Riverside / valley campgrounds & motels

The budget end of the valley is genuinely riverside, not brochure riverside. Eagle Campground & RV Park in Keremeos puts tents on grass near the Similkameen for $22 a night plus tax, serviced sites for $35, with a walk to the historic Red Bridge and a river you can float down on a hot afternoon. The showers cost a dollar per five minutes, so lather with intent.

Down Hwy 3 toward Princeton, BC Parks runs two small campgrounds right on the river: Bromley Rock, in a pleasant forest 21 km east of Princeton, and Stemwinder near Hedley, where sites sit under Douglas fir and ponderosa pine on two levels above the water. Book through Discover Camping, or roll up and hope, since unreserved sites go first-come, first-served. Locals tube from Bromley Rock downstream to Stemwinder, which counts as public transit here.

If canvas is not your love language, Keremeos keeps a strip of small family-run motels, among them the Elks Motel and the Alpine Inn, the latter within walking distance of the coffee shops, the public pool and the grocery store. Booking sites put Keremeos motel rooms from around C$135 a night, and nobody will judge you for choosing air conditioning in a valley that regularly cooks in July.