Willow Stream Spa at The Fairmont Banff Springs

I was in Banff for a weekend getaway with my girlfriends and we decided to treat ourselves to a spa day! This spa has so many great amenities. Their steam room, inhalation room, dry sauna, multiple therapeutic pools and out door hot tub will easily keep you there for many hours! The treatment and change rooms are quite nice as well. They provide shampoo, conditioner, razors, hair dryers, straighteners, curling irons, body lotion and spray deodorant. The robes are cozy and their slippers are great for walking around the pool. There’s lounge chairs by the pools if you want to just hang out and read a book in between indulging in their amenities. My friends and I hung out there for about 4 hours, if we didn’t get hungry, we easily could have stayed for much longer. The treatments are expensive, but if you’re treating yourself, then get the most out of your money by spending as much time there as possible using all they have to offer. Its well worth the relaxation you get out of it. Note there is an automatic 15% gratuity charge to your bill. You pay when you first check in so its all out of the way, but don’t forget to ask for your receipt on the way out in case you need to claim it towards your benefits.

Well… the spa is very nicely set up… nice mineral pool with three waterfalls of different temperature. nice steam room and sauna… nice service… however the quality of massage i recieved was so so… certainly not 250 dollars an hour… i have had better massages for 90 dollars… i guess it is tough to get professionals as most of the people working here are people from some place else who are living in banff for a year or two… the experience was over all fine… but not worth 250 dollars…

All I have to say is: WOAH. My mom and I got a couples massage here and were given a tour around the spa as soon as we filled out the (short) paperwork at the front desk of the spa. There are several relaxation rooms, a steam room, a sauna, a eucalyptus room, 4 or so hottubs, and a large mineral pool. My favorite relaxation room was the largest of them– it had complimentary tea, coffee, water, and cookies as well as magazines and comfy chairs with throw blankets on the footrests and a view of the mountains right out the window. The locker room area was delightful as well. They have hair spray, razors, shaving cream, hair gel, deodorant, curling irons, flat irons, and lotion all for you to use there for free. The robes were super comfy as well, but the provided sandals were a bit too tight. Now, on to the massage– my therapist was great, I think her name was Melissa. She applied the right amount of pressure and worked around my cuts with ease. The room that my mom and I had our massages in was generous in size with a restroom in it as well. We were able to choose the music (from 4 or 5 spa stations) and the volume which was an excellent touch. We also chose which oil we wanted them to use from 3 options. After our delightful hour long massages, we checked out the pool area and the saunas. The pool is the perfect temperature– not too hot and not too cold. One of the hot tubs is 74 or 76 degrees, which I didn’t enjoy, the 2^nd was in the 90s F which I thoroughly enjoyed, and the last one was 104 F. They each had waterfalls which, standing under them, felt like I was getting a 2^nd massage (so heavenly!). After going in each of the hottubs, I layed down on a lounge and read a magazine with one of the provided cold towels over my face, which was incredibly relaxing. Then, we checked out the steam room, sauna, and eucalyptus room. My mom and I both agreed that the eucalyptus room was our favorite! After getting dressed, we used the hair gel and were pleased to find out that it worked well with our curly hair. We also purchased some spa products, which weren’t exactly cheap but well worth the money. Overall, an EXCELLENT experience, the best massage I’ve ever had! If I’m ever back in Banff, I will absolutely go back. BRAVO!

Highly recommend the «twilight hour» spa access between 4pm and 7pm. It’s only $ 30pp to access all of their facilities, which include the 4 mineral pools, sauna, steam room, and inhalation room, as well as relaxation areas with refreshments and snacks. Change rooms are very high-​end with all male grooming products. Sandals and robes are standard.
If you’re ok zoning out by yourself, this is a great time and place to do it. We went there on a Saturday and it was completely dead. Very quiet and relaxing experience.

While I didn’t book a spa treatment, I was told by my friends to gain access to the mineral pools and saunas and I wouldn’t regret it. I really enjoyed the experience. The change rooms are quiet and have many amenities (blow dryers, brushes, straighteners, curlers, lotion, mouthwash etc.). The locker comes with a robe and sandals to wear to the pools. There is a woman’s hot tub, a steam room, a eucalyptus inhalation room, and a sauna. I took time in all of those rooms before heading to the mineral pools. I really enjoyed the water choices and all the relaxing options. The pools are amazing and I loved laying back and enjoying the temperatures of the various waterfall pools. The overall experience at this spa was superb, I definitely recommended and will be going back one day!

