Frequently Asked Questions

PRIVATE HOT SPRINGS | HALCYON, BRITISH COLUMBIA

Answer: yes there is for all www.privatehotsprings.com properties.

Minimum 3 night rental.   $325 plus tax per night plus tax for two people,  $30 plus tax per additional persons, tax is 15%. We give priority to 3 nights.  We will try to accommodate 2 night bookings once all 3 night bookings are booked for the year however a $85 cleaning fee applies if booking for 2 nights.

 

We can accomodates  2 night stay at www.kootenayhotsprings.com

Infinity Hot Springs Escape Cottage and Winter Escapes Chalet has a wood stove and in-floor heating and Mountain Bear Hot Springs Chalet does not but Mountain Bear Hot Springs Chalet has radiant in-floor heating.

 A propane fire pit is availalbe at the Hotsprings Escape with Infinity Pool.  If you like to use this feature, please ensure to bring own propane tank.

It is $325 plus tax (15%) Plus $30 plus tax a person after two people. Min 3 nights. If we can accommodate two nights we apply a 85.00 cleaning fee.  If booking for 3 nights we waive the cleaning fee charge.

Answer: cancel before 14 days and receive a full refund, cancel before 7 days 50% refund, 25% before 2 days notice. It is also in the contract.

To initiate your booking, simply drop us an email with your preferred dates. We'll promptly send you an edocusign for your signature, and upon receiving your e-transfer within 24 hours at [email protected], we'll provide you with confirmation details. Kindly note that a booking is considered confirmed only upon receipt of both the agreement and full payment.

Answer: No but our sister property kootenayhotsprings.com has lake access and beautiful Trails on the property as well as around the area.  Its a 5 minute walking distance between Kootenay Chalets and Private Hotsprings Infinity Cottage.

Answer: No there are no fire pits and usually there is a fire ban around the area. The hot springs and the incredible views well be so worth it! We promise!

Answer: yes the hot tub is piped directly from the mountain to our pool. There are 30+ balanced minerals and low sulfur.  

Answer: No there is no chlorine in the water.  The water is always flowing with fresh water with low sulfur.

Answer: you can however we hardly have any cancellations.  We are managing and booking kootenayhotsprings.com, our sister private hotsprings property.  Check out the website and let us know if you like to book those beautiful chalets.  

For the infinity cottage, please plan ahead, we are usually take bookings 3 months in advance.

Answer: Kindly access the website to obtain printable directions, as there is no cell data available at the location, but WIFI is accessible. When traveling from Kelowna, you'll find us just beyond the Revelstoke ferry. Should you pass Halcyon hot springs or Halcyon Point Estates (that is not us) you've gone too far. Make a right turn onto Burnham Rd, and another right when you reach the tree with signs - Google Maps recognizes this as Butnham Rd.

Answer: It is a 20 minute drive on Hwy 23 from our cottage to the entrance of halfway hotsprings.  Its a great hike to see the natural hotsprings.

Located in the pristine mountains bordering Upper Arrow Lake, Halcyon Hot Springs has had a colorful history full of hope, healing, aspirations, and relaxation. First utilized b the native people, it was fought over, made peace over, and then bought by a pioneer individual, Capt. Sanderson, who built it to grandeur. A health retreat, a party place, Halcyon Hot Springs Hotel was a popular destination from the 1890’s to the 1950’s when it burned to the ground. The springs itself remain gathering place for people of all kinds from all walks of life.

According to some sources, native peoples camped near the flow and dug pools to soak in for the healing of the aged and infirm, while others hunted and gathered in the forest. Battles were fought over the springs whenever one group or tribe attempted to dominate or claim them. After one hostile encounter between Kootenai and Colville Tribes, the chief negotiated a peace agreement, and to endorse it, warriors fired many arrows into rock crevices by the lake, which were visible to the white men who later passed by. It is said that this is how the Arrow Lakes received the name that is known by to this day.

It was a native who showed Capt. Robert Sanderson the springs. Sanderson as a university educated mechanical engineer who moved to the area in 1855. In 1888, he and others built the second steamship to the Arrowhead settlement which carried supplies to the settlement as well as transporting supplies from the mill to other areas.

Ed Picard, a long-time resident of Nakusp, along with two other men were travelling by boat from Revelstoke to Nelson in 1887 when they found the hot springs quite by accident. The men camped on the beach and one of them, in search of a bed, found hot mineral waters. All three men climbed the hill finding a well beaten deer track, which they followed for a short distance. They found a name carved on a tree – John Raynold. There was also another name carved on the tree that was forgotten by Mr. Picard.

The springs were not staked until two years later Sanderson, who bargained with the Indians for their rights. The solarium was originally built by Robert Sanderson, Bruce Craddock and Nate Lay, and was known as the B.A.C. Company. Eighty thousand dollars was put into this venture, the company having acquired controlling interest. In addition to the solarium, a bottling works was erected in 1898. The water of the springs was proven to be six times stronger in Lithia than any other springs in America. At this time, large orders were being received from London, England, and other places for this excellent curative water. In 1897, Sanderson and his new partner, Nathan Lay, solid Halcyon Hot Springs Sanitarium Company Ltd. And proceeded to expand the facilities.

As soon as the building was completed, Govener and Mrs. Mackintosh purchased the sanitarium and all land titles in the hot springs area. They were the first proprietors and built the Swiss cottages in the rear as an additional attraction to the visitors wishing to have separate quarters. The immediate frontage of the sanitarium lawn was also built up and buttressed with log walls. At this time, an appeal was made to the provincial government for a wharf, which was readily assented to and Halcyon was on the map being a twice-daily port of call for the CPR lake steamships, which continued to call there regularly, as long as it operated. The new owners were connected to connected to the CPR and plans were laid to make Halcyon a world class resort, one of five major attractions to be serviced by CPR steamships and rail. World War One changed things however, and attention eventually shifted to Banff and Lake Louise.

