Harrison Hot Springs, just outside of Chilliwack, is a popular tourist destination in the summer because of its lake, resorts and, of course, hot springs. Like other resort towns, it’s quieter in winter, with less than 1,500 full-time residents.
The area has been known for its healing waters for thousands of years. Long before travellers on their way to the gold rush happened up the hot springs in 1858, the Coast Salish people travelled to the area by canoe to bathe in the mineral-rich waters.
Add in a huge lake, a provincial park next door and plenty of opportunities for hiking, biking, fishing and golf, and it’s easy to see why tourism provides much of the work in town. The entire Fraser Valley is easily accessible for employment opportunities outside the tourism sector.
A benefit of small town life is the matching small price tag for real estate – the average home price is under $500,000. View Harrison Hot Springs homes for sale and upcoming open houses.
Harrison Hot Springs Amenities
Harrison Hot Springs Shopping
Harrison Hot Springs offers the usual tourist, gift and resort fare in many of its shops, some of which also carry basics and staples needed by full-time residents and work by local artists. For more serious shopping, locals head to Agassiz and Chilliwack.
Harrison Hot Springs Schools and Education
Elementary schools
· Harrison Hot Springs Elementary
Harrison Hot Springs teens attend high school in neighbouring Agassiz.
Harrison Hot Springs Cafés and Restaurants
Harrison Hot Springs offers plenty of dining options, many clustered along the lakefront. The classic Copper Room at the Harrison Hot Springs Resort has live music and dancing every night – the Jones Boys have been a fixture on weekends for 60 years (with some changes to the band’s membership, of course).
Harrison Hot Springs Arts and Culture
The Harrison Festival Society offers its “Season of Performing Arts” at the Harrison Memorial Hall from September to May, and puts on the Harrison festival of the Arts every July.
Harrison Hot Springs Sports and Recreation
Harrison Lake and the rivers that feed it are recreation central, with opportunities for swimming, boating and fishing. Located on a main salmon run, the area is also prime eagle-watching territory, as thousands of the birds flock to the riverbanks each fall.
Tourists tend to access the hot springs that give the town its name at the Harrison Hot Springs Resort and Spa, but the water is also pumped to a no-frills public pool.
North of town, Sasquatch Provincial Park offers more opportunities for boating and swimming, with very popular campgrounds at Hicks Lake and Deer Lake.
The Harrison Resort Golf Course is just south of town, and there are several more golf courses within a 15-minute drive.
Harrison Hot Springs Transportation
One BC Transit bus route connects Harrison Hot Springs with Agassiz and downtown Chilliwack. Vancouver is a 90-minute drive away on Highway 1, which also connects the town to neighbouring municipalities in the Fraser Valley Regional District.
Harrison Hot Springs Property Statistics
Average home price1 $458,281
Rental information2
Average monthly shelter costs for rental dwellings
$937
Makeup of dwellings3
Total occupied private dwellings
670
Single detached houses
75.4%
Row houses and duplexes
8.2%
Apartments, less than five stories
14.9%
Moveable dwellings
0.7%
Harrison Hot Springs Demographics3
Population 1,468
Age
80+
3.7%
60 to 79
36.1%
40 to 59
30.1%
20 to 39
13.9%
5 to 19
12.9%
0 to 4
3.0%
Neighbourhoods surrounding Harrison Hot Springs
· Agassiz
· Chilliwack
· Mission
1REW.ca interactive map, incorporating data from the Chilliwack & District Real Estate Board, Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, and Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, February 2016.
2Statistics Canada. Harrison Hot Springs, VL, British Columbia (Code 5909027) (table). National Household Survey (NHS) Profile. 2011 National Household Survey. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 99-004-XWE. Ottawa. Released September 11, 2013. The figure Includes all shelter expenses paid by households that rent their dwellings, such as the monthly rent and the costs of electricity, heat and municipal services.
3Statistics Canada. Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia (Code 1377) (table). Census Profile. 2011 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-316-XWE. Ottawa. Released October 24, 2012.
