Lake Louise was well known and visited by Indigenous Peoples prior to the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway survey crews in the 1880s.

Thomas Edmonds Wilson was the first non-Indigenous person to visit the lake, having being led there by a Stoney Nakoda guide named Edwin Hunter in 1882.

The lake has a surface of 0.8 km2 (0.31 sq mi) and is drained through the 3 km long Louise Creek into the Bow River.

It is a luxury resort hotel built in the early decades of the 20th century by the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Kayaking and canoeing are popular activities during summer, and a boat launch and rental facility are maintained on the north-eastern shore.