USA TODAY 10Best
Go for a therapeutic soak at the 10 best hot springs in the US
Best Hot Springs (2024)
Soaking in hot springs can help boost blood circulation, reduce stress, and alleviate skin conditions — often while you enjoy the view of majestic natural backdrops. To find the top spots for a therapeutic dip, a panel of travel experts nominated their top picks, then readers voted for their favorites over a period of four weeks. Here are the 10 best hot springs across the country.
- Moccasin Springs Natural Mineral Spa - Hot Springs, South Dakota
- The Spa at Séc-he - Palm Springs, California
- Yellowstone Hot Springs Resort - Gardiner, Montana
- Glenwood Hot Springs Resort - Glenwood Springs, Colorado
- Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort & Spa - San Luis Obispo, California
- Breitenbush Hot Springs - Detroit, Oregon
- Glen Ivy Hot Springs - Temescal Valley, California
- Iron Mountain Hot Springs - Glenwood Springs, Colorado
- The Springs Resort - Pagosa Springs, Colorado
- Warm Springs Pools at The Omni Homestead Resort - Hot Springs, Virginia
Photo courtesy of brazzo / iStock / Getty Images Plus
No. 10:
Six outdoor pools range in temperature from about 80 to 105 degrees Fahrenheit at Moccasin Springs Natural Mineral Springs Spa in southwest South Dakota. Open year-round to day visitors, this property also has an on-site spa offering treatments ranging from Swedish and deep tissue massage to craniosacral therapy and reiki.
Photo courtesy of The Spa at Séc-he
No. 9:
The Spa at Séc-he, owned by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, has 22 private indoor mineral baths, where day spa guests can fully relax and soak in the nude if they choose. Other impressive amenities include aromatherapy showers, a eucalyptus steam room, and a menthol inhalation sauna with a cold experience shower. There's also a 17,000-square-foot pool deck area featuring a main outdoor pool with waterfall and smaller zero-entry mineral pool, where you can sample water yoga.
Photo courtesy of Yellowstone Hot Springs Resort
No. 8:
A main pool, hot plunge, and cold plunge are set on the banks of the Yellowstone River at Yellowstone Hot Springs Resort. Just north of the national park of the same name, this scenic, family-friendly property offers day passes with no reservations necessary. Lodging includes extended-stay suites, year-round cabins, and seasonal tent and RV sites.
Photo courtesy of Glenwood Hot Springs Resort
No. 7:
Families are fans of Glenwood Hot Springs Resort, home to the world's largest outdoor mineral hot springs pool with a bouncy diving board and lap lanes for fitness enthusiasts. Other amenities include twisty waterslides for big kids (and kids at heart), a splash pad, mini waterslides, and a zero-depth shallow pool for pint-sized guests. Visitors also enjoy a hot therapy pool with "bubble chairs" and water sprays for self-massaging tired muscles, as well as Yampah Mineral Baths, with five soaking pools of different temperatures.
Photo courtesy of Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort & Spa
No. 6:
There are a few different ways to "take the waters" at Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort & Spa in Central California. Intimate, open-air hillside hot tubs can be rented by the hour, or if you have a large group, book the Oasis Waterfall Lagoon that can accommodate up to 20 bathers. Every room and suite at the resort has its own balcony or patio hot tub filled with natural mineral water.
Photo courtesy of Zoe Stern Stillinger
No. 5:
For the ultimate in digital detox, schedule a visit to Breitenbush Hot Springs about 110 miles southeast of Portland. The secluded spot set in national forest is totally off the grid with limited electricity and no Wi-Fi or cell service. You can soak in the clothing-optional natural pools and spiral tubs just for the day or stay overnight in rustic accommodations with three vegetarian, buffet-style meals daily.
Photo courtesy of Glen Ivy Hot Springs
No. 4:
With so much to do at Southern California's Glen Ivy Hot Springs, plan to spend the entire day at this special wellness escape. Cover yourself in detoxifying red clay at Club Mud, moisturize skin with a steam in The Grotto, and sample an array of different soaking areas tucked amid lush landscaping, including toasty mineral baths, hot and cold plunge pools, a lap pool, and a social lounge pool.
