8 unusual accommodation types for your B.C. summer getaway

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Travel Local Travel

From farm stays, yurts, containers to glamping and more

Published Jun 05, 2023 • Last updated 20 minutes ago • 6 minute read

Glamping along the shoreline of Sechelt Inlet at the Backeddy Resort and Marina. Photo by Backeddy Resort

If you’ve been aching to spend more time in nature, there are plenty of places in B.C. to literally expand your horizons — be it in a yurt, a cabin, a wilderness lodge, or even a teepee. Here are eight types of accommodation that offer different ways to immerse yourself in nature.

1. Glamping

The luxury oceanfront tents at Browns Bay Resort just north of Campbell River offer real beds and a living section that opens up onto the deck for barbecues in the ocean breeze.

Located in the mountains above Okanagan Provincial Park, Chute Lake Lodge offers canvas “glam tents” and yurts. Work up an appetite cycling the KVR trail or padding a canoe on the lake and gather around private fire pits for evening s’mores.

The glamping tents at Browns Bay Resort offer an ocean front view. Photo by Browns Bay Resort

Wake up to bird song at Radius Retreat near Radium Hot Springs, where there’s a thousand acres of wilderness to explore. With both hike-in and easily accessible yurts (some with quick entry to trailheads for those with mobility issues), the mountainside location offers dramatic views of the Columbia Wetlands and a peaceful atmosphere that cultivates wellness and creativity.

2. Base camp adventures

Near Telegraph Cove on Vancouver Island, Spirit of the West Adventures operates kayak tours with a chance to see orcas, humpbacks, and bears. At base camp, you can sleep in a tent with a real bed, take a hot shower, and relax in the wood-fired hot tub. Join a scheduled tour or book a private one.

Great River Fishing also offers a teepee experience steps away from the Fraser River. After a day of sturgeon fishing, relax on your water-view deck or wind down next to a crackling fire by the river. With a flap in the teepees that opens to the sky, you can stargaze your way to sleep.

A young family enjoying a stay at the Fraser Canyon Teepee Escape and Great River Fishing Adventures. Photo by Hubert Kang

3. Rooms with a view

Located in the village of New Denver between the Selkirk and Valhalla mountains, Adventure Domes offer curvy cottages wrapped in nature. Find inspiration rock climbing in Valhalla Provincial Park, paddle Slocan Lake, cycle or hike local trails, and soak in nearby hot springs.

Angular and Instagram-worthy, the Black Box Container Home is a stylish way to experience the Kamloops desert, with a view of the South Thompson River and an outdoor fire pit. At Myra Canyon Lodge and Ranch above Kelowna, a converted school bus is one accommodation option.

The “log castle” Tower House at The Chilko Experience Wilderness Resort is architecturally fascinating, with luxury log cabins complete with lake and mountain views. Relax in the remote Chilcotin location and explore the sweeping landscape by ATV, heli-hiking, and more.

If you prefer an ocean view, make your way to The Shoreline in Tofino, a boutique waterfront property that is embraced by its rainforest surrounds. Originally built in the 1960s, The Shoreline promises a woodsy-surfer vibe, thanks to an A-frame house and two A-frame cabins that are steps from the ocean.

4. Eco resorts

Nimmo Bay Resort provides up to 80% of power needs through a hydro system fuelled by streams and waterfalls. Stay in a luxury waterfront cabin, relax in a floating cedar sauna, dine on foraged ingredients, and find exhilaration in an outdoor rain shower.

Summer at Nimmo Bay Wilderness Resort. Most accessible by helicopter, float plane or boat from Port Hardy. Photo by Destination BC

Near Kootenay National Park, Nipika Mountain Resort is completely off-grid, sourcing power from the sun and forest. Expend your energy in the Rockies mountain biking, trail running, hiking, or canoeing the Kootenay River. At night, sit on your log cabin porch and soak up the stars.

Reached by kayak in Desolation Sound, Cabana Desolation Eco Resort’s buildings are made from sustainably harvested or recycled building materials. Live life along with the tides, paddling and swimming by day. On summer nights, catch the thrill of bioluminescence, a natural phenomenon of light dancing through water.

5. Wellness retreats

At Nectar Yoga Retreat on Bowen Island, daily guided yoga and meditation classes help you to find that mind-body connection amid a grove of maple and alder trees. Spend the day refreshed, reading or dreaming on the porch of the stylish Scandinavian-inspired cottages.

Nectar on Bowen Island offers Scandinavian-inspired deluxe cottages and 60s-throwback A-frames. Photo by Nectar

Three outdoor yoga stages at REO Rafting Resort let you enjoy the breeze as you inhale the fresh air of the Nahatlatch Valley. Located north of Boston Bar, REO offers multi-day guided yoga retreats for all levels with peaceful glamping tents, in which you can fall asleep to the thrum of rushing water.

At Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast, Shades of Jade Inn and Spa offers quiet reflection surrounded by cedar trees near Henderson Beach. Reconnect with the healing power of touch at the day spa, which offers massages, facials, and more with natural Sea Flora skin care products made from organic seaweed.

6. Wilderness Lodges

In Broughton Archipelago Marine Park, explore by boat and recount the adventure as the sun sets at Farewell Harbour Lodge.

Near Prince Rupert, spot seals and river otters over breakfast at the floating Khutzeymateen Wilderness Lodge, which is accessible only by floatplane or boat. Go grizzly bear viewing in the Khutzeymateen Wilderness Sanctuary and soak up the beauty of the fjord, rainforest, and waterfalls.

Khutzeymateen Lodge in Khutzeymateen/K’tzim-a-deen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary. Photo by Destination BC

Perched on 100 hectares of private riverfront property near Terrace, Little Wolf Resort offers guided or non-guided fishing adventures. From your red cedar lodge base, set out for wildlife watching on private hiking trails along the Skeena River and through the Great Bear Rainforest.

7. Guest Ranches

With seemingly endless land to explore, Echo Valley Ranch & Spa spans 65 hectares over mountains, the Fraser Canyon, the Cariboo plateau, and grasslands. Take it all in horseback riding, fishing, heli-hiking, or on other soft adventures.

Horseback riding at Echo Valley Ranch & Spa. Photo by Blake Jorgenson Photography Ltd

North of Kamloops, get back to the land at Montana Hill Guest Ranch, a working cattle ranch where you can learn to ride a horse, milk a cow, or even rope a steer. After a day of riding, ATV exploration, or hiking, relax by the bonfire or retreat to the hot tub at your log cabin.

Soak up the wilderness horseback riding at Three Bars Guest Ranch near Cranbook. The weekly breakfast rides are a highlight, with blueberry pancakes cooked on an open grill. The new, modern, Black Series Tiny Homes draw in the valley views with floor-to-ceiling windows.

8. Farm stays

Nourish your spirit by waking up in a field or orchard, steps from where your food is grown. At Hidden Acres Farm and Treehouse outside of Terrace, you can stay on a family-owned working farm and purchase eggs and produce grown on site, right beside the cabins. The 36-hectare property offers access to the Skeena River, wildlife viewing, and biking trails to work up an appetite.

You can watch the sun set over apple orchards before star gazing in a romantic yurt at Merridale Cidery and Distillery. Set in Vancouver Island’s Cowichan Valley, this is a destination for food lovers, with an eatery open to the orchard that offers plenty of fresh air.

On Bowen Island, Alderwood Farm gives you a taste of quiet country life on a working farm. Wake up to breakfast and coffee on the garden suite’s patio and then grab an Alderwood pie and other house-made treats from the farm shop to take on a beach picnic.

This article was provided by Destination BC

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