Best Hot Springs in Colorado (2026): The Soaker's Shortlist
69 thermal springs · 68–181°F · 6 counties
Colorado is home to 69 documented thermal springs, making it one of the most geothermally active states in the country. Temperatures range from 68°F to 181°F. Springs are concentrated in Chaffee County, with opportunities across 24 counties statewide.
The Best Hot Springs in Colorado in 2026
10 picks, all with developed pools, checked in October 2026. Fees and hours for 4 of the 10 are confirmed on the operator's or land agency's own pages. Each spring's page links its sources. How we ranked them.
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1. Joyful Journey Hot Springs, best for a winter soak
Listed as Mineral Hot Springs, Saguache County
- Developed pools
- $18 day pass
- Pools 98–108°F
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.5 from 1,338 Google reviews
Mineral Hot Springs, in Saguache County at the northern end of the San Luis Valley, is a thermal spring whose source reading sits right at the line where hot becomes scalding. Saguache is thirteen miles away. OpenStreetMap tags the point as plain Hot Springs. A 1976 chemistry sample is on file. No access and...
Getting there: Hwy 17, 1 mi south of US 285 junction, 28640 CR 58EE, Moffat
Scored 14 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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2. Orvis Hot Springs, best for camping nearby
Listed as Orvis Hot Spring, Ouray County
- Developed pools
- $35 day pass
- Pools 65–112°F
- Year-round
- Short walk
- 4.7 from 2,222 Google reviews
Orvis Hot Spring sits in Ouray County about eight miles from Ouray, off County Road 3. The source water is hot, well above comfortable soaking temperature. OpenStreetMap marks it under the same name and records an entry fee. Ownership and formal access status are blank in the USGS record, which also carries a sample...
Getting there: near Ridgway, Ouray County
Scored 13 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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3. Iron Mountain Hot Springs, best for mineral-rich water
Garfield County, near Glenwood Springs
- Developed pools
- $43 day pass
- Pools 89–108°F
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.4 from 1,396 Tripadvisor reviews
Iron Mountain Hot Springs is a hot springs resort on the banks of the Colorado River in Glenwood Springs, Garfield County, right in town. No temperature is on file for this record, so the page cannot say how hot the pools run. What the 1965 USGS sample does show is extremely salty water, with dissolved solids in the...
Getting there: roadside, east Glenwood Springs
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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4. Ouray Hot Springs Pool, best for a full-service soak
Listed as Ouray Hot Springs, Ouray County
- Developed pools
- $30 day pass
- Pools 95–106°F
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.2 from 679 Tripadvisor reviews
This USGS thermal point in Ouray County sits half a mile out of Ouray and reads scalding at the source. The Wikipedia page linked to the record is for Wiesbaden Hot Springs, a group of three thermal springs and a vapor cave in Ouray, where source water is cooled for soaking pools. A 1976 sample came back near...
Getting there: in town, 1220 Main St
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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5. The Springs Resort & Spa, best for a full-service soak
Listed as Pagosa Hot Springs, Archuleta County
- Developed pools
- $74 day pass
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.7 from 13,482 Google reviews
Pagosa Hot Springs is the hot spring system of the San Juan Basin, Archuleta County, with this point a third of a mile or so from the middle of Pagosa Springs. The Ute name is Pah gosah. The town claims these are the world's deepest known geothermal hot springs. No temperature is on this record, but a 1965 USGS...
Getting there: roadside, downtown
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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6. Sand Dunes Recreation Pool, best for a full-service soak
Listed as Sand Dunes Pool, Saguache County
- Developed pools
- $18 day pass
- Pools 98–102°F
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.5 from 321 Tripadvisor reviews
Sand Dunes Pool is the name on file for a thermal point in Saguache County, about fourteen miles from Center, sitting right beside a road. No temperature is recorded, which leaves the water's warmth an open question. Ownership and access are also blank.
Getting there: roadside, 1991 CR 63 near Hooper
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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7. Strawberry Park Hot Springs, best for a full-service soak
Routt County, near Steamboat Springs
- Developed pools
- $30 day pass
- Year-round
- Roadside
- Reservations required
- 4.4 from 2,411 Tripadvisor reviews
Strawberry Park Hot Springs is a fee site about six miles outside Steamboat Springs, Routt County. OpenStreetMap tags it as a hot spring bath with an entry charge. No temperature is recorded here, and neither is a landowner or a public access status.
Getting there: roadside, gravel road north of Steamboat Springs
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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8. Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa, best for a full-service soak
Listed as Trimble Hot Spr, Stratten Warm Spr, La Plata County
- Developed pools
- $59 day pass
- Year-round
- Roadside
- 4.5 from 2,012 Google reviews
This record carries two names, Trimble Hot Spring and Stratten Warm Spring, and OpenStreetMap labels the point Durango Hot Springs. It sits in La Plata County about nine miles from Durango. The water reads soaking warm, a little below body heat. A 1975 sample shows a heavy mineral load. Owner and access are absent...
Getting there: roadside, north of Durango
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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9. Valley View Hot Springs, best for clothing-optional soaking
Saguache County, near Saguache
- Developed pools
- $20 day pass
- Year-round
- Roadside
- Reservations required
- 4.7 from 892 Google reviews
Valley View Hot Springs sits in Saguache County, nineteen miles from the town of Saguache and high, near 8,850 feet. The water is body temperature, a gentle soak. Landowner and access are blank on file, and chemistry is missing too. The USGS lists it under a site number.
