1

LeConte Lodge, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee

Image: Mitchell Bowser

It’s hard to imagine this massive lodge once being a tent camp, but in 1925, that was its humble beginning. Over the years, it has transformed into the comfortable hotel with grand halls we see today. Built atop Mount LeConte in 1926, this lodge provides breathtaking views of the surrounding areas and all the amenities of a modern establishment.

2

The Ahwahnee, Yosemite National Park, California

Image: Hanbyul Jeong

Built in 1925, The Ahwahnee is a 121-room hotel nestled in a picturesque meadow at the base of the Royal Arches in Yosemite Valley. Its dining hall, featuring 34-foot-high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows, along with its elegant suites and magnificent lounges complete with vintage fireplaces , offers the perfect retreat after a day of hiking in the park.

3

Many Glacier Hotel, Glacier National Park, Montana

Image: Michael Kirsh

The largest inn in Glacier National Park, Many Glacier Hotel is a 215-room Swiss-style chalet boasting breathtaking lounges with stunning views , exposed log beams , and a majestic three-story lobby . Its generous dining room offers a panoramic backdrop of the northern Rockies for its guests to enjoy while sipping a local brew or a delicious meal.

4

El Tovar Hotel, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Image: James Lee

Perched on a high ledge along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, overlooking the Colorado River, El Tovar was designed to resemble a Scandinavian-style villa. With 78 rooms, a grand lounge wrapped in hewn Oregon pine , cobblestone fireplaces , and a dining room adorned with dark wood paneling , vintage light fixtures , and murals , El Tovar offers the perfect retreat after a full day of hiking and taking in the breathtaking views.

5

Lake Crescent Lodge, Olympic National Park, Washington

Image: Georg Eiermann

The Lake Crescent Lodge was built in 1915 and features 55 rooms and it is ideally situated between firs and hemlocks, in the mountainous Hurricane Ridge area. Guests are greeted by a Victorian-era sunroom , an antique-furnished lobby , and a welcoming stone fireplace —an ideal retreat for those eager to soak in the views or explore the numerous hiking trails.

6

Big Meadows Lodge, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

Image: Becky Winner

Big Meadows Lodge, a charming 1930s hotel , boasts beautiful craftsmanship and is set near a grassy meadow where deer often graze. The lodge features 29 rooms in its main building , along with 72 additional accommodations spread across its outer cabins and lodges .

7

Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Image: Judy Beth Morris

The 1904 Old Faithful Inn is celebrated as the largest log structure in the world , stretching 700 feet in length and rising seven stories high. This iconic hotel was strategically positioned to offer stunning views of the renowned Old Faithful geyser.

It has an awe-inspiring 92-foot-high lobby , and its Obsidian Dining Room has a mouth-watering menu complete with locally sourced bison burgers and smoked-trout ravioli.

8

Zion Lodge, Zion National Park, Utah

Image: James Lee

The 100-year-old Zion Lodge was thoughtfully designed to harmonize with its natural surroundings, constructed from untreated logs and locally sourced sandstone . With 76 rooms and 40 cozy cabins , the lodge serves as the perfect base for exploring the park’s diverse hiking trails, offering adventures for visitors of all skill levels.

9

Paradise Inn, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington

Image: Rich Martello

Located 19 miles from the southwestern Nisqually Entrance at Mount Rainier National Park, Paradise Inn was built between 1916 and 1917 and once featured one of the region’s first ski lifts . The inn’s 121 rooms still showcase some of their original rustic charm , with showers and restrooms located down the hall.

10

Wuksachi Lodge, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, California

Image: Josh Carter

The Wukachi Lodge, built in 1999, is the first hotel in the area not constructed over 80 years ago. It boasts 102 rooms and modern amenities , including private baths , mini-fridges, spacious accommodations , central heating , and more.

11

Chisos Mountains Lodge, Big Bend National Park, Texas

Image: Intricate Explorer

The 72-room Chisos Mountains Lodge is nestled at the base of Casa Grande Peak, in the heart of the hiking area. Guests can step right out of their rooms and onto the famous Window Trail , summit Emory Peak , or spend a full day on the South Rim Trail .

1

Jim Carrey

Image: Avel Chuklanov

Jim Carrey, the man with the "rubber face" himself, is a famously Canadian actor known for his comedic roles in Ace Ventura , The Mask , Dumb and Dumber , and for his more dramatic roles in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Truman Show , among many other movies.

Jim was born in Newmarket, Ontario , to Kathleen and Percy Carrey. He was raised Catholic and has three older siblings: John, Patricia, and Rita. The family’s original surname was Carré.

2

Avril Lavigne

Image: Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦

Early 2000s skate-punk rock teenage star Avril Lavigne recorded Let Go , the best-selling album of the 21st century by a Canadian artist, in 2002 and was named the "Pop-Punk Queen" by the media at the time.

