We are getting closer to summer and many of us organize vacations. Can we travel abroad or this year should we stay in the country? Do you paint the mountains or the beach this year? Will it be a long vacation or just a couple of days? What if this year we tried some hot springs? If we opt for hot springs, a good option is Balneario de Archena.
The hot springs They are close to Alicante and Murcia and they have been a very popular spa destination in this part of Spain for a loooong time. Let's get to know the Archena Spa today.
Balneario de Archena
The spa is in the southeast of Spain, in the province of Murcia, next to the river Segura and in the Natural Park of Valle de Ricote. This 80 kilometers from Alicante and only 24 from Murcia so you can get away and spend a couple of days in hot water, relaxing.
This spa dates back in history because the hot springs are old. It seems that the use of hot water by the settlers began back in the XNUMXth century BC, at the hands of the Iberians, and then the area became part of the commercial route that went to the capital of Turdetania, Cástulo. Obviously to the Romans They loved it and they are responsible for the construction of the first spas proper.
That is, with buildings specially dedicated to enjoyment and bathrooms. Thus, modern archaeologists discovered remains of columns, a thermal gallery, a two-story hotel, a deposit of drinking water that was used to distribute it later, with its entrance still operational, remains of waterwheels and even a necropolis.
The spa is still operating and in the Middle Ages it was in the hands of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem. From the sixteenth century it began to gain fame, then the routes are improved and in the nineteenth century is that it adopts the current urban form, typical of the spas of that time, with several hotels: the Hotel Termas, the Hotel Madrid and the Hotel Levante, the casino ...
Visit the Archena Spa
The hot springs are synonymous with hot waters. Here water is sulfur, sulfur, chlorinated, sodium, calcium, and emanates at a temperature of 52, 50C of a great spring. The water here is unique for its mineral properties acquired after 15 thousand years underground.
These hot waters are a pampering to the body, they are great to get rid of stress and rest, in addition to treating some joint pain or softening the skin. They are good for rheumatism, lung conditions and bone pain also. Obviously we cannot dive in waters of more than 50ºC without burning ourselves, so the average temperature is 17ºC. If you add to this that it is a beautifully sunny land with almost three thousand hours of Phoebus in the sky a year… well that's great!
Archena is a complex so the best thing is to come and stay in an internal hotel. There are three to choose from for a total of 253 rooms. The Hot Springs Hotel and Levant Hotel are four stars, while the Hotel Leon It is a three star rating.
The Termas Hotel is from the 68th century and has neo-Nasrid decoration with a replica of the Fountain of the Lions of the Alhambra included. It offers free WiFi in lounges and free access to the thermal complex. It has XNUMX rooms with complete bathroom, TV with international signals and mini bar. It also has a dining room. The Hotel Levante is the same.
Hotel León also has direct access to the spa, that is, you don't have to leave the hotel to go to the hot springs. It has 117 rooms that have been recently renovated, on three floors. Check in is 3 pm and check out is at 12, as in the other two accommodations.
The complex is made up of the thermal pools, the thermal circuit and also the thermal treatments that are offered. There are two large pools, one outdoor and one indoor. Inside you have hydro-thermal services with water jets, streams, waterfalls, jacuzzis and a children's pool. There is also a beach area, changing rooms, a snack bar. The Thermal Gallery is the nucleus of the place because there is the spring and the Thermal Hotel which is where the health treatments.
These treatments are prescribed by medical specialists in hydrology (knowledge of therapeutic hot springs). Thus, in the treatment menu we find hydromassages, circular showers, thermal jets, respiratory treatments, humid stoves, mud treatments, various massages and physiotherapy exercises.
There is a particular massage called Archena massage that is done under thermal water showers and with mud, for example, improving return circulation and loosening contractures. The mud is clay mixed with mineral water at a temperature of 45ºC. Applied on the joints, it has an anti-inflammatory and analgesic action.
On the other hand there is a sector baptized as termachena which is a small thermal circuit made up of a humid stove, a 37 ºC pool, thermal contrast showers, ice and cabins for brief manual frictions. The result? You look limp as a rag doll.
After your visit to the Archena Spa you can take with you different products as souvenirs: bath gels, body milks, special shampoos, thermal water, cleansing milks, anti-aging creams with stem cells, caviar serum, facial scrubs and hand cream.
Practical information about Balneario de Archena:
- Hours: Monday to Sunday from 10 am to 9 pm (January to March 15, November and December); from 10 am to 10 pm (from March 16, April, May, June, September and October); from 10 am to 12 pm (July and August) and on December 24 and 31 from 10 am to 7 pm.
- Prices: on certain dates the price is 14 euros per adult and 22 on holidays. Other dates cost 12 euros from Monday to Friday and on weekends 18 euros and other days, 16 and 22 euros respectively. Check the website for these dates. The price of the Thermal Circuit is 25 euros on weekdays and 35 on Saturdays and Sundays. 30 euros for those who are staying at the spa.
- There are packages with accommodation and without accommodation. from 48 euros you can enjoy a day with a couples massage and access to the thermal circuit. With accommodation there are packages of three days of accommodation with a diet plan and various treatments from 144 euros per person. You enjoy a 15% discount if you buy a month before. A cheaper option is from 94 euros for two nights that includes bicycle routes. And even simpler, from 100 euros you have four nights, food included and free access to the pools.