Spanish spas: Sun, Sea and . . . Mud ?

Spa vacations are certainly all the rage today, but spas have been around in Spain for more than 2,000 years. When the Romans colonized most of the country in the first century B.C. they brought with them their culture of bathing. In fact, the ancient Roman term for the building that houses public baths, balnea, has come down to modern Spanish as balnearios, or spas.

Spain offers visitors a tremendous variety of spa experiences in hundreds of different scenic locations throughout the country. European royalty and the ruling elite often chose to “take the waters” in a resort like Mondariz, one of the continent’s legendary spas in a class with Evian and Baden Baden. More than 100 years later, experts are forecasting that spas are returning to their origins as centers for bathing and water treatments. In the 1990s spa resorts in Spain began upgrading their facilities and the majority has now completed major refurbishments.

In Galicia’s Rías Baixas, the 5-star Gran Hotel Hesperia La Toja sits on La Toja Island and is renowned as one of Spain’s best spa hotels. Completely refurbished in 2005, it is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. Its new modern spa and thermal club offers special treatments using the mineral-rich waters and mud from the area.

The Gran Hotel Balneario Puente Viesgo in Cantabria has bath houses near the thermal springs that date to 1766. Less than 30 miles from Santander on the banks of the River Pas, this four-star complex opened 16 years ago and added another 40 rooms two years ago. The recently opened three-floor “Palace of Water” spa spans 3000 square feet and features a large swimming pool, a children’s pool, various saunas, a hot water pool and an open-air dry sauna. The resort is popular with athletes, and members of various Olympic, World Cup and European Cup teams are regulars here.

At 5,300 feet above sea level, the five-star Gran Hotel Panticosa in Huesca, in the Aragón Pyrenees has dramatic views of mountains, lakes and waterfalls.

Voted “Best Resort and Spa in Europe” three years ago, the Hotel Termes Montbrió in Tarragona dates from the turn of the century and is set in a lush flowering landscape of bougainvillea and exotic flowers and towering sequoias and fruit trees. Natural springs – first sourced by the Romans – abound on the 10-acre resort.

In 2008 a luxurious spa resort will open in the picturesque town of Arties in the Val d’Aran in the Spanish Pyrenees. Arata Isozaki – known for the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles – is designing the Banys d’Arties using the natural stone and slate found in these mountains. The complex will include a 25-suite super luxury hotel and another five-star of 30 rooms, a 32,000 square-foot-spa and three restaurants including one in the spa. Plans call for reclaiming the baths dating from 1817 which have been unused for 40 years. Built around a central interior pool, the thermal complex will include a vaulted roof with 24-foot ceilings.

The Balneario de Archena in Murcia is Spain’s oldest spa resort, dating back more than 2000 years. Here the Romans built a spa for their soldiers. Later in the Middle Ages, the baths belonged to the Knights of Santiago and the holy order of Saint John used the waters to cure their wounds. Close by the Segura River and set amid palms, eucalyptus and lemon trees, the two-million square-foot thermal complex offers the latest technology in a pristine setting.

Known as the “Fountain of Health” since the 1770s because of the restorative properties of its drinking water, Lanjarón is Andalusia’s most renowned balneario. Numerous hotels offer therapies for digestive or respiratory problems, stress and rheumatism that use the medicinal waters from five natural springs originating from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Its prize-winning water attracted royalty as well as distinguished philosopher Bertrand Russell, writer Virginia Wolf and composer Manuel de Falla. The spa has a huge ballroom lit with magnificent chandeliers testifying to Lanjaron’s continued renown in the early 20th century.

One of the most famous resorts in Europe, the Byblos Andaluz melds graceful Moorish architecture – beautiful Andalusian patios and the ever-present sound of flowing water – with a 26,000-square-foot spa. The resort’s thalassotherapy center features three indoor heated sea water pools, saunas, a hammam and 35 treatment rooms. The resort is located in Mijas, between Marbella and Málaga on the Costa del Sol, one of the first areas to witness the dawn of the second golden age of Spain’s spa tourism.

And to come full circle, last year the Caracala Spa opened at La Cala Resort, also on the Costa del Sol – complete with crystal sauna, herbed steam room and igloo. Named after the Roman emperor who opened one of the most beautiful balnearios  in Rome in 217 A.D., the resort aims to continue the almost 2,000-year-old tradition.

For further information contact www.spain.info.com/