She was born in Belleville, Ontario , and, as the story goes, her parents recognized her vocal abilities when she was two years old and sang "Jesus Loves Me" on the way home from church.

3

Michael J. Fox

Image: Roger Ce

One of the most beloved Canadians of all time is Michael J. Fox, the actor who portrayed Marty McFly in the Back to the Future movies. He began his career as a child actor on the NBC sitcom Family Ties and starred in many movies in the '80s and '90s, beyond his famous role as the time-traveling teenager.

Fox was born in Edmonton, Alberta , and in 1998, he disclosed his diagnosis of Parkinson's disease. Since then, the actor has become an advocate for finding a cure and founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000 to help fund research. Worsening symptoms have since forced him to reduce his acting work.

4

Celine Dion

Image: Edward Cisneros

The Queen of Power Ballads, noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, was born into a large family in Charlemagne, Quebec . Despite starting her career singing in French, Celine Dion became internationally famous thanks to her best-selling albums Falling Into You and Let’s Talk About Love . Her song "My Heart Will Go On," the theme from the 1997 film Titanic , is probably her most famous work.

She was the youngest of 14 children and as a baby, Dion slept in a drawer instead of a crib to save money. With over 200 million records sold worldwide, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, the best-selling French-language artist, and one of the best-selling musical artists of all time.

5

Dan Aykroyd

Image: Lance Grandahl

Dan Aykroyd, known as one of the Blues Brothers and a member of the original Ghostbusters , is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and former SNL cast member. Despite being best known for his comedic roles, he was nominated in 1990 for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Boolie Werthan in Driving Miss Daisy.

Aykroyd was born in Ottawa, Ontario , to Samuel Cuthbert Peter Hugh Aykroyd, a civil engineer, and Lorraine Hélène Marie, a secretary. His mother was of French-Canadian descent, and his father was of English, Scottish, Irish, French, and Dutch ancestry.

6

Chris Hadfield

Image: Niketh Vellanki

It is always inspiring to see someone who is truly in love with their job and shares that same passion with the rest of us. And, while one could argue that being an astronaut is an easy job to fall in love with, very few astronauts, if any, have been able to convey what Canadian retired astronaut Chris Hadfield does.

Hadfield was born in Sarnia, Ontario . As the first Canadian to perform extravehicular activity in outer space, he has flown on two Space Shuttle missions and also served as commander of the International Space Station (ISS). During this mission, he documented life onboard the space station by posting on various social media platforms. He appeared on television news and talk shows and gained popularity by performing David Bowie’s "Space Oddity" in space.

7

Alanis Morissette

Image: Jason Buscema

A 1990s phenomenon, Alanis Morissette stormed the charts with her 1995 album Jagged Little Pill , which sold more than 33 million copies worldwide and made her a star. She has released several albums since and has sold more than 75 million records.

Morissette was born in Ottawa, Ontario , to Georgia Mary Ann and Alan Richard Morissette. She has a twin brother, Wade (12 minutes older), who is also a musician.

8

Keanu Reeves

Image: Matthew Ball

A genuine on-screen tough guy and off-screen nice guy, Keanu Reeves is best known for his roles as Neo in the Matrix franchise and as John Wick in the films of the same name, among many other roles.

While Keanu was not born in Canada — he was born in Beirut —he is on this list because he was raised in Toronto and made his acting debut in the Canadian television series Hangin' In (1984). An avid motorcyclist, Reeves is the co-founder of the custom motorcycle manufacturer ARCH Motorcycle.

9

Neil Young

Image: Ahmed Rizkhaan

Legendary rocker Neil Young started his career in Winnipeg in the 1960s before joining Buffalo Springfield in Los Angeles. He has released critically acclaimed albums like After the Gold Rush and Harvest , participated in the supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and has been an active promoter of environmental causes in both his native Canada and the U.S.

Born in Toronto, Neil Young is one of the few people to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: in 1995 as a solo artist and in 1997 as a member of Buffalo Springfield.

10

James Cameron

Image: Michal Mrozek

Most people would think that being a film director known for Terminator 2 , Titanic , and Avatar , among many other blockbusters, would be accomplishment enough. But not for James Cameron, who also decided to become the first person to make a solo descent to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of Earth's ocean.

Cameron was born in Kapuskasing, Ontario , and spent summers on his grandfather's farm. He attended Stamford Collegiate in Niagara Falls. Three of Cameron's films are among the top four highest-grossing films of all time: Avatar , Avatar: The Way of Water , and Titanic hold the positions of highest, third-highest, and fourth-highest-grossing films, respectively. Not bad, right?

1

The Searchers

Image: Tobias Keller

We’ll begin with what many critics believe to be the best Western ever made. Not only that: this 1956 movie is considered among the 100 best American films of all time, and it was selected for preservation in its National Film Registry in 1989. John Ford’s masterpiece truly marked a turning point in the history of the genre and influenced an entire generation of American filmmakers.