Photo courtesy of Iron Mountain Hot Springs
No. 3:
Tucked into the banks of the Colorado River, scenic Iron Mountain Hot Springs boasts a whopping 32 soaking pools of varying temperatures, including an adults-only WorldSprings area with mineral content inspired by geothermal waters of Japan, Iceland, Turkey, and other popular hot springs destinations. Visiting with a special partner? Be sure to snap a selfie in the romantic heart-shaped pool. Meanwhile, families like to splash around in the large freshwater pool with waterfalls.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Eassa and Bri Amato
No. 2:
Book a room or suite at The Springs Resort in southwest Colorado and you'll have 24-hour access to 25 mineral pools set at different temperatures, as well as complimentary access to a variety of unique wellness activities, such as aqua yoga and balancing sound immersion. Whether you stay overnight or reserve a day pass, don't miss an invigorating cold plunge in the chilly San Juan River, steps away from the hot pools.
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Photo courtesy of The Omni Homestead Resort
No. 1:
The Warm Springs Pools at The Omni Homestead Resort are located on the site of the country's first-ever spa structure: an octagonal stone basin built in 1761. Today, visitors can step back in time and relax inside the restored 19th-century Ladies' and Gentlemen's bathhouses that have swimsuit-optional, gender-specific soaking times, as well as specific time slots for families and adult co-ed soaks.
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About 10Best Readers' Choice Awards
Nominees are submitted by a panel of experts. 10Best editors narrow the field to select the final set of nominees for the Readers’ Choice Awards. Readers can vote once per category, per day. For any questions or comments, please read the FAQ or email USA TODAY 10Best.
The Experts
Christopher Parr
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Christopher Parr
Christopher Parr is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Pursuitist, one of the world’s most influential luxury lifestyle and travel guides. Named a "Top 10 Luxury Travel Blogger” by USA Today 10Best, Parr has also been selected as the official winner in Luxury Lifestyle Awards’ 2023 list of the “Top 50 Best Luxury Influencers and Bloggers in the World.” In addition to Pursuitist, Christopher is a contributor to numerous travel and luxury publications and TV shows, including being the host of Travel Tuesday on CBS. Follow along on Twitter.
Jacky Runice
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Born in Bucktown (Chicago) when bulletproof was a home safety choice and not a coffee order, Jacky Runice has been knocking around Chicago as a professional print, online and broadcast journalist and editor specializing in separating the riff from the raff in culture, entertainment, food, travel and pure unadulterated fun. Jacky is a member of the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA) and relies on her vast experience and gray matter to produce informative, entertaining content.
Jacky Runice
Born in Bucktown (Chicago) when bulletproof was a home safety choice and not a coffee order, Jacky Runice has been knocking around Chicago as a professional print, online and broadcast journalist and editor specializing in separating the riff from the raff in culture, entertainment, food, travel and pure unadulterated fun. Jacky is a member of the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA) and relies on her vast experience and gray matter to produce informative, entertaining content.
Jamie Davis Smith
Jamie is an attorney, writer and photographer. She... Read More
Jamie is an attorney, writer and photographer. She was born with deeply ingrained wanderlust and has visited 45 countries and counting. She often brings her children along for the adventure and is passing her love of travel on to the next generation. Jamie has written for Insider, Fodor's Travel, Yahoo, the Huffington Post, the Washington Post, Viator and Reviewed among many other publications. Jamie is from Philadelphia and now lives in Washington, DC, where she takes advantage of everything the region has to offer. Jamie can be reached at [email protected] and can be found on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
Jamie Davis Smith
Jamie is an attorney, writer and photographer. She was born with deeply ingrained wanderlust and has visited 45 countries and counting. She often brings her children along for the adventure and is passing her love of travel on to the next generation. Jamie has written for Insider, Fodor's Travel, Yahoo, the Huffington Post, the Washington Post, Viator and Reviewed among many other publications. Jamie is from Philadelphia and now lives in Washington, DC, where she takes advantage of everything the region has to offer. Jamie can be reached at [email protected] and can be found on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
Jean Chen Smith
Jean Chen Smith is a freelance journalist who has... Read More
Jean Chen Smith is a freelance journalist who has been producing content for over 15 years. With a love of travel and storytelling, her intention is to create content to inspire and connect people to places, things, and experiences. Her articles have appeared in AARP, Travel and Leisure, 1859 magazine, Insider Travel, USA Today, Family Vacationist, The Oregonian, SFGATE, weekand.com, and more. When not writing or teaching Pilates at her studio, she enjoys trail running, spending time with her pups Tonka and Paisley, and reading suspense novels.
