Pick up any guide or coffee-table book on Canada and, likely as not, the cover photo will show Alberta. The province is not only scenically spectacular, it's also archetypal Canada. It's where you'll find those craggy peaks towering over iridescent turquoise lakes, above endless conifer forests that blanket valleys where bears scavenge for berries and elk quietly graze.

But that's just Alberta's Rocky Mountains, where people go for the world-class hiking, biking, skiing and many other outdoor activities. The rest of the province - that's well over twice the size of New Zealand in total - is just as remarkable.

To the east of the Rockies a ranching belt gives way to arid Badlands - where dinosaurs once roamed and have left traces - before prairie wheat fields take hold; rippling under endless skies. Meanwhile in the north, the province is carpeted by endless stretches of boreal forest in and around national park the size of Switzerland (Wood Buffalo) where thousands of wild bison roam.

Above all, Alberta is cowboy country; where devotion to Alberta beef takes on religious proportions and rodeos form the high points of social calendars.

Survival guide 

Alberta's grand size means that you could literally spend weeks driving around without ever taking the same road twice, but thankfully all its premier national and provincial parks at the heart of the Rocky Mountains are just a couple hours' drive from Alberta's two main cities: Edmonton and Calgary. This helps make public transport a viable means of getting around, though once in the parks it's well worth renting a car to get off the beaten track and have a look around at your own pace.

All other aspects of the Albertan travel experience are equally worry-free. Accommodation ranges from a multitude of basic hostels in both towns and the backcountry all the way up to some of North America's marquee hotels.

Outfitters too, can be found wherever you need them to rent, sell, advise or provide a guided trip. That said, a bit of advance preparation and booking will help make the most of your time, and, in peak season (June to August) prevent a long hunt for somewhere to stay in the most popular places like Banff.

The weather is another seasonal variation worth preparing for, given the amazing temperature fluctuations between winter and summer. Banff's average January temperature is 7C (19F) so it's certainly worth packing an extra sweater. Summer is far more pleasant and generally shorts' weather, although it is also mosquito season.