I have to start with the pool area...it's fantastic! Banff Springs has a full-length pool that has a real deep end (about 10 feet). The pool is not full width, but it does have two lanes for swimmers that want to do lengths that take-up about half of the width, and then the other half is open for play. The best part is the entrance to the hot pool outside that leaves you exposed to the air for only a few seconds and the hot pool is not as hot as the hot pool located indoors - the outdoor hot pool is tolerable for a lengthy soak/swim. We'll come back just for the pool - it's not as crowded as the Sulfer Mountain public hot pool.
We stayed in a room that overlooked the oval skating rink and had an unobstructed view of the beautiful Bow Valley. The heating system worked great (it was about minus 20 degrees celcius outside!).
While we did not eat, this time, at the hotel - it's quite expensive, we have eaten there before and have never been disappointed with the food. Because we were only staying one night, we brought food from the Subway in Banff and the Lotus Lotus (I think it was called) in the food court of one of the malls. The Lotus food was one of the best Asian cuisine fast foods that we ever had - it was all delicious! If you want to spend money at the restaraunts here, you shouldn't be disappointed, eating wasn't meant to be the highlight of our trip, so we saved quite a bit of money in the dining department. Our room had a fridge, but no microwave.

I went to this hotel and was in love with its castle like quality. Every aspect of this hotel was beautiful, though I was very embarrassed to have security knock on our door during a quiet tryst to be told that the neighbours were complaining about the noise level (we were keeping it down to a reasonable level).

As with any of the old fairmonts the Banff Springs was gorgeous and we took the chance to wander around at night and it was really amazing to see the ballrooms and elegance. However, there were quite a few more issues than we expected to encounter at a place of this repute that soured us on the overall experience.

1) Heating system made odd sounds throughout the night that made sleeping difficult for my partner. Upon bringing this up the next day they said they apprecaited the feedback and would see it was fixed going forward. It still didn't make up for the sleepless night unfortunately.

2) Late night service at the lounge was slow and hard to get. We waited 5 minutes at the bar to see if it was even open after having sat down because we didn't see any staff around. We weren't the only ones waiting at the bar for that reason either...

3) We got the spa package and had some issues with it that were unpleasant as well. We happened to stay right until closing at 10 on the first night and hurried to leave as we'd lost track of time. While I had no issues on my side leaving, by gf was pressured in an unpleasant way by staff to get out ASAP and was made to feel incredibly uncomfortable in leaving. Not what we'd expected by such a highly recommended and relaxing spa.

Furthermore, we were told the billing was going to be executed in one way and then it was done in another. I stayed to discuss this with the staff for 45 minutes at the end of our trip to know resolution and it will result in an additional charge to us of approximately $80 each.

While these things may not have been tremenously disappointing at some other venues, we were surprised and disappointed to have encountered them at the Banff Springs.

My wife and I have just returned from a single night stay, at this fantastic property.

Our initial room, the one I booked online, was a Jr Suite. Unfortunately, it did not look at all like the picture on Fairmont's website and it did not have a bathtub for my wife.

Upgraded to a Spa Suite, full one bedroom (1054). Excellent, perfect, series of rooms.

The service was what we have always been looking for in a top class hotel, the facilities excellent.

We simply can't wait to return.