Note - Sorry that my photos for this article are much lower quality than usual as I haven’t brought my camera to Fairmont Hot Springs yet and so had to go with phone photos

Overview

The first thing I want to clarify is that this is a review of Fairmont Hot Springs Resort in British Columbia (Canada) as there is also a Fairmont Hot Springs in Montana. We first started going to Fairmont Hot Springs at the invitation of friends when Jasper was two and a half and Freya was just 6 months old. Our only hot spring experience with a kiddo prior to that had been in Iceland with Jasper when he was a year old and hadn’t done research on Fairmont in advance so didn’t know what to expect. What we found was a very family friendly experience at Canada’s largest natural mineral hot springs, in a beautiful mountainous setting to boot. We’ve gone four times now with our kids so decided it was time to write a review for other parents considering visiting with small children!

Accommodations

While you can just pay for a day pass to use the open to the public pools at Fairmont Hot Springs and stay elsewhere, most guests opt to stay in the lodge, cabins, or RV park at the hot springs for ease and the ability to use the pools as much as you want. This is what we’ve done each time we’ve stayed and have tried out both their basic double queen rooms and their kitchenette rooms. The kitchenette rooms come with an adequate amount of dishes, a stove, sink, mini fridge, dishwasher, and dining table, which is pretty handy for making meals for a family. This is especially true if you have toddlers in tow that can make it difficult to eat out, or you’re on a budget so want to make your own food. That said, we stayed in a non-kitchenette room on our last trip and were still able to eat in our room as it does have a refrigerator. What it didn’t have, which we were counting on, was a microwave! Fortunately, there was a microwave in the lobby by the elevator on our floor, so we were able to walk down there to make quesadillas etc. A bit annoying but doable, so keep that in mind. If you want to swing the other way and have a more luxurious stay with your family, you can book one of the family rooms with three queen beds, one of which is in a separate loft area if you want some space/privacy from your kids. Something to note about all the rooms at Fairmont Hot Springs (and honestly just the entire place) is that they are very dated and a bit shabby. When you’re paying around $200 a night you generally expect something much nicer, but what you’re really paying for I guess is unlimited access to the hot springs and other amenities around the resort. One of our friends has been coming to Fairmont Hot Springs with her family since she was a kid and says everything still looks exactly the same!

Good to know - Instead of hauling your pack n play from home if your baby or toddler still sleeps in one, ask for one from the hotel, which they provide free of charge. I’ve asked for this service both in advance and just at check-in and they’ve been able to give us one each time, so they must have quite a few. I will say that during our last stay it was a pretty shabby pack n play missing one of the boards in the little mattress part that goes across the bottom but we made it work! They also don’t come with “proper” mattresses so you’ll need to fold up a blanket at the bottom for some padding. We’ve always been able to find an extra blanket in the room (check the drawers in the TV stand as well as we’ve found one there before) to use at the bottom of the pack n play and Freya has slept fine in it. The rooms have very effective blackout curtains so that helps a lot with sleep too!

Most (if not all) of the rooms have balconies so keep that in mind if you have a toddler who’s a big climber and maybe book a ground floor room. We did appreciate the solid rail to at least prevent a slim toddler from squeezing out the slats.

*The kitchenette room with double queen beds*

*The family room with a separate loft - it also has a kitchenette*

*Pack n play provided by Fairmont Hot Springs resort*

*Using the microwave in the lobby by the elevators when we discovered our room didn’t have one!*

*The overall vibe of the entire places is rather dated and shabby*

Laundry Services

If your toddler(s) go through all their clothes in rapid order and you absolutely must do laundry, there is a guest laundromat on level 6 by the elevators, but they’re coin operated at $2.00 per load for both wash and dry, so you’ll need a lot of quarters! A credit card enabled laundry service would be much more useful, but maybe the front desk can make change? Or, you can wash your kiddos clothes by hand in the sink, tub, or shower in your room, which is our usual method!

Dining

There’s three restaurants in the main lodge at Fairmont Hot Springs: Bear’s Paw Bar and Grill, Antlers at the Lodge, and Mountainside Grille. The other two other restaurants are at Fairmont Hot Spring’s ski chalet and golf course. Of the three restaurants at the lodge, we’ve only gone once to the Bear’s Paw Bar and Grill because we always just eat in our room, but it seemed pretty family friendly the time we went with a very casual atmosphere, booths (a favorite of ours with toddlers), a kid’s menu, and things on the adult menu that kids would also enjoy like pizza. I don’t know about the Mountainside Grille, but Antlers at the Lodge also has a kid’s menu. If you don’t want to eat in your room or at the resort, there’s a few restaurants just a couple minutes away including a highly rated Thai restaurant. If coffee is what you’re after as a tired toddler parent, you can get some at the Steamers Cafe right across from the lobby, or drive a few minutes to The Local Coffeehouse if you want an outing. They open early so I went there with our 2-year-old at 7am on our last trip to let the rest of the family sleep in a bit and it was decent. She loved the dancing lights in the faux fire place and they made her a little steamer. Plenty of seating and a bathroom were added bonus points with a little one.

