Spirited Away to Osoyoos

There’s a reason we keep returning to BC’s southern town, Osoyoos, it has a lot to do with the world-class resorts, amazing restaurants, and family-fun activities. Here’s a look at an Osoyoos getaway that’s perfect for your family.

Spirit Ridge at Nk’Mip Resort is a retreat like no other in the Okanagan and once you stand on your suite’s balcony, facing the Cascade mountains as they glow with the golden hues of the sunset, you’ll know it to be true.

Spirit Ridge provides you with condos, suites, or villas and a variety of views to favor, such as Osoyoos Lake or Anarchist Mountain. Each type of stay allows you to enjoy access to the outdoor heated pool, hot tub and steam room area, fire cauldron, rooftop observation deck, beach shuttle, and cardio studio.

The onsite restaurant, The Bear The Fish The Root The Berry, is a bucket list-worthy experience with a menu that takes inspiration from the Indigenous roots of the Syilx People of the Okanagan Nation.

Centered around the four food chiefs, items like Sage Basted Elk Loin and The “Burnt” Quail, will have your mouth watering to try something new. Don’t forget to start with Bannock, this elevated dish is great for sharing and comes with various delicious spreads for dipping.

After an incredible meal, explore the grounds, splash in the pool or enjoy your room because the next day, plan to spend time at Baldy Mountain Resort. Before heading out, breakfast at Jojo’s Cafe is non-negotiable. I’ve been in love with this cafe since the first time we stumbled upon it on Main Street, central to everything. Jojo’s breakfast sandwiches and coffee are what you need to jumpstart this day!

Baldy boasts the third highest elevation ski resort in British Columbia as well as the most affordable skiing and snowboarding in the province. We left Osoyoos shrouded in cloud and ascended the road to Baldy Mountain Resort, passing through a winter wonderland of hoar frost before exiting the cloud cover into divining sunlight. Feeling transported to an entirely different realm, we enjoyed deep blue skies for our entire day.

While Jake and Ben headed up the hill to shred some runs, Nathan and I took to the snowshoe trails, thrilled to find all kinds of wildlife tracks in the freshly fallen champagne powder. There are 5 km of snowshoe trails to explore and 35 alpine runs for skiers and snowboarders, making the entire mountain explorable.

Baldy Bar and Lounge is a family friendly restaurant above the Corduroy Cafe in Baldy’s lodge for you to replenish those calories with local beer and amazing burgers. I recommend the spicy chicken burger to hit the spot. With live music nights and exciting events happening all season long, the vibe here is just awesome!

Back in town, after a fulfilling day of exhilarating runs, head to our favourite place to sample craft beer in Osoyoos, North Basin Brewing Co. This small taproom is family and pet friendly. Passionate about their community and fostering a sense of gathering, North Basin Brewing Co is about making memories while enjoying some unique brew!

Sample flights or pints and don’t forget to stock up on your favourite flavors to take home, you never know how the menu will change by your next visit!

We concluded our epic day with dinner from Mami’s Pizza to be enjoyed in our suite, in front of some hard-earned screen time. Somehow it just felt right to sit back after the day and watch The Fast and Furious on cable TV.

Sunday you might be headed home but not without indulging in coffee and treats from Junction 3 in their heated igloos. We stop here every time we pass by, we can’t help it, the macchiatos are too good.

Our next stop, The District Wine Village, in Oliver, BC. A destination in and of itself, The District Wine Village is a concept entirely unique to Canada. With a ‘village’ of 12 wineries, a brewery, and a restaurant, surrounding a seating arena with water features, fire tables, misters and more, this is a wine lover's paradise fit for Dionysus.

We made two stops here, the first was Nk’Mip Cellars’ incredible food and wine pairing experience. Here we were taught the significance of the four food chiefs and the inspiration they lend to the chef’s creations. Nk’Mip is North America’s first Indigenous-owned winery and has reached international recognition and accolades for their wines.

Our tasting experience was educational, cultural, and oh-so delectable! We took home a bottle of everything we sampled, it was impossible not to.

Chance, the winery dog, welcomed us to our second tasting experience in the Village at JoiRyde Winery. Birthed from the pandemic, female owned and operated, this winery flaunts its femme fatale and boss babe vibes.

A tasting here will have you stocking up on “Hello Sunday” rose for your next brunch with the girls. A sneak peek in the beautiful cellar at JoiRyde had me in awe at the art that winemaking truly is.

Completing our third visit to Osoyoos in just over one year, we managed to complete an entirely new itinerary of experiences. For such a small town, I’d say that’s pretty impressive Osoyoos! Truly the experience I come back to time and time again here in Osoyoos is not the fine dining, wine, or activities but the hard-working visionaries and business owners who keep Osoyoos such a vibrant place year-round. I’ve loved meeting these passionate entrepreneurs, hearing their origin stories and celebrating in their successes in creating something worth revisiting.

Thank you for adventuring with us to Osoyoos, you can find more photos by @jessicajoyphoto and information about our trip on Instagram @loewenlifestyle, I love to connect with all of you and help you plan your BC getaways. Hop over to my Instagram to see where we’re headed next!