By Steve Hubrecht
Entry fees will go up again at the Radium hot pools in the new year.
When fees went up last year, nearly doubling after nearly two decades of remaining flat, a flood of valley residents called the Pioneer to express dissatisfaction (and considerably stronger sentiments) with the change, upset that a dip in the local hot pools was, in the view of many callers, no longer an ‘affordable’ activity.
But Parks Canada chief operating officer for Canadian Rockies Hot Springs Julian England told the Pioneer at the time that the price increase merely brought the Radium pools prices in line with those at other similar facilities.
“We are now on par with the average price of visiting hot springs — private ones or public ones — in B.C. and Alberta,” he had said. “It’s also comparable to the price of cinema tickets.”
England also pointed out that even with the price hikes, the Radium hot pools are not a revenue generator for Parks Canada. Additionally he outlined that Parks Canada had spent millions of dollars on renovations and upgrades at the Radium pools in recent years (some $28 million in total).
On Jan. 1 the price will go up again, but this time the jump is much smaller — an increase of 4.1 per cent.
The move is part of a new cycle of adjusting fees every two years, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The 4.1 per cent increase will apply to other Canadian Rockies hot springs — the Banff and Miette Hot Springs — as well as Radium.
The price adjustment will translate into an increase in single entry fees of approximately $1.
Currently at the hot pools single entry fees are $16.50 for adults, $14.25 for seniors and youth, and $53 for a family. Day passes are $25.50 for adults, $22 for seniors and youth, and $82 for families. Discounted books of 10 entry tickets are $149.75 for adults, $129.25 for seniors and youth. Season passes are $220.50 for adults, $187.50 for seniors and youth, and $652.75 for families.
