‘Special and touching’ moments come alive at Christmas inside the Banff Springs Hotel

Every year, staff at the Banff Springs Hotel turn the interior into a Christmas wonderland for guests.

The Banff Springs Hotel has been transformed into a Christmas showcase filled with butterflies, flowers, mirrors and towering displays designed to surprise visitors at every turn.

Holiday designer Corey Christopher leads the work, crafting what he calls small moments of discovery throughout the historic hotel.

He says those touches are meant to feel as if a storybook has come alive in the hallways and rooms.

“In spaces like Mount Stephen Hall, I wanted it to feel like a Christmas storybook come alive,” said Christopher.

“We’ve incorporated flowers in there. We’ve incorporated butterflies, those whimsical elements that you often find when wandering outside on a nice summer day.”

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Some of the most unexpected details appear in the trees themselves.

Christopher says designing for what he calls “the castle” means thinking in large scale and embracing ideas that wouldn’t normally be part of holiday décor.

“Maybe traditionally, you might not put mirrors in a Christmas tree. But in this case, the Mount Stephen tree has seven mirrors in it so that it could be reflective,” he said.

“The scale of those mirrors then adds to the ambience of the space.”

Other decorations are created to spark reaction from guests passing underneath.

Christopher says he often stays just out of view when the hotel is busy to listen to those moments.

“I am around a corner, and I’ll hear someone go, ‘mom, look at that’ and those moments are so special and touching, because ultimately, that means I’ve done my job.”

He says one of his favourite installations this year is the entrance to the Riverview Room, designed as a blend of Christmas traditions and natural elements.

Christopher believes the hotel’s scale and iconic setting are part of what makes the work special.

“What we often forget, maybe as Albertans, is that this is in our own backyard,” he said.

“People come from around the world to this iconic hotel, right? The Banff Springs, the castle and the Rockies.”

And even as visitors explore this year’s displays, Christopher says planning for next year has already begun.

“I start my buying and planning and designing in January,” Christopher said.

“Then we install in November and make all the magic happen again.”

The Christmas decor at the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel starts coming down on Jan. 3, 2026.