Hot Lake Springs Resort

What to expect

Hot Lake is exactly what the name says: a steaming lake in the Grande Ronde Valley, fed by what is described as the largest hot spring in Oregon. Up to two million gallons of mineral water a day come out of the ground at about 186°F86°C. Beside it stands a long three-story brick building from 1906 that has been a hotel, a sanatorium, a hospital and a nursing home, then sat empty and vandalized for more than a decade. Today it is a hotel again, run as Hot Lake Springs Resort.

The soaking area is outdoors along the lakeshore. There are nine communal pools: round tubs that seat six to eight people, square ones for about six, and two larger pools (the historic brick pool and a rock pool) that hold eight to ten. The source is far too hot to touch, so the water is cooled before it reaches the pools, and each one is set to a slightly different temperature. The resort does not publish pool temperatures, so try a few and settle where you are comfortable. At the far end there is a cold plunge for one person, kept at about 40 to 45°F4 to 7°C.

The resort asks for quiet: low voices and no music in the soaking area. It is not a party pool. On cold days steam rolls off the lake, and the lodge looks out toward the mountains that ring the Grande Ronde Valley.

Inside the lodge there is the Thermal Pub & Eatery for food, local beer and lake views, a 60-seat movie theater with evening films Thursday to Sunday, a gift shop, and restored rooms and suites upstairs.

Getting there

The resort is at 66172 Highway 203, La Grande, OR 97850, about eight miles south of downtown La Grande on the road toward Union. From I-84 at La Grande, follow OR-203 out across the valley. The road is paved all the way, there is a parking lot by the lodge, and the pools are a short walk from the front desk.

Check in at the front desk as soon as you arrive. Day soakers are checked in against their reservation, and once you leave the soaking area you cannot come back in on the same pass.

One practical warning: the resort’s old web address now belongs to an unrelated business. Use hotlakespringsresort.com or call (541) 226-3944 to book.

When to go

The pools are open year-round, and cold months are the best time to come. Snow on the valley floor and steam over the lake make a winter soak memorable.

Weekdays are cheaper and quieter. Monday to Thursday is $20 and Friday to Sunday is $29. Throughout 2026, Wednesdays are two-for-one when you book for two.

The resort can close the pools at short notice for lightning, power outages or other problems, and it says so plainly. If you are driving a long way in stormy weather, call first.

Prices and booking

• Day soak: $20 Monday to Thursday, $29 Friday to Sunday (2026). Hours are 8 AM to 8 PM daily.
• Reservations: Required for day use. A credit card holds the booking but is not charged until check-in. Changes or cancellations within 12 hours can cost 50% and no-shows pay in full. Each person in a group should book separately, because the full rate applies for anyone who does not show.
• Lateness: Arrive within 15 minutes of your booked time or the slot may be cancelled.
• Age rules: You must be 18 with ID to book. Ages 12 to 17 must have an adult with them in the soaking area. Children 11 and under are not allowed in the soaking area and cannot be left alone elsewhere on the property.
• Swimwear: Required in all pools.
• What to bring: A towel or robe (both are sold at the front desk if you forget), shoes for the walk and a sturdy water bottle. There are cold mineral water stations on site.
• Not allowed in the soaking area: Glass, outside food, outside alcohol and pets.
• Gift cards are sold but cannot be used for lodging.

Where to stay nearby

Staying at the lodge is the best way to see the place, since overnight guests soak free and can use the pools around the clock. The lodging page lists 16 rooms and suites, from small queens with shared bathrooms down the hall to two deluxe suites. Room 231 has two king bedrooms and a kitchenette, and room 118 is the ground-floor accessible room with a zero-entry shower. Several rooms have clawfoot tubs. Check-in is 4 to 10 PM and checkout is by noon. Rates are shown only on the booking pages.

Grande Hot Springs RV Resort is just down Hot Lake Lane under the same owner. It has about 100 RV sites, tent sites, two yurts with private hot tubs and a tiny home. Its soaking pools are for registered guests only and run in spring, summer and fall; the resort says they close on October 3, 2026 for winter upgrades, while the yurt tubs stay open year-round.

La Grande, about eight miles away, has chain motels, restaurants and full services along I-84.

Safety notes

• The lake is dangerous. Water at the source is around 186°F86°C. Stay on paths and out of the lake and its runoff.
• Pool heat: Pools vary in temperature. Start in a cooler one, take breaks and drink water. Pregnant soakers and anyone with heart trouble should check with a doctor first.
• Cold plunge: Going straight from hot water into 40°F4°C water is a shock to the system. Ease in.
• Weather: The soaking area is open to wind, and lightning closes the pools. Bring warm layers for the walk back inside.

History

The first building at Hot Lake went up in 1864. Construction of the brick sanatorium began in 1904, and the main wing was finished in 1906. Under Dr. W. T. Phy, who bought it in 1917, it was promoted as “the Mayo Clinic of the West,” a claim local historians say had no real link to the Mayo Clinic. Wikipedia also credits it as the first known commercial building to use geothermal energy as its main heat source. A fire in 1934 destroyed the wooden west end and the bathhouse.

Later the building served as a nursing home, then passed through a string of owners. By 1991 it was abandoned. David Manuel bought it in 2003 and spent years restoring it, opening it for tours in 2005 and later as a bed and breakfast with a museum and bronze foundry. In April 2020 Mike Rysavy, owner of the neighboring RV park, took over, closed the hotel for renovation and reopened it with new pools, the pub and the theater. The hotel and grounds were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.