Before the winter months, it is sure that a little shudder rises up in a lot of us; where go later in the cold months, where can we pamper our bodies and our souls?
The perfect answer is close at hand: in Hungary, the country of thermal water.

Hungary a small country with a large treasure of thermal baths

If you think about Hungary it is certainly not water that preoccupies your mind at first. But there are good reasons for water to be just the thing that should come to your mind. Well, we are not talking about lakes or rivers here; those are unchanging being the way now they always were. These waters are the Danube, on whose two banks the beautiful city of Budapest is built, and the Tisza, which is one of the few rivers in Europe that flows in the original basin created by nature. Furthermore, there is the Tisza Lake with its un-spoiled naturel beauty and Lake Balaton, the largest lake in Central Eastern Europe.

Besides the cultural richness extant in Hungary, it has now become worthwhile to discover in the country: the thermal baths and spas. This treasure was already known to the Romans when they were here and the noblemen of the time used this treasure well. The abundance of architecture remains and historical writings support the knowing use and the significance of the thermal springs. On the large stage of history, Turks came next and played their role in the 15th century as they ruled Hungary for 150 years. During this time, they spent a lot of time fondly enjoying the wonderful, naturel baths of which there are still 4 in existence today. After that, now in the 21th century there are baths in every part of the country. When looking at the thermal baths that are here in Hungary, this country ranks fifth in the world. And there are really a lot of types of water here;

besides the waters that range from 30°C-70°C, there are also those types of waters that can be strictly considered as real curative waters. This later type of water has curative effects for many ailments not just for when you bathe in it, but also through ingestion there is a curative effect as well. A national program of development and investment was started in 2001 to improve the spas in the country. The two types of water and the curative water, are being developed in a program that brings it all together under the name health tourism, in Latin "sanus per aquam" (SPA), or health by water. There are a lot of hotels being built which offer wellness programs and which cater to your needs and offer thermal waters. There are also places being built just for curative water needs throughout the whole country. The wellness hotels offer the chance to bring your body, mind and spirit into balance as well as offer pampering, stress relieving programs specifically with the blissful characteristics of the thermal water. Besides the wonderful recrational baths you will also find saunas, beauty services, sports facilities in the wonderful nature of the area, meditation sessions, and the famous Hungarian cuisine in its healthiest forms and all this serves to help you have rest and relaxation. The spiritual side of Hungarian wellness is strengthened in that, according to experts in the field, one can find the heart chakra of the Earth here in Hungary.

For both the wellness centers and thermal baths, there is a quality assurance system in place. The number of wellness services that are measured is now approaching 50. What can be a more attractive thought on a cold fall or winter day than enjoying the wonderful effects of the thermal water and coupling that with the pampering services of the spa?

Health, rest, and a general sense of wellbeing - this is what the treasure of the Hungarian thermal baths has to offer.

Hévíz is one of the most important and best-known centres of health tourism in Europe & in Hungary. The lake, nourished by a thermal source from an early geological period, is unique of its kind in the world.

The bathing establishment that was built onto the lake, which is 36 meters deep, is fed by thermal springs. It has a water-surface of 47,500 m2 . The thermal source gives 20,000 l pro min. and the lake's water is renewing every 72 hours. The temperature of the water is 33-35 °C in summer and rarely falls under 24 °C even in winter. The Festetics family began extending the facilities for using the medicinal waters in 1795.

The lake's water here is particulary efficacious in the treatment of rheumatism, locomotor disorders including chronic inflamation, muscular disorders, disorders affecting the nervous system and gynaecological complaints. The curative effect of the mud of Hévíz lake - covering the bottom is especially strong. This mud - mixed by the lake's water - is used in form of packs.

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