This collection gathers Idaho hot springs known to work well for families: easier access, room to spread out, and water that welcomes kids as well as committed soakers. It mixes developed pools and resorts, where temperatures are managed and facilities are close, with gentle natural springs where families have soaked for years. Every spring is different, so read the listing for depth, temperature and supervision notes before you load the car.
In the unincorporated community of Paradise, near Featherville in Elmore County, Trinity Hot Springs is a private membership club built around one large outdoor pool on Grouse Creek, just off the South Fork Boise River. The pool is fed directly by the spring and kept untreated and chemical free, and the water behind it carries…
Challis Hot Springs is a developed, state-run soak on the Salmon River, about 8 miles east of Challis: two outdoor pools with natural gravel and river-rock bottoms, a riverside campground, and a soaking history that runs back to 1880. If the name is new to you, the place is not. For most of its life…
Some Idaho hot springs take effort to reach. White Arrow Hot Springs takes a reservation for an entire ranch. For the one group that books it, the package is unusual even by Idaho standards: a 7,000 square foot lodge, 330 acres wrapping a natural hot spring, and a story that runs from a polio-era health…
Most Idaho hot springs ask you to share. This one asks you to book the whole place. On Goose Creek between McCall and New Meadows, the Tibbs Family Mountain Retreat is a 10 acre off-grid property where two natural hot springs feed two private pools in the trees above the creek. There is no public…
North of Ketchum on State Highway 75, Easley Hot Springs is a developed, family friendly soaking complex in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area: a full size outdoor swimming pool fed directly by the springs, two soaking tubs overlooking it, and a small general store. The complex sits on Sawtooth National Forest land and is run…
Nat Soo Pah Hot Springs & Campground is a family owned hot springs resort in the high desert farmland south of Twin Falls. It is an old fashioned summer soak: a very large geothermal swimming pool with a waterslide and diving boards, a hotter soaking pool, a hydro jet tub, and a grassy RV park…
Mountain Village Resort’s hot springs in Stanley, Idaho, have grown well beyond the single pool the old listings describe: today there are three soaking tubs along Valley Creek — the long-standing Osprey Hot Spring plus two newer private tubs, Sandhill Crane and Bluebird — all with astounding views of the Sawtooth Mountains, and all soaked by reservation only.
Baumgartner Hot Springs is the Featherville area’s developed soak: a commercial-style concrete pool inside Baumgartner Campground on the South Fork Boise River, about 11 miles east of Featherville in the Sawtooth National Forest. The 101°F water is piped into a 15×20-foot concrete pool with steps, a railing, and filters — and it is drained, cleaned, and refilled every morning during the season. Usage is extreme and families pack it; the standing local advice is simple: soak early.
Sunbeam Hot Springs is a set of riverside, rock-walled pools just off Highway 75 near Sunbeam, Idaho, below the historic Sunbeam bathhouse on the Salmon River. It’s one of the most popular public soaks in the Stanley area — heavy use, extreme in summer — and one of the rare non-commercial hot springs with a restroom and changing room.
Banbury Hot Springs near Buhl, Idaho, is now owned by Miracle Hot Springs and reopened in 2026, offering a large general pool, individual private pools and lodging.
Indian Springs Resort & RV is a commercial hot springs resort and campground in American Falls, Idaho, centered on “The Nat,” a historic pool with slides and a jumping board, open seasonally from May 9 to September 22. Swim prices run $9.50–$11.50 for ages 12+, and tent, RV, and car camping are open year-round.
Bear River Hot Springs (formerly Riverdale Resort) is a year-round natural mineral hot springs resort five miles north of Preston, Idaho, with four pools including a hot tub and a therapy pool. Lodging includes an 8-room hotel with in-room jetted Jacuzzi tubs, plus cabins, RV sites, and camping at 3696 N 1600 E, Preston.
Lava Hot Springs Inn & Spa is a historic inn in downtown Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, with 6 outdoor mineral pools ranging from 94 to 107°F plus a 44° cold plunge pool. Public soaking passes are $15 with pools open daily 7 AM to 11 PM, and lodging includes a full hot buffet breakfast.
Downata Hot Springs is a family-run resort south of Downey in South-East Idaho, built around a natural hot spring flowing at about 109 degrees. Its 300,000-gallon recreation pool with slides, quieter hot soaking pools, restaurant, spa, and campground make it a full-service stop.
Epic Hot Springs (formerly Bear Lake Hot Springs) is a beachside soak on North Beach at Bear Lake near St. Charles, Idaho, with two shallow outdoor pools held at about 103°F and lake beach access included with admission. It is open daily in summer and closed for the winter season; rates are not published online, so call (208) 242-8589 before visiting.
The Lava Hotel & Spa (formerly Aura Soma Lava Hot Springs) in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, has a large hot springs soaking pool open daily from 8:00 AM to 11:00 PM for overnight guests. Lodging spans 5 rental homes — 3 with private natural mineral pools — and 2 motels, with a conference center, the on-site Lava Spa, and Liège waffles at Lava Waffle in the lobby.
Sharkey Hot Springs is a BLM-managed soaking site just off Highway 93 near Baker, south of Salmon, Idaho, with two deep concrete pools, changing rooms, and picnic facilities. Visitors aged 16 and older need a Sharkey Hot Springs Pass from Recreation.gov.
Snake Pit Hot Springs is a small, primitive natural hot spring on the edge of Stanley, Idaho, near Valley Creek. Its single silty-bottomed pool is free to soak in, with no facilities, in the shadow of the Sawtooth Mountains.
Zims Hot Springs is a Nez Perce Tribe-operated hot springs a few miles outside New Meadows, Idaho, with outdoor mineral pools fed by an artesian well — a small pool at 100–105°F and a large pool at 90–100°F. Day use is $13 for adults, $8 for children, and $10 for seniors, with RV parking and camping on site.
Boiling Springs Hot Springs sits beside the historic Boiling Springs Guard Station at the end of a forest road north of Crouch, Idaho, in the Boise National Forest. Its rock-walled pools are fed by one of the most powerful geothermal sources in the Garden Valley backcountry.
Twin Springs Resort is a rustic, off-grid hot springs resort on the Middle Fork of the Boise River northeast of Boise, established in 1898. Riverfront cabins from $160 per night each have a private hot tub, with a shared sauna for guests.
Silver Creek Plunge is a remote mountain hot springs resort in the Boise National Forest north of Crouch, Idaho, built around a large geothermal pool kept near 100°F. Cabins, A-frames and campsites make it a Garden Valley base camp; day swim is $15 for adults.
Gold Fork Hot Springs is a commercial hot springs near Donnelly, Idaho, with 6 natural mineral pools — including a soft white-sand-bottom pool — fed by alkaline, lithium-rich water. Admission is $15 per person (cash only, 2-hour maximum stay); open year-round, closed Tuesdays.
Bonneville Hot Springs is a natural hot springs in the Boise National Forest, 19 miles southeast of Lowman, Idaho, reached by a 0.25-mile trail along Warm Springs Creek. User-built rock-walled pools and a private soak shack with a cast-iron bathtub sit below the Bonneville Campground.