This is hands-​down my favourite spa. I have never received poor service here and I would say that the staff go above-​and-​beyond to make you feel welcome and comfortable. You can tell right away that hygiene and cleanliness is important here — for example they do not re-​use nail files from manicures and pedicures. Since I live fairly close to Banff I often just come to the spa without staying at the hotel. A lot of the spa services grant you complimentary access to the sauna and pool areas. I enjoyed my hot stone massage by a registered massage therapist and my pedicure was amazing. I also got free parking which was a nice bonus. It’s also nice to relax and read a book in their lounge that has light refreshements to enjoy. The price of services here is not cheap but totally worth it as I do belive you get what you pay for.

This place is NOT cheap– and unfortunately, I’ve had better massages back here in Chicago for $ 60. Compare that to my $ 200 massage I had here. Granted, that also included access to their spa which includes pools, both outdoor and indoor, sauna, steam room, relaxation lounge, etc. Still, the massage was pretty weak. She could have used more pressure– esp since I told her my lower back was a real problem area. Felt like the lightest «Swedish» massage I ever had. And mind you I had paid for the one in the middle. (Not too light not too hard).

We went to the spa during Xmas for a couples massage. We spent about 2.5 hours at the spa. 1 hour massage was fantastic. One of the best ever and put me to sleep (which is a very good thing!). The other hour we spent enjoying the outdoor hot tub and mineral pools. Mineral pools were definitely a novelty. Different temperatures for different pools and all of them set in a luxurious setting. We also enjoyed the hot steam room after our massages. A lovely ending to a restful afternoon. If not for the price tag of ~$ 220 per person, I could certainly get used to this. What a treat. THIS is what life should be! I even saw Kristen Kreuk (of Smallville) at the spa. Hahaha. She can definitely afford this more than often than I can. Lol. All in all, incredible.
The one miss with the spa is that they should make their spa credits applicable to any Fairmont. We had a 30 min massage credit from Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver and they would not let us use it here. Boo.

I was treated like a queen for a day!
I booked a few spa treatments for my mom and myself and let me tell you this was truly the entire package. From start to finish, This spa is the total package. I read that some people misunderstood the parking situation and at first it seemed confusing to me too but the bell boys at the front desk directed me where to go to get free parking and then showed me and mom to the spa. They were amazingly friendly and helpful! Upon arriving to the spa we were greeted by the super friendly desk staff who took all our information and showed us around the spa and answered any questions that we had. You literally only need to bring yourself and a swimsuit and they have the rest covered for you.
I warn people now though, this spa is EXPENSIVE but you gain access to all of their spa facilities (mineral pools, sauna, steam room, indoor/​outdoor jacuzzi) and have access to it for the entire day. The treatments we received were done by friendly professionals and were compensatory to what we paid to get them done. There was a 15% gratuity already paid to the providers that is charged to your bill so be prepared for that but they also tell you that when you book.
This spa is over the top amazing and should be experienced at least once in a lifetime. I look at it this way, if you are going to pay $ 165 any where else in Banff for an hour long massage you might as well drop the $ 195 and gain access to all of the spa facilities not to mention they treat you like royalty.

I usually love this place. But I must say my last visit was upsetting. From the moment I walked in the reception was rude and made me feel like an idiot for asking a question.
Then charged me 30 dollars more then what I normally pay and when I asked why gave me a poor excuse. Not pleased at all.

First off the spa itself is amazing! I got three massages over a span of one week and all of the therapists were incredible. My boyfriend and I got the rocky healing couples retreat and don’t regret it one bit. The couples suite is beautifully set up and romantic.
Some tips: sign up for the fairmont presidents club online or at the front desk of the hotel, it’s free and you get 10% off all treatments!
I had to knock off one star because the hair salon is awful. I told the young lady exactly how I wanted my hair done and she kept suggesting doing it differently. For hair services I suggest going to one of the salons in town.