*The kid’s menu at Bear’s Paw Bar and Grill*

The Pools

Fairmont Hot Springs Resort has two pool areas - one moderate sized fairly hot pool right next to the lodge that’s for guests only, and one large pool complex composed of three connected pools of varying temperatures that folks can purchase a day pass to even if they’re not staying at the lodge. Here’s the details for both:

Smaller Guest Only Pool

Closer to the lodge if you’re staying during the winter and having to make a dash to the pool in snow and/or super cold temps
Usually less crowded than the larger pool complex as it’s for guests only
Only one temperature. I couldn’t find the specific temperature anywhere, but I would say it’s moderately hot and feels like a standard hot tub temp
Has two sets of stairs, benches around the edges, and a little island with benches around it that all work depth wise for toddlers to walk around on. The depth in the rest of the pool is swimming depth for toddlers.
Open from 8am-9pm but we were told by staff on our last visit that it’s adult only from 8pm-9pm.

Large Swim Complex

Composed of three connected pools. The hot soaking pool is 102F, the large swimming pool is 89F, and the deep diving pool is 86F. This range of temperatures ensures that you can have a safe and fun visit even with an infant. During our visits in the fall and winter, we found the 89F swimming pool to be a bit chilly, but our toddlers loved it and played for extended periods of time without any shivering noted. We warmed up in between with dips in the hot soaking pool and they didn’t seem to find it too hot.
Perfect for toddlers as large sections of both the swimming and hot soaking pool are just 1.5ft (0.5 meters) in depth. Our 2-year-old and 4-year-old were both able to walk around on their own in these shallow areas. There are also bench seats all the way around the swimming and soaking pool and a fun little island with a cold water fountain and seating in the hot soaking pool. Lastly, both the swimming and soaking pools have ramps with handrails leading into the water that provides a super shallow place for even the very littlest kids to splash and play. Super awesome.
Also open from 8am-9pm

Good to know - There are men’s and women’s locker rooms with changing areas, showers, and bathrooms at the big pool complex with a changing table in the women’s locker. There might be one in the men’s too, but I forgot to have Justin check. There is not a bathroom at the smaller guest pool so keep that in mind if you decide to swim there with your little ones.

There haven’t been any lifeguards on duty at any of the pools when we’ve visited in the fall and winter, but there are lifeguard chairs at the big pool complex so maybe they have them in the summer? There are posted signs saying no lifeguard on duty but they were just zip tied in place so as mentioned above may be season dependent. Regardless, keep a close eye on your kiddos, especially since the big pool complex is so large and often full of kids so it can be easy to suddenly loose site of your kid unless you stay right with them. They do have some safety rescue device and a rack of loaner life jackets in toddler to preschool sizes, which is nice.

Good to know - There is a rack of loaner life jackets for little ones at the big pool complex, but if a life jacket is a must for your kiddo, don’t count on one being available depending on how busy the time is that you visit the pool. There have been times we’ve been there when every loaner life jacket is in use or there are just a couple life jackets left that might not be the right size for your kiddo.

One of the things that’s really fun about the pools at Fairmont Hot Springs is that they are very family friendly and pool toys are allowed! As such, we always bring some little cups and matchbox type cars that Jasper and Freya love playing with in the water. Goggles and diving toys are also popular with slightly older kids. The one thing that’s not allowed is inflatables and I’ve never seen pool noodles either so suspect that they are also not allowed.

Good to know - Toys are allowed in pools so plan to bring some for your kids if they’d enjoy that. Leave your floaties at home though as inflatables are not allowed in any of the pools.

*Note that lockers are not free, so most people just pile their things on the benches or ground around the perimeter of the pools*

*Changing table in the women’s locker room*

*The smaller guest only pool. Photo credit: Fairmont Hot Springs Resort*

*Enjoying playing on the shallow steps in the guest only pool*

*Depth of the bench seats. Our kiddos are average height and are ages 1 and 3 in this photo.*

The big pool complex. The pool with the island is the hottest soaking pool, the largest pool is the 89F swimming pool, and the smallest pool is the coolest temp diving pool. Photo credit: Fairmont Hot Springs Resort

Swimming in the big pool complex. You can see that all the pools are connected, which is nice for parents as you can sit in the hot pool and still be within arms reach of your little ones in the cooler swimming pool.

*Very nice shallow areas for little ones at just 1.5ft*

*Our 4-year-old (average height for his age) in the 1.5ft shallow area. You can see that it really is very shallow and great for toddler/preschool age kids to enjoy with some autonomy.*

Playing around on one of the super shallow ramps into the pools. While you obviously can’t block off the ramps for access to the pools, they do make for a great play area for babies and very young toddlers.

