In this series, I’ll introduce one fabulous destination and show you where to stay, savor and play on two different budgets. Splurge-worthy picks are all about luxury resorts, fine dining and individualized experiences while budget-friendly ideas offer bargain digs, cheap (but good) eats and free or inexpensive activities to enjoy. I’ll provide money-saving tips (even for the splurges) and ensure that whatever your budget is, you’ll be able to make the most of your vacation.
Highlights of a Fernie Vacation on Two Budgets
Tucked away in a sublimely scenic corner of southeastern British Columbia, Fernie blends Rocky Mountain and Elk River outdoor adventures with an authentic downtown center brimming with local businesses and community pride. This mountain town is still enough -under-the-tourist radar to avoid crowds and offer excellent value for your vacation dollar, no matter what your budget.
2-Day/1-Night Luxury Stay
Total cost for two people: $935
- Stay: A secluded timber-framed mountain lodge surrounded by 7,000 acres of pristine wilderness with spa treatments, canoe rentals and a private balcony with a lakefront view ($475)
- Savor: An à la carte breakfast (included in the resort rate) and a gourmet evening meal, featuring ingredients foraged in the surrounding forest, all enjoyed in a light-filled dining room looking out at the dramatic mountain peaks ($230)
- Play: An exhilarating white-water adventure down the beautiful Elk River ($230). Or a private guided alpine hike through wild-flowered paths that lead to panoramic views of the town and mountains ($180)
2-Day/1-Night Budget Stay
Total cost for two people: $160
- Stay: A sustainable family-run hotel with a convenient location and amenities that include complimentary e-bike rentals, a large communal kitchen and a hot tub ($110)
- Savor: A fresh-out-of-the-oven bagel piled high with breakfast toppings to fuel up for the day’s activities and craft beer pints with pub nosh to celebrate your adventures in the evening ($50)
- Play: Hike, bike or stroll the scenic trails of Mount Fernie Provincial Park. Or tour Fernie’s artistic side with a self-guided walk of its galleries and studios (free)
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Stay: Where to Sleep on Your Fernie Vacation
Splurge-Worthy Choice: Island Lake Lodge:
- Although only a 25-minute drive from downtown Fernie, this lakefront wilderness lodge feels more remote, surrounded by 7,000 acres of alpine wilderness in the Lizard Range of the Rocky Mountains.
- In winter, off-piste skiers come for the lodge’s cat-skiing operation to carve tracks in a powder haven of untouched bowls, valleys and glades. Summer brings hikers, canoeists and wellness seekers to hike the 60+ miles of trails in old-growth forest, paddle the tranquil lake and relax with spa treatments and cedar saunas with a view of the mountains.
- Three timber-framed lodges (Tamarack, Cedar and Red Eagle) offer 26 rooms in total with different configurations. The eight rooms in the Cedar Lodge ($250) offer the most luxurious experience with a private balcony in every room, slate showers, heated floors and large soaker tubs.
SheBuysTravel Money-Saving Tip: Take advantage of deals like the lodge’s Take a Break Spa and Gourmet Dine and Spa packages to get credits on dining and spa treatments, as well as other extras. Also, even if you’re not staying at the lodge, you can access the property’s extensive hiking trails. Or better still, book a spa treatment, which grants complimentary access to the saunas, hot pool, mountain-side sundeck and reserved seating at the bistro.
Another Splurge-Worthy Option: Lizard Creek Lodge
Situated in a prime position at the renowned Fernie Alpine Resort, Lizard Creek is about $275 per night. Doorstep access to ski lifts whisks guests up the mountains to enjoy the powder snow in winter and for alpine hiking and mountain biking in summer.
Residential-style condo suites feature fully equipped kitchens, fireplaces and private balconies. The large outdoor pool and hot tubs offer stunning mountain views.
Budget-Friendly Choice: Fernie Fox Hotel
- Price is about $110 per night.
- Conveniently located between the town and Fernie Alpine Resort, it provides easy access to Fernie’s attractions.
- The 43-unit hotel stands out with bright, comfy, and cheerfully decorated rooms, featuring its namesake orange fox.
- Sustainability initiatives include rooftop solar panels, no single-use plastics and a $5 donation made to local conservation funds with each booking.
- We loved the unexpected extras like 24-hour coffee availability in the lobby, free take-home water bottles to fill up at the water station and especially the complimentary e-bike rentals. With no huffing and puffing, we zipped up to Fernie Provincial Park to enjoy a short hike on their trails, cruised along the Elk River through idyllic parkland and cycled through the town’s historic downtown.