Getting there: Saguache County, north of Villa Grove
Scored 12 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
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10. Avalanche Ranch Hot Springs, best for families
Garfield County, near Carbondale
- Developed pools
- $34 day pass
- Year-round
- Roadside
- Reservations required
- 4.4 from 108 Tripadvisor reviews
Avalanche Ranch Hot Springs is on file for Garfield County, Colorado, ten miles from Carbondale, as a named spring with a 1975 USGS water sample and no temperature reading. The name includes both ranch and hot, and the record has nothing on temperature or ownership. Redstone campground is under four miles away.
Getting there: roadside, Crystal River valley south of Carbondale
Scored 11 of 16. Hours, fees and sources
Side-by-Side Comparison
The same picks on the criteria they were ranked by. Pool temperatures are what visitors sit in, not the temperature at the source.
| # | Spring | Type | Cost | Pools | Season | Access | Reservations | Rating | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joyful Journey Hot Springs | Developed | $18 day pass | 98–108°F | Year-round | Roadside | Unknown | 4.5 (1,338) | 14/16 |
| 2 | Orvis Hot Springs | Developed | $35 day pass | 65–112°F | Year-round | Short walk | Unknown | 4.7 (2,222) | 13/16 |
| 3 | Iron Mountain Hot Springs | Developed | $43 day pass | 89–108°F | Year-round | Roadside | Unknown | 4.4 (1,396) | 12/16 |
| 4 | Ouray Hot Springs Pool | Developed | $30 day pass | 95–106°F | Year-round | Roadside | Not needed | 4.2 (679) | 12/16 |
| 5 | The Springs Resort & Spa | Developed | $74 day pass | Not published | Year-round | Roadside | Unknown | 4.7 (13,482) | 12/16 |
| 6 | Sand Dunes Recreation Pool | Developed | $18 day pass | 98–102°F | Year-round | Roadside | Unknown | 4.5 (321) | 12/16 |
| 7 | Strawberry Park Hot Springs | Developed | $30 day pass | Not published | Year-round | Roadside | Required | 4.4 (2,411) | 12/16 |
| 8 | Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa | Developed | $59 day pass | Not published | Year-round | Roadside | Recommended | 4.5 (2,012) | 12/16 |
| 9 | Valley View Hot Springs | Developed | $20 day pass | Not published | Year-round | Roadside | Required | 4.7 (892) | 12/16 |
| 10 | Avalanche Ranch Hot Springs | Developed | $34 day pass | Not published | Year-round | Roadside | Required | 4.4 (108) | 11/16 |
Which Hot Spring Fits Your Trip
| If you want | Go to | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A winter soak | Joyful Journey Hot Springs | $18 day pass, pools 98–108°F, year-round |
| Families | Avalanche Ranch Hot Springs | $34 day pass, year-round, roadside |
| Camping nearby | Orvis Hot Springs | $35 day pass, pools 65–112°F, year-round |
| Mineral-rich water | Iron Mountain Hot Springs | $43 day pass, pools 89–108°F, year-round |
| Clothing-optional soaking | Valley View Hot Springs | $20 day pass, year-round, roadside |
How We Ranked These Hot Springs
Every spring in Colorado with confirmed visitor details was scored out of 16. Springs that are closed, private, too hot to soak without cooled pools, or whose details we couldn't confirm are left out.
- Visitor rating (up to 4)
- 4 points for 4.5 stars or better from 1,000+ Google or Tripadvisor reviews, 3 for 4.3+ from 300+, 2 for 4.0+ from 100+, 1 for 4.0+ from 25+.
- Soak temperature (up to 3)
- 3 points when the pools reach 100 to 106°F, 2 for 95 to 110°F, 1 for 90 to 112°F. Pool temperatures are the published ones; for wild pools we use the measured spring temperature. Developed pools that don't publish a temperature get 2, since resorts keep their pools in the soaking range.
- Access (up to 3)
- 3 for roadside or a developed site you can drive to, 2 for a short walk, 1 for a hike, 0 for backcountry.
- Cost (up to 2)
- 2 when free or $10 or less. 1 for $10 to $30 a day, or for a parking or permit fee with no listed price. 0 above $30 or when only overnight guests can soak. A day pass with no published price also gets 0.
- Season (up to 2)
- 2 when open year-round, 1 when open part of the year.
- Measured water (up to 1)
- 1 when a lab analysis of the water is on record (pH or dissolved minerals).
- Confirmed details (up to 1)
- 1 when the operator or the land agency publishes the fees and hours.
Colorado Hot Springs Superlatives
Thermal Range Across Colorado
Water Chemistry and Heat Under Colorado's Springs
- 10 slightly acidic
- 8 neutral
- 19 slightly alkaline
- 5 alkaline
42 springs with a pH reading.
- 17 soft
- 2 moderately hard
- 1 hard
- 28 very hard
From calcium and magnesium, at 48 springs.
15 springs with a dissolved minerals reading.
2.0× the US average of 65, under 68 springs.
Hot Springs by County
Hot Springs Near Cities in Colorado
69 Hot Springs in Colorado
Hot springs with camping in Colorado
Highest-elevation hot springs in Colorado
Waterfalls in Colorado
Explore all waterfalls in Colorado on WaterfallHikes.com.