Jean Chen Smith
Jean Chen Smith is a freelance journalist who has been producing content for over 15 years. With a love of travel and storytelling, her intention is to create content to inspire and connect people to places, things, and experiences. Her articles have appeared in AARP, Travel and Leisure, 1859 magazine, Insider Travel, USA Today, Family Vacationist, The Oregonian, SFGATE, weekand.com, and more. When not writing or teaching Pilates at her studio, she enjoys trail running, spending time with her pups Tonka and Paisley, and reading suspense novels.
Jenny Peters
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Jenny Peters – aka Jet Set Jen – is a Los Angeles-based freelance journalist, editor and party columnist specializing in travel, entertainment, film, food, wine, fashion and the other good things in life. She is a founding/voting member of the Critics Choice Association, who present the Critics’ Choice Awards every January. Her favorite places to be are on the beach in Southern California playing volleyball, scuba diving with the sharks in warm tropical waters or strolling the streets and soaking in the atmosphere of one of the world's great cities (New Orleans and Florence are her favorites).
Jenny Peters
Jenny Peters – aka Jet Set Jen – is a Los Angeles-based freelance journalist, editor and party columnist specializing in travel, entertainment, film, food, wine, fashion and the other good things in life. She is a founding/voting member of the Critics Choice Association, who present the Critics’ Choice Awards every January. Her favorite places to be are on the beach in Southern California playing volleyball, scuba diving with the sharks in warm tropical waters or strolling the streets and soaking in the atmosphere of one of the world's great cities (New Orleans and Florence are her favorites).
Joanne and Tony DiBona
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Katie McElveen
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Writer Katie McElveen began her travel career when a wrong turn on the way to a family vacation took her on an eleven hour odyssey that she thoroughly enjoyed. Today, more than 40 countries later, her work has appeared in Real Simple, Southern Living, Global Traveler, Fodor’s, Virtuoso, Bride’s, Islands, Reader’s Digest, AFAR and other publications.
Katie McElveen
Writer Katie McElveen began her travel career when a wrong turn on the way to a family vacation took her on an eleven hour odyssey that she thoroughly enjoyed. Today, more than 40 countries later, her work has appeared in Real Simple, Southern Living, Global Traveler, Fodor’s, Virtuoso, Bride’s, Islands, Reader’s Digest, AFAR and other publications.
Melissa Curtin
Melisa Curtin is a travel and food writer who has... Read More
Melisa Curtin is a travel and food writer who has documented her globetrotting adventures for over a decade. A Connecticut girl madly in love with California, her work has appeared in Lonely Planet, LA Weekly, Canadian Traveler, AAA, Roadtrippers, JohnnyJet, Travel Awaits, and many southern California print publications. Melissa is always on the hunt for the best local bites and destinations with few tourists, splitting her non-travel time between Malibu and Palm Springs with her husband and ever-growing collection of plants. Traveling around the world at age 20 on Semester at Sea sparked Melissa's desire for learning about other cultures. As a 20+ year educator and new travel advisor with Fora, she inspires others to reach their goals and pursue their travel dreams. Some of her recent favorite jaunts include a Viking river cruise from Paris to Normandy with her mom, truffle hunting in Tuscany, and eating her way through Florence. Get to know the Best of L.A. and California by checking out her website LaLaScoop.com or following the @lalascoop on Instagram.
Melissa Curtin
Melisa Curtin is a travel and food writer who has documented her globetrotting adventures for over a decade. A Connecticut girl madly in love with California, her work has appeared in Lonely Planet, LA Weekly, Canadian Traveler, AAA, Roadtrippers, JohnnyJet, Travel Awaits, and many southern California print publications. Melissa is always on the hunt for the best local bites and destinations with few tourists, splitting her non-travel time between Malibu and Palm Springs with her husband and ever-growing collection of plants. Traveling around the world at age 20 on Semester at Sea sparked Melissa's desire for learning about other cultures. As a 20+ year educator and new travel advisor with Fora, she inspires others to reach their goals and pursue their travel dreams. Some of her recent favorite jaunts include a Viking river cruise from Paris to Normandy with her mom, truffle hunting in Tuscany, and eating her way through Florence. Get to know the Best of L.A. and California by checking out her website LaLaScoop.com or following the @lalascoop on Instagram.
10Best Editors
USA TODAY 10Best provides users with original,... Read More
USA TODAY 10Best provides users with original, unbiased and experiential travel coverage of top attractions, things to see and do, and restaurants for top destinations in the U.S. and around the world.
10Best Editors
USA TODAY 10Best provides users with original, unbiased and experiential travel coverage of top attractions, things to see and do, and restaurants for top destinations in the U.S. and around the world.
