Alberta Parks

There are five national parks in Alberta, most of which are located in the Rocky Mountains. National parks are intended to maintain ecological integrity as a core objective. However, they also attract very high levels of tourism and some provide facilities for downhill skiing and golfing.

Information about individual National Parks can be accessed via this Interactive Google Map

Prohibited Activities:

• Random camping
• Hunting
• Off-road vehicles
• All forms of industrial resource extraction
• Grazing

Alberta has 76 Provincial Parks which were established to preserve natural heritage of provincial significance or higher, while supporting a wide spectrum of outdoor recreation. Most Provincial Parks offer campgrounds, walking trails, and other public facilities.

Information about individual Provincial Parks can be accessed via this Interactive Google Map

Prohibited Activities:

• Random camping
• Hunting, except in the Castle and Cypress Hills Provincial Parks.
• Off-road vehicles
• Forestry, open pit mining, and gravel pits. Oil and gas extraction continues to occur in some Provincial Parks in leases that were active at the time of the park's establishment.

Alberta's protected area network includes 34 Wildland Provincial Parks, 3 Wilderness Areas, and Willmore Wilderness Park. These are large, remote wilderness parks intended to preserve and protect natural heritage while providing opportunities for compatible backcountry recreation. Most of these parks have few, if any, visitor facilities.

Information about individual Wilderness Parks can be accessed via this Interactive Google Map

Prohibited Activities:

• Hunting and fishing are not permitted in Wilderness Areas but are permitted in Wildland Parks and in Willmore
• Motorized access is prohibited in Wilderness Areas and in Willmore
• Equestrian use is not permitted in Wilderness Areas
• Off-road vehicles are not permitted in Wilderness Areas or Willmore but are permitted in some Wildland parks
• Forestry, open pit mining, and gravel pits are all prohibited. Oil and gas extraction is prohibited in Wilderness Areas and Willmore but continues to occur in some Wildland Parks, in leases that were active at the time of the park's establishment. Grazing is not permitted in Wilderness Areas or Willmore.

Alberta has 15 Ecological Reserves, which are areas of high-value conservation that are highly protected to preserve natural ecosystems and associated biodiversity. Surface disturbance is not allowed within Ecological Reserves and they can only be accessed by foot. These sites have few, if any, public facilities.

Information about individual Ecological Reserves can be accessed via this Interactive Google Map

Prohibited Activities:

• Random camping
• Hunting and fishing
• Motorized access, including off-road vehicles
• Equestrian use
• All forms of industrial activity as well as grazing

Heritage Rangelands are intended to protect natural heritage representative of Alberta's grasslands. Cattle grazing is used to maintain grassland ecology. Recreational use is generally limited to foot access only. Even though Heritage Rangelands are publicly owned, permission to enter must be requested from the holder of the crown grazing lease. Guidance on how to do this is provided on our Public Lands Webpage.

Information about individual Heritage Rangelands can be accessed via this Interactive Google Map

Prohibited Activities:

• Random camping
• Equestrian use
• Off-road vehicles
• Forestry, open pit mining, and gravel pits. Oil and gas extraction continues to occur in some Heritage Rangelands in leases that were active at the time of the park's establishment.

Natural areas are parcels of land dedicated primarily to habitat protection. Some sites are managed by provincial and municipal governments whereas others are managed by conservation groups. Most sites permit public access, but provide few, if any, visitor facilities. The rules concerning permitted activities are determined by the management authority of each site.

Learn more about exploring these sites on our Natural Areas page.

Provincial Recreation Areas are primarily intended to support outdoor recreation and tourism, often providing access to lakes, rivers, reservoirs and adjacent crown land. Most sites are small (median = 19 ha) and contribute little in terms of habitat protection. However, there are some exceptions, such as Lakeland and Cooking Lake-Blackfoot. Hunting and off-road vehicles are generally prohibited, with some exceptions.

The location of Alberta's Recreation Areas is provided in this Google Map

An alphabetical listing of Recreation Areas is available on the Alberta Parks Website