Benton Hot Springs
White Mountains / Benton · near Benton / Bishop · Eastern Sierra
Stargazing
At a glance
- Best season
- Spring–fall for Milky Way; year-round soaking (cold, clear winter nights)
What is here
- Highlights
- milky-way · astrophoto
- Landscape
- mountain
- Amenities
- Private open-air hot-spring tubs · Among the darkest skies in the US · Soak while you stargaze · Historic remote hamlet
- Best for
- Stargazing from a hot spring
- Features
- Soak beneath the Milky Way · Among the least light-polluted spots in the US · Private tub at each campsite · Remote, peaceful & dark
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Remote high desert — carry water, fuel & supplies · Cold nights; limited services · Long drives to reach it — plan fuel · Reservations needed for the hot-spring sites
- Beginner friendly
- Yes
Stargazing detail
- Designation
- informal
- Reach
- moderate
- Darkness
- 5
- Sky notes
- Soak in a private open-air hot spring while the Milky Way blazes overhead — a tiny historic hamlet in one of the least light-polluted corners of the country, where each campsite has its own tub beneath Bortle-1 skies
- Stats note
- ~Bortle 1–2; private hot-spring tubs at each campsite; very remote high desert
- Campground
- Yes
- Intl tip
- One of the most blissful stargazing experiences in California — soak in a private, open-air hot-spring tub while the Milky Way blazes overhead. This tiny historic hamlet in the White Mountains north of Bishop sits in one of the least light-polluted corners of the US (~Bortle 1–2), and the Inn's campsites each have their own tub. Remote high desert — carry water, fuel, and supplies; cold nights outside the tub; the hot-spring sites need reservations. Relaxing and welcoming rather than rugged.
The guide
Benton Hot Springs, a tiny historic hamlet tucked into the White Mountains north of Bishop, offers one of the most blissful sta…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Benton Hot Springs — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.82, -118.47