Hotels

A thriving hub of international commerce makes finding a cheap bed in Calgary difficult. Downtown offers a full complement of international business-class brands like Sheraton, Westin, and Delta, with few independents and little to distinguish between them, save location. A couple of boutique hotels have emerged in the core in recent years, both from the same owner: the Kensington Riverside Inn (www.kensingtonriversideinn.com) and the Hotel Arts (www.hotelarts.ca), both sleek, modern, and unique, are an antidote to corporate sameness, if that's your preference.

Less expensive rooms, if they're available at all, tend to cluster around the motel strips: Macleod Trail S, or 16th Avenue NW, which is what the Trans-Canada Highway becomes as it passes through the city. A few deals can be found downtown at cheaper chains like Best Western (www.bestwestern.com), Sandman Inn (www.sandmaninn.com), or Travelodge (www.travelodge.com). There is a dearth of accommodation outside the central financial core and the motel strips, unfortunately, notably in trendy neighborhoods like the Mission.

If you like B&Bs, try the Bed and Breakfast Association of Calgary (www.bbcalgary.com), which has several dozen listings for the city. The many hotels in Motel Village, which link to the city center via the C-Train, are another option; you can often find these rooms at discount hotel websites.

Moderate & Inexpensive -- Always a challenge in money-mad Calgary, there are nonetheless a handful of perfectly comfortable choices in the city core. Don't expect white-glove service, but clean, convenient, efficient, and well-maintained are the main benefits of the hotels in this section. Luckily, the light-rail system makes it easy to stay outside the city center -- particularly in Motel Village in Northwest Calgary and along the C-Train line south along Macleod Trail -- yet have access to the restaurants and sights of downtown.

Motel Village

Northwest of downtown, this triangle of more than 20 large motels, plus restaurants, stores, and gas stations, forms a self-contained hamlet near the University of Calgary. Enclosed by Crowchild Trail, the Trans-Canada Highway, and Highway 1A, the village's costlier establishments flank the highway and the cheaper ones lie off Crowchild Trail. If you're driving and don't want to deal with downtown traffic, just head here to find a room; for C-Train service, use Lions Park or Banff Park stops. Except during the Stampede, you'll be able to find a vacancy without reservations. Use discount hotel websites such as Travelocity to find deals here. Popular chain hotels and some independents are located here, including Comfort Inn (2369 Banff Trail NW; tel. 403/289-2589); Calgary Motel Village (2369 Banff Trail NW; tel. 800/228-5150 or 403/289-2581); Best Western Village Park Inn (1804 Crowchild Trail NW; tel. 888/774-7716 or 403/289-4645); Travelodge North (2304 16th Ave. NW; tel. 800/578-7878 or 403/289-0211), and the Quality Inn University (2359 Banff Trail NW; tel. 800/661-4667 or 403/289-1973). You can expect rates at about C$120-C$140 per night.

Macleod Trail South

All the usual suspects are here, lining Macleod, a wide, noisy, cluttered commercial strip that leads south out of town and eventually turns into Highway 2. This is big box retailer heaven (or hell, depending on your perspective), capped off with Southcentre, one of Calgary's largest suburban malls, at the intersection of Macleod and Anderson Road. Paralleling Macleod is the C-Train line, which will whisk you downtown from its southernmost point near Midnapore (an even-farther-out 'burb) to the core in about 45 minutes. In the south, motels tend to cluster between Heritage Drive (the farthest north) to Anderson Road (the farthest south), so your trip would be closer to half an hour. Closer to downtown, motels can be found along Macleod as soon as you crest Cemetery Hill out of downtown, starting around 42nd Avenue SW and stretching to about 58th Avenue SW -- too far to walk, but a reasonable cab ride away. As with Motel Village, use sites like Expedia or Travelocity to hunt out the deals; posted rates are sometimes as low as C$69. A few of your best bets are Travelodge Hotel Calgary Macleod Trail (9206 Macleod Trail S; tel. 800/578-7878 or 403/253-7070); Comfort Inn and Suites South (4611 Macleod Trail S; tel. 403/287-7070); Inn on Macleod Trail (4206 Macleod Trail S; tel. 866-554-0162 or 403/287-2700).

Camping

The Calgary West Campground (tel. 403/288-0411), on the Trans-Canada Highway West, allows tents and pets. Facilities include washrooms, toilets, laundry, a dumping station, hot showers, groceries, and a pool. The price for full hook-up with two people is C$39 per night; tent sites are C$27 per night.