Main image: Rockwater Secret Cove remains a top close-to-home luxury staycation option
You’re not keen on roughing it, and you loathe large crowds. Avoid both with a low-key, high-end, off-the-beaten path staycation in beautiful British Columbia
Hitch a ferry ride to Vancouver Island and set up in one of three handcrafted (from cedar or spruce) Free Spirit Spheres, suspended from tall trees close to Qualicum Beach. The benefit of suspended accommodation, according to sphere creator Tom Chudleigh, is that “once one breaks contact with the ground, energy shifts … one can feel the presence of the forest.” For $180, you and a guest will enjoy a luxury overnight stay that includes linens, hot showers, a sauna and great restaurants nearby. www.freespiritspheres.com
Nestled between the Cascade and Coast mountain ranges near Hope is Gak Resort at Treasure Mountain, with spacious, furnished yurts outfitted with 14-foot-high ceilings, skylights and private decks. For ultimate spring-break convenience, the resort offers all-inclusive SUV and helicopter packages to couples and families, which include round-trip transfer from Vancouver, two nights’ accommodation, meals, a private guided hike and a picnic lunch on Treasure Mountain. www.thegak.com
(Image: Hitch a ferry ride to Vancouver Island and set up in one of three suspended Free Spirit Spheres)
Situated in B.C.’s Cariboo region six hours northeast of Vancouver by highway is Echo 
Valley Ranch – a unique, all-inclusive hotel and spa founded by a country boy and his Thai wife. Activities include horseback riding, hiking and guided gold-panning excursions, plus traditional Thai bodywork and skin-care therapies. Stay in a cosy log cabin and stoke your own fireplace, or book the luxurious Royal Suite, with traditional Thai architecture, a steam shower, a handmade bed and a private rooftop terrace. www.evranch.com
(Image: Echo Valley Ranch is a unique, all-inclusive hotel and spa founded by a country boy and his Thai wife)
Over on the Sunshine Coast, Rockwater Secret Cove remains a top close-to-home luxury staycation option. Take a 30-minute flight by floatplane to Halfmoon Bay and shack up in one of the resort’s to-die-for tenthouse suites, equipped with heated slate floors, a hydro-therapy tub, a king-sized pillow-top bed and a private veranda with an endless view of the ocean. During your stay, indulge in a solo yoga class, a daytrip to nearby Thormanby Island, a cold-water dive or a massage in front of a roaring fireplace. rockwatersecretcoveresort.com
In the East Kootenays, a high-end tree house retreat called Outa-the-Woods makes for a magical staycation experience. Perched on a high platform in 
a private (read: secluded, romantic) location, the tree house, which is built entirely out of carefully selected, curved, twisted and burled wood, features twin handmade spiral staircases, rustic furniture and numerous carvings, as well as a front deck, a loft bedroom with a walk-out balcony, a full kitchen, a fireplace and a three-piece bathroom. www.outathewoods.com
(Image: A high-end tree house named Outa-the-Woods makes for a magical retreat)
