The hot springs overlook Kootenay Lake at Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort.
I’m floating in a cave, a dark steamy tunnel filled with gently bubbling water, its walls dimly illuminated. At Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort, an Indigenous-owned lodging in the mountains of central British Columbia, you can choose your soaking options, from a large swimming-pool-sized warm pool, to a cold plunge pool, to a cave burbling with mineral springs. You don’t have to stay at the resort to soak in the pools, but combining an overnight stay, a meal or two at the lakeview Ktunaxa Grill, and time to enjoy the hot springs makes a relaxing getaway, particularly as a stopover on a Western Canada road trip.
Here’s the scoop:
The Ktunaxa Nation runs Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort.
Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort
Overlooking Kootenay Lake, between the BC towns of Nelson and Kalso, Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort is owned by the Ktunaxa Nation. The property has two lodging buildings, on opposite ends of the parking lot.
The four-story main structure is older and the rooms simpler, but the springs and restaurant are located here, making it more convenient to access these facilities. The other building, the Yaqan Nukiy Suites, opened in 2018, with updated rooms and suites.
Guest room in the main building at Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort
Guest Rooms and Amenities
In the main building, rooms are comfortable if somewhat generic with white linens and either honey-hued or darker woods. The least expensive units face the back of the property, while the “lakeview” units have vistas across the parking lot to Kootenay Lake and to the mountains on the lake’s eastern shore. The higher-floor rooms have more expansive lake views.
Rooms include a Keurig coffee maker, a tea kettle, and a small refrigerator. Baths are modern, and even the smaller guest rooms have a table and chairs, an armchair, or both.
The 14 units in the two-story Yaqan Nukiy Suites are more contemporary and feature terraces overlooking the lake. Note that this building doesn’t have an elevator, while the main building does.
Dinner with a lake view at Ktunaxa Grill
Ktunaxa Grill
On the 4th floor of the main building, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the resort’s Ktunaxa Grill has windows on two sides of the dining room, with expansive views over the lake. Tables along one wall also look out over the hot springs pools.
Some menu items use traditional Indigenous ingredients from the region — bison, venison, Saskatoon berries. The “mushrooms on toast” is served on toasted bannock (an Indigenous bread) with a mix of local and wild mushrooms, while the meal-sized kale-quinoa salad is topped with dried blueberries, hazelnuts, and goat cheese sourced from the Okanagan Valley, topped with a maple vinaigrette. The restaurant serves burgers, salads, and other standard crowd pleasers, too.
The breakfast menu mixes classic and contemporary dishes as well, from eggs and bacon to corned bison hash to breakfast bannock with mixed berries. If you have a hearty morning appetite, try the pulled pork pancakes — two giant hot cakes with a layer of pork between them and more meat on top, scattered with Saskatoon berries.
Swim into the caves at Ainsworth Hot Springs.
Hot Springs Access
Hotel guests can use the pools whenever they want, during the regular open hours. Robes are provided in the guest rooms, and you can pick up towels at the pools. Lockers in the pool area are free.
While hotel guests have priority access to the hot springs, you can still book a soaking session if you decide not to stay overnight. Check the hot springs website for seasonal hours, prices, and reservation details.
A Road Trip Soaking Stop
If you’re road tripping between the Pacific Coast and Canadian Rockies, Ainsworth Hot Springs is only a short detour, especially if you’re following Highway 3 into the Kootenay-Rockies region across southern British Columbia.
The funky town of Nelson, with its lakeside trails, interesting restaurants, and locally owned shops is 30 miles (50 km) to the south. If you’re continuing east from Ainsworth, take the free Kootenay Lake Ferry across the lake, then follow Highway 3A along the lakeshore, a scenic alternate route that will bring you back to Highway 3.
Or from Ainsworth, drive north through the town of Kaslo, then turn west and north along the shores of Upper Arrow Lake. From here, you can rest-stop at another mineral pool — Halcyon Hot Springs. But that’s a story for another day.
Rates
Double room rates at Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort start at CAD$219 per night (USD$157) in the main building, and CAD$309 (USD$222) in the newer Yaqan Nukiy Suites.
Starting or ending your Western Canada road trip in Calgary? Consider another Indigenous-owned lodging: Grey Eagle Resort.
Hotel feature by Vancouver-based travel, food, and feature writer Carolyn B. Heller. Photos © Carolyn B. Heller. Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism arranged my stay for review purposes, while I was road-tripping across British Columbia, researching a new edition of my guidebook, Moon Vancouver & Canadian Rockies Road Trip.