2

"The Searchers" stars John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, a Civil War veteran who searches for his abducted niece all throughout Texas and New Mexico. The gorgeous shots in Technicolor (a huge leap at the time) helped cement this Western as a completely revolutionary film.

3

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Image: Scott Warman

The archetypical example of the subgenre known as "Spaghetti Western", this 1966 Sergio Leone film tells the story of three gunslingers competing to find a hidden treasure amid the chaos of the Civil War. The three characters’ personalities are more than the traits described in the film’s title: "The Good", Clint Eastwood’s character, is definitively more of an antihero than a regular protagonist.

Considered by many to be Leone’s masterpiece, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" is a tension-filled, thrilling experience , and credited with launching an American icon like Eastwood to stardom.

4

The Quick and the Dead

Image: Taylor Brandon

Few Westerns feature female gunslingers , so let’s take a second to showcase an excellent example. The 1995 movie "The Quick and the Dead" tells the story of "The Lady", an unnamed gunfighter who enters a deadly tournament to face off against an outlaw-turned-mayor named Gerrod, played by the iconic Gene Hackman.

Sharon Stone plays an extremely compelling protagonist, driven only by the desire to avenge the death of her father. The film features a star-filled cast , including Russel Crowe, Keith David, and then-newcomer Leonardo Di Caprio.

5

True Grit

Image: Taylor Brandon

Sharon Stone’s "The Lady" is not the only strong female lead on this list. Granted, the character of Mattie Ross in the 1969 classic "True Grit" is only a young girl, but don’t be fooled by her age: Mattie is a strong and determined character, hell-bent on apprehending the man responsible for her family’s death.

"True Grit" is also responsible for bringing us one of the most amazing cowboys ever portrayed on film. John Wayne’s legendary depiction of U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn earned him a well-deserved Oscar.

6

Stagecoach

Image: Maddy Weiss

Considering our entry on "The Searchers", it probably won’t surprise you to learn that John Ford’s contributions to Westerns are incommensurable. In that sense, considering his 1939 film "Stagecoach" as anything other than groundbreaking would be a massive disservice to the entire genre.

This movie’s revolutionary shots and character development helped the film industry take a huge leap forward. Not only that, this movie stars John Wayne in his breakthrough role.

7

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

Image: Stefan Münz

Legendary actor Humphrey Bogart is not particularly remembered as a Western actor: In fact, he only starred in two movies of the genre. However, the 1948 film "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", which stars Bogart as drifter Fred C. Dobbs, is considered an absolute Western treasure (no pun intended) and was selected for preservation by the Library of Congress.

The film focuses on Dobbs and fellow drifter Bob Curtin, played by Tim Holt who, along with an old prospector, try to make a living searching for gold in Mexico.

8

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Image: Luis Domenech

The 1962 film "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" begins with the funeral of a seemingly unimportant cowboy named Tom Doniphon which is attended by a powerful and influential U.S. senator. What follows is the retelling of an unusual friendship between two men, and their unyielding fight for justice.

This film holds the honor of being the very first film that starred both John Wayne and James Stewart. Under the direction of John Ford, these two acting juggernauts truly gave an unforgettable performance.

9

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Image: JosephHershMedia

Nowadays, the subgenre of a buddy film seems almost exclusively reserved for cop movies: Think about movies like "Lethal Weapon" or "Bad Boys". However, the 1969 Western "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" is an outstanding addition to the buddy film subgenre, since it focuses on the adventures of this iconic gunslinging duo.

The movie describes the adventures of these two train robbers, wonderfully portrayed by Robert Redford and Paul Newman, who are trying to escape the law and flee to South America. It was awarded for Oscars, including "Best Story" and "Best Cinematography".

10

Unforgiven

Image: Karsten Winegeart

Besides avenging a loved one or escaping a corrupt sheriff, another powerful staple of the Western genre is the repentant outlaw trying to make amends with his past. In that sense, Clint Eastwood’s 1992 film "Unforgiven" combines both classic elements of the genre, while still providing a refreshing and innovative perspective.

The movie tells the tale of William Munny, an aging and retired outlaw who decides to take on one last job. Portrayed by Eastwood , Munny’s adventures take him on a violent path, seeking a cruel and dangerous cowboy named "Quick Mike".

11

The Magnificent Seven

Image: Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦

We’ll finish this list with one of the most innovative and daring entries to the Western genre. John Sturges’ "The Magnificent Seven" is an Old West remake of a Japanese movie, Kurosawa’s "Seven Samurai". Featuring an ensemble of legendary leads like Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen (The "King of Cool" himself!), this iconic film is to this day considered one of the very best Western films of all time.

The story centers around the titular "Magnificent Seven", a group of gunfighters hired to protect a small Mexican village from a group of bandits led by Eri Wallach, another heavy-hitter of the Western genre. It received an Academy Award for Best Score, and it was included in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.