What is a typical hot spring spa like?
Some are simply small holes in the ground, while others have been incorporated into luxurious spa resorts. If there is a world capital of the spa, it would have to be Budapest. The Hungarian capital features the highest number of medical thermal springs in the world. There are 118 different sources of natural springs and wells which produce up to 30,000 cubic metres of thermal water every day. The Hungarian tourist office in London (020-7823 1032, www.hungarytourism.hu or www.budapestinfo.hu) can supply more information. For a contemporary take on the traditional bathhouse, visit Therme Vals (00 41 81 926 8080, www.therme-vals.ch), high in the Swiss Alps. The local community bought the spring and commissioned architect Peter Zumthor to design a sleek modern construction to house the mineral pools. Entrance to the pools costs about £10. Accommodation at the nearby Hotel Therme costs £59, which includes entrance to the pools. Rotorua, which was discovered by the Maoris on New Zealand’s N