*Driving a car around in the pool. It’s really fun that toys are allowed in the pools! We do keep toys to a minimum though so as not to annoy other guests.*

*The height of the bench seats on our kiddos ages 2 and 4*

*Wonderful views of the mountains from the pools!*

*Love all that steam rising off the pools in the mornings and winter*

Other Toddler Friendly Activities

When you get tired of swimming, there are a number of other toddler friendly activities you can do that are included in the resort fees. These include exploring the sprawling grounds, visiting the two playgrounds, going for an easy hike, or playing mini golf. The grounds have some fun things for kids like a giant Adirondack chair they can climb in and a sign with cutouts they can take a picture in. Our toddlers also loved playing in the sand at the volleyball court! Make stops at the playgrounds while you’re out exploring. The first one is right by the lobby where you first drive in while the other one is across the bridge by the big pool complex in the RV park. Both are decent sized and plenty fun for toddlers, but we did note that the one in the RV park was a little tired with lots of repairs made with tape on the baby swings. You can take a short hike through the woods on one of several marked loops from near the RV park, but I will say that hikes we’ve done at trails in the valley near the hot springs have been much prettier. You can take a fun (very short) hike from the parking lot up to the old bath house above the resort and then just a bit beyond it up to a natural rock pool with warm mineral water and great views. Last but not least, grab some golf clubs and balls from the front desk and spend some time on the 18 hole mini golf course. It’s not amazing but not bad either and takes quite a bit of time to get through. Our kiddos loved hitting balls around it and since access to it is included in the resort fees, you can play as many times as you want.

*Exploring the sprawling grounds. Lots of space for toddlers to run and play.*

*Jasper enjoying taking pictures around the grounds*

*Playing in the sand at the volleyball court*

*The first playground at Fairmont Hot Springs located by the lobby*

*A little tired - repairs made with tape*

*The neat natural warm pool a short hike from the parking lot for the resort*

Packing Suggestions

We’re all about light travel so don’t bring much for our visits to Fairmont Hot Springs. That said, these are our top recommendations if you’re visiting with toddlers:

One set of swimwear for the kiddos and two sets for mom and dad. We’ve found that the kids swimwear dries out pretty fast in between swims draped near the heater in the room and if they’re still a little damp the kids don’t mind. Having a dry swimsuit for myself though is pretty dang nice since I hate climbing into a freezing cold wet swimsuit. Totally a personal preference tip though!
Swim diapers if any of your kiddos are 3-years-old or under as this is a requirement to swim in the pools.
Bathrobes for your kids in the fall and winter. There are two adult robes in each room, but having a bathrobe for your kiddos to help with the cold going to and from the pools is helpful. Obviously not a must as you can always bundle them in towels, but bathrobes are warmer when we’ve been there in the winter and the temps are well below freezing!
Water toys. Since toys are allowed at the pools, we always bring a few little things to play with like matchbox cars (since our kids want to play with cars everywhere!) and some little cups or pots for pretending to cook, float as boats, carry water around etc. We’ve noticed a lot of families bring goggles and diving toys.
Some extra bedding if you’re going to use a Fairmont Hot Spring’s pack n play as they don’t have a real mattress in the bottom, so you’ll want to pad it. If you’re in a double room and no one will be using the second bed, you can use that blanket, but if you have a kiddo sleeping in that bed like us, then you’ll only find one extra blanket in your room (usually in the closet or in a drawer in the TV stand) to pad the pack n play and will probably want another blanket from home for your little one to actually sleep under.
White noise maker. Because it’s a family friendly place there are always lots of little kids so hearing crying kids at night is pretty common. The insulation between rooms is pretty good so it’s not usually very loud and can be drowned out with a noise maker :)

Good to know - Swim diapers are required for all children ages 3 and under so plan to bring some for your little ones who meet that requirement. If you forget, you can ask for one from the ticket desk at the large pool complex, but I assume you have to pay for that so best to bring your own.

*We like bringing bathrobes for our kiddos for going to and from the pools if the weather is going to be cold*

Final Thoughts

Fairmont Hot Springs is a great choice if you want to visit a hot springs with toddlers or even a baby and we clearly think it’s worth it since we’ve visited so many times! The variety of pool temperatures, shallow areas, bench seats, loaner life jackets, readily accessible bathrooms (in the large pool complex) and ability to bring pool toys all make it a very family friendly place. Plus, the area is beautiful so you can do a lot more than just swim if you want with hiking, biking, and lake adventures nearby. If you choose to stay at Fairmont Hot Springs Resort, you can also enjoy kid friendly amenities like mini golf and a couple of playgrounds or even ski at their little resort in the winter if your kids are big enough. Our one complaint is that the lodge itself is very dated and rather shabby for the price. Time for a renovation Fairmont Hot Springs!

Have you been to Fairmont Hot Springs with kids and have something to add? We and our readers would love to hear it. Leave us a comment!

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