- Take advantage of the communal kitchen and dining room, and outdoor BBQ and deck to prepare meals for even more savings.
- Soak in the hot tub to relax after a day of outdoor adventures.
Other Budget-Friendly Options
- Raging Elk is a popular hostel in town that offers large family rooms ($90) in addition to pods ($40) and private rooms ($70).
- Campers will find plentiful sites in and around Fernie at picturesque campgrounds like Mount Fernie Provincial Park ($22), Fernie R.V. Resort ($40) and Kikomun Creek Provincial Park ($22).
SheBuysTravel Money-Saving Tip: Hipcamp connects people seeking outdoor accommodations with landowners offering camping, glamping and RV stays. Think Airbnb but for camping.
Savor: Where to Eat on Your Fernie Vacation
Fernie has a lively food scene that goes far beyond what you might expect from a place with a population of 6,500 people. It offers a mix of high-end cuisine and casual fare and has a host of fabulous patios.
Splurge-Worthy Culinary Delights
- Island Lake Lodge’s menu highlights top-quality ingredients foraged from the surrounding forest and sourced from local farms. Enjoy their inspired dishes with a glass of BC wine with a view of the mountain peaks ($115).
- In town, Nevados serves up mouthwatering Latin-inspired tapas with signature mezcal and tequila cocktails ($35).
- Other stellar choices include the Bridge Bistro, especially for brunch ($22), Bayleaf Indian Fusion Restaurant at the golf course, particularly at sunset on their patio ($30), Loaf Italian ($30) and the Brick House ($25).
Cheap Treats
- Even if you’re not on a budget, you have to try Big Bang Bagels. Their hand-rolled bagels, baked fresh in-house, rival any I’ve tasted in Montreal and New York and come in more than 18 flavours. The Mr. Fernie Bagel ($10) piled high with a fried egg, aged cheddar, avocado, tomato, fried onions. satisfies a hearty appetite.
- The happy hour special at the Kodiac Lounge can’t be beat with craft beer and apps for $11. Even during regular hours, a pint of beer comes in at less than $5. Locals and visitors mingle in its authentic lodge atmosphere with no TV screens to distract from a good time.
- The Fernie Brewing Company crafts small-batch beer ($5) using Rocky Mountain water and has a large, sunny patio to enjoy the drinks on. Food trucks often park outside in summer, offering a variety of well-priced street eats.
SheBuysTravel Money-Saving Tip: Local grocery stores stock deli-prepared meals like rotisserie chickens and prepared salads that make easy dinners, especially if you’re staying in a place like the Fernie Fox Inn that has a full kitchen.
Play: Things to Do on Your Fernie Vacation
A mountain playground awaits, and adventures can be as mild as a gentle hike or a float down a calm river or as wild as paddling down rushing rapids or careening down their extensive mountain bike trails. In winter, skiers flock to Fernie to hit the slopes famous for their powder runs.
Activities Worth Splashing Out On
Join a guided excursion. With supplies and expert instruction provided, all you need to focus on is fun and the scenic beauty around you.
- Canyon Raft Company offers full-day adrenaline-filled whitewater rafting tours down the Bull River and Elk River ($115) or relaxing half-day floats ($75). We spotted ospreys, deer and herons on our relaxing afternoon on the river.
- Hike Fernie customizes alpine excursions to fit your level of comfort, whether it’s a steep trek to the summit of Mt. Hosmer or a half-day hike through wild-flowered trails that lead to benches with panoramic views of the town below and the surrounding mountains (prices vary).
- Elk River Guiding Company leads anglers on unforgettable blue-ribbon fly-fishing adventures in the region.
- Island Lake Lodge includes multi-day cat skiing in their winter stays, but it books up quickly.
- Fernie Alpine Ski Resort’s lift tickets grant access to over 2,500 acres across five alpine bowls with 140+ runs and 10 lifts. The resort averages over 30 feet of light, dry snow annually. In summer, the resort’s lifts whisk bikers and hikers up the mountain.
Reward yourself for all this activity with a splurge-worthy spa treatment at Island Lake Lodge ($110) or in town at Spa 901 ($105), which is housed in a 1908 schoolhouse with outdoor facilities that include a relaxation area and hot tub.
Free and Inexpensive Fun
The best things in Fernie are very budget-friendly –they’re free: hiking in its protected forests, exploring art galleries and heritage buildings and picnicking by the river.
Hit the Trails
With over 200 miles of mapped trails surrounding the town and weaving through the surrounding peaks, forests, and riverbanks, hikers can take their pick.
