A quick drive over from Calgary, Banff and Jasper are worth the trip even if you don't have energy to do anything but take in your surroundings. Even if you're not in the National Parks Banff or Jasper to ride the lifts, snow or sun this destination has earned a reputation for stunning natural beauty and not undeservedly.

The modest city of Lethbridge sits in the southern part of Alberta, an important link in the highway system connecting this province to Montana, British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east. Should you have time to rest your weary head in Lethbridge, stop at some of the area’s attractions to round out your Southern Alberta experience.

Billed as an oasis in the prairie, Medicine Hat, "The Gas City", emerges from the vast landscape stretching across the southeast corner of Alberta. Environmental reports show Medicine Hat to be Canada's sunniest city, a bright stop on the Trans-Canada Highway between Calgary and Regina, Saskatchewan.

Located halfway between the important Alberta urban centers of Edmonton and Calgary, Red Deer is a moderately sized city surrounded by wide fields accented with blonde bales of hay. Find expected amenities here and when accommodation gets tight in the bigger cities either end of this stretch of road, Red Deer often has room at the inn. But Red Deer has more to commend itself than lodging.