Cold-Country Hospitality

Imagine relaxing in steaming natural mineral hot springs surrounded by mountain peaks, with the snow lightly falling and elk bedding down nearby. For those willing to venture out when the mercury plunges, that’s what you’ll find at Yellowstone Hot Springs, a year-round resort and RV campground nestled in Montana’s Paradise Valley. Just a few miles north of the entrance to Yellowstone National Park, the resort becomes a particularly serene outpost in the winter. 

To hear more, we chatted recently with Norah Fanuzzi at the hot springs about soaking outdoors in the winter months under the Big Sky’s stars.

Wildsam: Why do people visit in the winter?

Norah: It’s mainly locals who stay with us in the winter, so it’s a much quieter and peaceful place than in the summer. We’re only seven miles away from the town of Gardiner, which is the gateway to Yellowstone National Park in the winter months. You can make arrangements to take a snow coach, go snowmobiling or just cross-country ski. An added bonus is it’s cheaper to stay here in the winter.

We are right on the Yellowstone River, and sometimes people just hike up the river on trails. We have elk sitting right in the yard almost every day in the winter, and you can see bison sometimes. Every wild animal that’s in Yellowstone Park is right here, too.

READ MORE: 6 Places You Should Take Your RV This Winter

Tell us a little more about the accommodations.

We have RV sites, but in the winter we don’t have electric or water hookups, so you need to be self-contained. We opened in 2019, and have a lodge with five rooms in it, plus rustic cabins that can accommodate five or six people. We just recently redid the walkways so they’re heated and aren’t slick when people get out of the pools. Admission to the pools is included in the price of a room. The rooms have kitchenettes and we also have a coffee shop. If people want to go to dinner, we encourage them to try the variety of restaurants in Gardiner.

What are the hot springs like?

They are amazing. The water actually comes out of the ground at 140 degrees Fahrenheit, so we have to cool it down. We have one big pool, which we keep around 120 degrees. Then we also have a hot plunge, which is about 106 degrees, and a cold plunge that’s about 62 degrees. When it’s cold outside, the pools are so warm that it actually feels good when you get out!

Our natural geothermal waters have some relaxing minerals, including calcium, magnesium, sulfates, silica and potassium, among others.

RV camping at Yellowstone Hot Springs starts at $69, plus tax. Tent sites also are available, starting at $29. One- or two-bedroom apartment-like suites in the lodge start at $200 in the winter, increasing to about $520 in the summer. The cabins start at $146 in the winter, which increases to about $310 in the summer months.

More adventurous RVers can camp in the U.S. Forest Service campgrounds near the hot springs. The Eagle Creek Campground is two miles northeast of Gardiner, with 20 sites. The Canyon Campground is north of the Yellowstone Hot Springs, with 17 sites. Both limit RV lengths to 48 feet and don’t offer hookups. 

READ MORE: 10 Essential Gear Items for Winter RV Travel