From black walls and pool tables, we walked into a room of wood paneling, a mahogany bar and leather furniture. From ripped jeans and tshirts (and pirate costumes) to a room full of people dressed as well as we were in ties, vests and dresses. The room has its own DJ on a (tiny) dance floor large enough for maybe a dozen people. It was a perfectly classy room that we were NOT expecting to find in Aurora. If that’s your kind of thing, make sure you check it out.
The last time we went to go back, we ended up waiting in line (it was around 11 o’clock), but talking to a friend inside, they said it was nearly empty. That kind of «always keep a line» attitude (especially in –20) didn’t sit well with us, so we ended up going somewhere else. Might be worth going a bit earlier, or a bit later to avoid the faux-​line.

Went to this club on a Saturday night and it was really good. We had gone to a different spot the night before and hadn’t had a great time so maybe that made this place seem a lot better.
As soon as you enter you walk down a flight of stairs and that is where the club is. It is fairly big has a chilling area on one side and then a rowdy side. The dance floor isn’t very big so that might turn some people away. They also have a pizza place right in the club which is great if you are getting hungry near the end of the night, but it is right beside a McDonald’s so it doesn’t make much difference. They played some great music though and threw in a lot of classics along with top 40.
It was really packed and seemed like a popular place.