About The Doc

Jon “the Doc” Wilkinson was a dedicated visionary who brought alternative medicine and distinctive wellness traditions to travelers long before they were mainstream. The Doc fell in love with Calistoga’s special, health-giving underground geothermal springs and volcanic ash soil, so he founded the spa resort in 1952 and created outstanding original health remedies to share with the world.

The Doc and his wife Edy uprooted their lives to live at the resort in a beautiful home overlooking the Napa Valley to give their all to promoting the natural wellness wonders of Calistoga. Their home is now known as Victorian House and features five midcentury-inspired guest rooms.

The world quickly took note of the resort, and Dr. Wilkinson’s became a health haven drawing A-List celebrities and travelers from all over the world.

Edy made her mark on the resort through her art. Guests can enjoy original mosaic pieces scattered throughout the resort and stay in her former studio, Edy’s Art Cottage, all paying tribute to the artistic and visionary couple who started it all.

Having perfected the recipe of mixing Calistoga’s mineral waters and volcanic ash into renowned mud bath treatments, the Doc’s original remedies are still used in the spa today. Our own underground hot spring well feeds the 3 mineral pools, fills the spa mineral baths, and infuses the spa steam room so that guests can soak in natural health-giving minerals like zinc, magnesium, bromine, calcium, and more.

Even Doc’s original blue 1952 Buick still sits in the driveway of the resort, and the iconic vintage neon sign boldly greets visitors on Lincoln Ave., paying homage to the Doc’s original ethos - reimagined for the modern traveler.