Partners on the Path: How Banff and Lake Louise Are Redefining Incentive Travel

When companies want to celebrate top performers or inspire their teams, they sometimes reward them with once-in-a-lifetime trips. This is called incentive travel. It’s designed to motivate, reward, and connect people through unforgettable experiences. They are big business in the tourism world—and they matter even more in places like Banff and Lake Louise, where tourism is the core industry, supporting nearly every job in the community.

Typically, incentive trips tend to happen in sunny, beachside locations. But in March 2025, Banff and Lake Louise proved that winter can be just as rewarding, luxurious, and inspiring. That was the story of M&I Luxe Lake Louise 25—a global showcase event that brought 150 participants, including 75 leading travel planners, to Banff National Park for four days of cultural immersion, adventure, and connection.

Just as importantly, it was a very real example of the destination’s vision to Lead Tourism for Good: showing how tourism here can be a force that benefits the community, helps protect our environment, and celebrates the culture of these lands.

We spoke with Melissa Villaseca, Manager of Business Events at Banff & Lake Louise Tourism, about what made M&I Luxe Lake Louise 25 different, and why it might just change how people think about incentive travel.

Melissa, for people who haven’t heard of incentive travel before, how would you describe it?

Melissa: Incentive travel is about rewarding and inspiring people. Companies bring together their best employees, or their most important partners, and celebrate them with a trip that money can’t easily buy. The point is to create memories that make people feel valued and motivated. For destinations like Banff and Lake Louise, hosting these trips means more visitors staying in hotels, dining in restaurants, and booking activities—especially in winter, when we want to grow visitation to balance out the busy summer months. That’s good for businesses, for jobs, and for the local communities.

What made M&I Luxe Lake Louise 25 stand out?

Melissa: Events like this usually take place in warm-weather destinations. Research shows the majority are still planned around beaches and summer sunshine. So to bring 150 people here in March—planners who can book millions of dollars’ worth of future travel—and to show them how amazing winter can be, was a huge opportunity.

Planners are always keen to create something really memorable and different. Well, we’ve got something different for you! We absolutely broke the stereotypesabout winter, showing that it can mean adventure, culture, luxury, and connection. And the response was incredible: every single planner said they were interested in bringing future groups here.

What did the program actually look like? How did it include the kind of authentic, Indigenous-led experiences that we talk about in Lead Tourism for Good?

Melissa: It started with a three-day Business Development Trip in Banff for a smaller group of high-potential planners. They went dogsledding, walked through frozen waterfalls at Johnston Canyon, and experienced Nightrise at the Banff Gondola, which blends lights, sound, and Indigenous storytelling.

Then we moved to Lake Louise for the main showcase. Guests arrived to a “Luxury Cowboy” welcome at Brewster Barn—imagine arriving on a sleigh, sipping cocktails at an Ice Bar, and dancing under string lights. Over the next few days, they chose their own adventures: snowshoeing to a mountain hut, skating on Lake Louise, tubing at the ski resort, or simply soaking in the beauty.

Evenings were extraordinary. One highlight was the “Nature and Its People” dinner at the Fairmont Banff Springs, which followed pre-dinner cocktails at theBanff Gondola.Guests were welcomed with drumming and dance, Indigenous storytelling and displays of local artistry. The grand finaleevening took place back at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, featuring dueling pianos, indoor curling, and even a surprise visit from the Alberta Birds of Prey Foundation.

You’ve mentioned culture a few times. Why was it important to include local voices, and stories about these lands?

Melissa: Culture is what makes an incentive memorable. The best events I’ve been to are the ones that leave you with an unforgettable sense of the place. You can rent a ballroom anywhere. But you can’t replicate Indigenous songs carried across a mountaintop, or the feeling of being welcomed into the stories of this land. That’s what people remember. We were really intentional about that—making sure guests connected not just with the scenery, but with the spirit of this place.

What did it take to make something like this happen?

Melissa: It was a huge team effort. Our destination management partner, Rare Indigo, coordinated logistics and creative touches. The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise was our host hotel, and the Fairmont Banff Springs, Buffalo Mountain Lodge, Bluebird Restaurant & Lobby Bar, and Pursuit's Banff Gondolagave us extraordinary venues and dining.

For experiences, we worked with both Discover Banff Toursand White Mountain Adventures on the Johnston Canyon Ice Walks, Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours, and Banff Trail Riders for the sleigh rides. Encore handled AV and production, while Travel Alberta supported strategy and funding. And of course, our cultural partners—Naomi Langer-McIntosh of Mountainscape Events, Matricia Bauer of Warrior Women, Parks Canada’s Indigenous Advisory Group, and the Iyarhe Nakoda nation who partnered with Pursuit to create Nightrise—made the program unforgettable.

In the Vision, we talk about the importance of both Visitor Experience and Community Wellbeing. How did M&I Luxe deliver—for visitors, and for the community?

Melissa: On the visitor side, the numbers were amazing. Nearly 90% rated the destination “excellent.” More importantly, the trip generated over half a million dollars in immediate economic impact, and is forecast to bring in more than $1.4 million in future business.

For the community, it’s about momentum. Winter is our biggest opportunity for growth. By hosting programs like this, we create more consistent demand outside of the peak summer months. That means steadier business for hotels, restaurants, and tour operators. It means more year-round jobs, and a healthier community overall.

If you had one message for someone considering Banff and Lake Louise for an incentive trip, what would it be?

Melissa: Winter wasn’t just the setting for M&I Luxe Lake Louise 25. It was the identity. If you want something unique—something people will talk about for years—this is it. Winter here isn’t a limitation. It’s an opportunity to deliver that “wow” moment that incentive travel is all about.

M&I Luxe Lake Louise 25 was made possible through the collaboration of Banff & Lake Louise Tourism, M&I, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, Rare Indigo, Fairmont Banff Springs, Buffalo Mountain Lodge, Bluebird Restaurant & Lobby Bar, Brewster Barn, Banff Gondola, Encore,Mountainscape Events, Discover Banff Tours, White Mountain Adventures, Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours, Banff Trail Riders, Warrior Women / Matricia Bauer, Alberta Birds of Prey Foundation, and Travel Alberta.