A few suggestions:
- The challenging Mount Proctor Trail, a 13-mile loop hike, climbs steeply above the valley, offering views of Fernie, the Three Sisters peaks, and Mount Fernie.
- The easier three-mile Fairy Creek Falls Trail starts behind the Fernie Visitor Centre and leads to a peaceful waterfall at the base of Mount Proctor.
- Mount Fernie Provincial Park, located just west of town, protects 640 acres of pristine wilderness. The Old Growth Trail, a 1.25-mile loop, winds through a shady forest of massive cedar trees, ideal for a quiet walk or snowshoe.
- East of Fernie, the Montane Trail Network features over 12 miles of multi-use trails, including open meadows and forested ridgelines with scenic views of the Elk River and Lizard Range Mountains.
- At James White Park, riverside paths follow the Elk River with picnic areas for swimming, picnicking and birdwatching.
- Island Lake Lodge’s network of trails can be accessed and enjoyed even if you’re not a guest.
SheBuysTravel Tip: The AllTrails app lets you download maps of trails to use offline, which makes navigating easier in places where cell service is spotty. It also clearly shows when you’re off the trail, which is a huge benefit for directionally challenged people like myself. And you can send your coordinates easily to someone to let them know where you are and what time to expect you back.
- Explore Downtown: With no chain stores and numerous heritage buildings, strolling through Fernie’s historic downtown is a joy.
- Don’t miss the 1905 train station, which now serves as a hub for the arts with galleries and events (free).
- The town’s original bank houses the Fernie Museum (free but donations appreciated), where exhibits, artifacts and personal accounts tell the town’s stories from coal mining and bootlegging to skiing and tourism.
- Fernie’s Arts Co-op runs a retail outlet that features 40+ local artists who sell paintings, photography, jewellery, sculptures and more.
SheBuysTravel Money-Saving Tip: Self-guided tours offer insight and a more in-depth understanding of a town’s history without any cost. Download the Iconic Fernie App for seven themed tours: Local Heritage, Best Photography Spots, Exploring Nature, Artistic Explorations, Family Fun and Yum and the Heritage Pub Tour. Not only will you see the best sights, but you can also collect points to redeem for swag at the Fernie Visitor’s Centre.
Note: All prices are in US dollars. The accommodation costs reflect rates in summer and fall, and not in peak ski season.
Fun Facts about Fernie
- Fernie is the Coolest Town in North America. Or so Rolling Stone Magazine said in 2000.
- Fernie brims with legends and folklore. One of the tales is that of the Three Sisters—three peaks in the Lizard Range said to represent the heartbreak of three siblings. Then there’s the Griz, a towering, fur-clad hermit with the strength of Hercules, believed to roam the alpine backcountry. But none capture the imagination quite like the Ghost Rider. Each summer evening at sunset, a shadowy figure on horseback appears on the face of Mt. Hosmer, a fleeting silhouette that intrigues and enchants locals and visitors alike.
- Fall colors dazzle here. The best timing typically falls between the third week of September and mid-October as the deciduous tree leaves turn, with a second phase in the last half of October when the larch trees turn gold.
- Fernie is the farthest east that the Western Red Cedar grows. That’s a majestic evergreen tree that reaches 200 feet.
- North America’s largest ammonite fossil was discovered near Fernie in 1947. The Visitor Information Center displays a replica of this 150-million-year-old prehistoric wonder and has plans to open a trail in the future for visitors to see it.
- Fernie averages over 30 feet of snowfall each winter, often surpassing nearby resorts in the Canadian Rockies. Located where Pacific moisture systems meet colder mountain air, the area regularly receives dry, powdery snow that powder hounds covet for skiing and snowboarding.
- In 1919, the Fernie Free Press published a newspaper article putting forward the idea of tourism in this mountain town, saying: “The scenery of Switzerland is no grander than our own, and yet there are many places there which actually exist on tourist trade.”
Getting to Fernie
There are several airports that will get you close to Fernie, which is located in southeastern British Columbia:
- Canadian Rockies International Airport (YXC) in Cranbrook, BC, the closest airport to Fernie, is about an hour’s drive away
- Calgary International Airport (YYC) is a scenic 3.5-hour drive
- Glacier Park International Airport (FCA) in Kalispell, Montana, takes about two hours
- Spokane International Airport (GEG) is farther but still doable at approximately 4.5 hours
Renting a car is advisable as there is no regular public transportation available. Some resorts such as Island Lake Lodge and Fernie Alpine Resort do offer private shuttles from Calgary and Glacier Park International Airports but prices can be steep.
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