Parks Canada says reservation system appears to be meeting 'high demand' for camping
CBC
Campers logged into their computers, tablets and smartphones bright and early Thursday morning hoping to book their favourite sites in Banff National Park this summer.
Some people got an early spot in the online queue, while others were as far back as 40,000 in line.
"It was actually fairly seamless," said Calgarian Michael Kwadrans, who was able to log into the site relatively quickly after getting a spot in the 2,000s when reservations opened at 8 a.m. local time.
"I griped about the old system a few times. I didn't have high hopes for the new system."
Parks Canada brought in a new online reservation system earlier this month because its old one was getting outdated and needed some upgrades. Users found it was prone to crashes and glitches.
The new system has different reservation dates from mid-March to mid-April at each national park, historic site and marine conservation area, which are listed on the Parks Canada website.
It's set up to allow the "maximum volume of users, including a virtual waiting room which ensures equitable access to the reservation service for everyone, helps maintain optimal performance ... and mitigates the risks of access by automated programs and bots," the federal agency said in a statement.
"These adjustments have been successful in meeting the high demand for camping since reservations were launched."
Bookings started in British Columbia, some of the eastern provinces and for Jasper National Park in Alberta last week, while reservations for Ontario sites opened Tuesday. Parks Canada's busiest location — Banff National Park, also in Alberta — opened Thursday.
Parks Canada said there were nearly 50,000 devices connected to its reservation system when it opened and more than 42,000 reservations had been made in the first six hours.
"These numbers are not unusual on launch day for Banff National Park," a spokesperson said in a statement Thursday.
Kwadrans said he didn't have much luck booking in Jasper, but he was able to reserve several camping sites in Banff, including on the July long weekend, because he landed an earlier spot in the queue.
"It's equitable," he said. "Everyone has an equal chance."
Backcountry reservations for Banff, Yoho and Kootenay national parks, located in the mountains in Alberta and British Columbia, also opened Wednesday.
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