W.C. Husband was the first manager of the solarium in 1898-99, followed by Mr. and Mrs. Bill Boyd. In more recent times it was owned and operated by Brigadier General F.E. Burnham who came to the Arrow Lakes in March 1924. For a number of years, it was under the famous White Gross Society, but with the advent of the Hospital Insurance, a change was made.

Under Brett and McPherson, Halcyon, although still renowned for its healing waters, also became an up-market place to party for miners, hunters and CPR men and travelers. A bar-room located out of earshot from the hotel saw many all-night parties with heavy drinking and gambling. The hotel boasted all the latest conveniences and luxuries of its time, attracting everyone from the wealthy to the working class. Great balls were held with live music and fancy dress, Halcyon Hotel, set in the fresh wilderness of the mountains, was alive with adventures, pioneers and travelers.

The Halcyon cemetery is situated about half way between the sanitarium and the Hot Sulphur Spring in a northerly direction. Here is the resting place of several Upper Lake pioneers including Capt. Robert Sanderson and Adelaid Blondin.

Things changed when General Frederick Burnham bought Halcyon in 1924. The drinking and partying ended and an emphasis on healing began, Burnham, a member of the White Cross Society, was a medical doctor who was well known overseas. He allowed no smoking or drinking and shut down the bar-room. Burnham believed in cleanliness, charity and healthy living. Though he didn’t pay his staff well, he also never raised the hotel’s rates, believing that if the rates were put up, then only the rich would be able to afford extended stays and “God put the water here for all mankind, not just the rich…”

Burnham rarely charged for his medical services, and because of the minimal revenue generated by the hotel, ended up doing much of the work himself. Halcyon gained an international reputation as a place of healing. The bottling works shipped water everywhere, the Workman’s Compensation Board sent miners there to sweat out the lead metal. A room was quickly filled with crutches and wheelchairs from people who no longer needed them when they left. Advertised to cure nervous and muscular disorders, liver, kidney, and stomach ailments, Halcyon claimed to have the most complete health resort on the continent. Doctors and attendants were on hand at the pools. The Lithia content of the water is unsurpassed by any known spring and besides being natural relaxant, was thought to help purify the blood. One man who ran the general store at Halcyon claimed that the water caused his hair to grow back.

Over the years, quite a variety of animals were to be found at Halcyon, including caribou, monkeys, canaries, peacocks, chickens, goats, a pet bear, goldfish and a donkey. The pet bear cub, Joe, was the bear used on the bottled water label after he was given a bottle of it and promptly tipped it up and drained it! There was a thriving poultry business here for a while, supplying Halcyon and the CPR steamers. The goats were milked, the donkey pulled a cart from the dock to the hotel, and the goldfish added lively color to the ponds. Besides the hotel, cottage, bar-room, general store and bottling, works, there was also a staff and laundry house, a boiler house, lawn tennis grounds, and may trails. The trails around Halcyon were sometimes closed early in the morning, as General Burnham, to quote an old newspaper article “runs naked on the trails to harden himself…” It seems Burnham may have begun the clothing tradition at Halcyon, for he allowed no bathing trunks in his pools, believing it interfered in the heating process. The two pools were segregated, of course, one for males and one for females.

The hotel changed little from 1924 to 1955. When his wife Anne died in 1945, the general built a small shrine beside her grave, his private chapel to rest and reflect.

Halcyon Hot Springs burned to the ground on February 19, 1955, taking the old general with it. Most of the other buildings survived, until the raising of the lakes in 1960. All that survived into the 1980’s was the little chapel and grave beside it. Beset by fire and water, Halcyon Hot Springs Hotel became dormant.

The magic of Halcyon’s mineral water continued to make it a gathering place to soak away tension and aches and pains, even after the hotel was gone. Outdoor tubs were placed together by many different users.

 

Halcyon has inspired many poems, including these lines written by Frances A Gage: “Midst towering trees of lofty green, Halcyon Hot Springs stands serene. The song of birds, the roar of waterfalls Halcyon beckons, Halcyon calls.”

 

 

Hot springs are a rich source of sulfur and its healing benefits include improving circulation, treat skin infections, reduce stress, detoxify, reduces pain, promotes healing, and improving the immune system.  Soaking repeatedly in hotsprings helps normalize your endocrine system and releases toxins in your body through sweating.

Booking & Contact

HALCYON, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA

Request A Booking

Email Us

[email protected]

To reserve, you can either send us an email or complete the booking inquiry form on your left. It's important to understand that this isn't a reservation calendar, but a way to indicate the dates you're interested in. If your requested dates are available, we'll send you an electronic document to sign and return. Following that, you'll receive an invoice for payment, which can be settled via electronic transfer. Your booking is confirmed once we receive both the signed document and payment. Please be aware that we do not hold dates without completed booking procedures.

The Rates

$325+tax for 2 people, and $30+tax for each additional person. Tax is 15%. 3 night min for all infinity pool properties. A 25.00 cleaning fee applies.

Give Us A Call

250-448-6111

Our Address

Burnham Road, Nakusp, British Columbia
(turn into Halcyon Resort and drive 2 minutes north)

Please see directions page for details.  We are on the same street as Halcyon Hotsprings Resort.  If you are coming from the Revelstoke ferry on Hwy 23, you will see a black and white sign that says, www.privatehotsprings.com and Kootenayhotsprings.com.  Turn right down Burnham Rd. At the fork turn left to Kootenay hotsprings properties (www.kootenayhotsprings.com) or turn right for Private hotsprings properties. (www.privatehotsprings.com)                

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com//privatehotspringscom

Instagram

@privatehotspringscombc