Displaying items by tag: Gardiner Montana

Whether you’re looking for a quick dip or a full-on hot spring adventure the North Entrance to Yellowstone features hydrothermal destinations that offer a chance to soak, relax, and enjoy the scenery the area has to offer. The North Entrance community of Gardiner, Montana, offers food, lodging, and other services to go along with your soak. An up-to-date list of businesses that are open after this summer’s flooding can be found in this travel guide. Pack your swimsuit, towel, water bottle, and enjoy the healing waters surrounding the park’s beautiful North Entrance!

Chico Hot Springs Resort & Day Spa

Indoor Showers, Restrooms and Changing Rooms: Yes
Food and Beverage: Yes
Lodging Available: On Site

Famous for its fine dining, soothing mineral waters, and rustic flair, Chico Hot Springs provides a soaking experience for those looking to spend either a day or an entire weekend. The resort—a 30-minute drive from Yellowstone’s North Entrance—was established in 1900 as a hot spring destination but now offers other activities ranging from horseback riding to rafting to fly fishing to dogsledding. Chico features lodging, locally influenced menus, a saloon, a gift store, and a spa where guests can receive a massage or take yoga classes. Bands often play late-night at the saloon. Lodging ranges from affordable, dog-friendly rooms with shared bathrooms in the main building to group cabins to two-person covered wagons. Dining in the main lodge is a culinary experience with fresh herbs and vegetables from Chico’s greenhouses; a more basic, yet delicious, menu of pizzas and sandwiches is offered at the poolside grill and saloon. Day passes are available for those who’d simply like to stop in and take a soak. Two spacious, open-air, developed pools offer guests a chance to either relax in the hot pool or splash and play in the cooler, more kid-friendly pool nearby. The water is chemical-free, drained and refilled daily, and is surrounded by outdoor seating with easy access to changing rooms with toilets, showers, and cubbies and lockers for storing clothes and other items. Perhaps the hallmark of Chico, in addition to its western roots and hospitality, are the soaring, snowcapped Absaroka Mountains that soar over the hot springs and the surrounding Paradise Valley.

Yellowstone Hot Springs RV Park & Campground

Indoor Showers, Restrooms and Changing Rooms: Yes
Food and Beverage: Limited and Restricted
Lodging Available: Nearby in Gardiner, Montana and on-site camping 

Nestled along the banks of the Yellowstone River in Corwin Springs, Montana, a 10-minute drive from the North Entrance to Yellowstone National Park, Yellowstone Hot Springs opened to the public in March 2019. Although a recent addition to the local business community, Yellowstone Hot Springs emerges from a longstanding past of previous hot springs at the location. The new facility features on-site parking, a check-in desk where guests can rent towels and purchase snacks, and spacious, indoor changing rooms with toilets, sinks, and showers. Outdoor walkways from the changing rooms lead guests past picnic tables, seating areas, and a fire ring to a large, developed pool with two smaller, inset circular pools—one hot and one cold. The main pool averages a comfortable 102℉, while the cold pool averages 67℉. The hot pool averages a steamy 104℉. The owners take great pride in the serenity of the location and the mineral-rich quality of the water, which flows from the outskirts of nearby Yellowstone Park; the water is said to contain crystals that closely resemble an experimental photograph that showed crystals from a different water sample that had the Japanese character for love and gratitude written on its container, according to the company website. Pets, alcohol, and smoking are prohibited, although plenty of fresh water is provided for guests. A daytime soak provides the opportunity to view wildlife, while an evening soak provides a star-filled sky.

Whatever destination you choose, enjoy your soak!

Chelsea DeWeese writes from her hometown of Gardiner, Montana, the North Entrance to Yellowstone National Park.