Spas with upscale

Chicago, Illinois

Thermal baths and spa rituals in a restored 1902 factory in West Town, Chicago, open daily for adults-only soaking and massage packages.

London, England

Thermal bathhouse near Covent Garden in a former J.M. Barrie house, offering multi-temperature pools, massages and couples treatments by reservation.

Toronto, Ontario

A reservation-only thermal bath circuit in a 1912 Edwardian building in Toronto, with eight pools, a dry sauna, steam room and massage treatments.

Barcelona, Catalonia

Adults-only thermal baths in a converted 18th-century building near Barcelona's Born market, with soaking pools, massages and couples rituals.

Velingrad, Pazardzhik

Hotel spa in Velingrad with mineral-water pools, saunas, steam rooms and a hammam spread over 4,000 square metres; day passes are available.

Archena, Murcia

A 19th-century thermal hotel in Archena with direct access to a Roman-era spring complex, open to day visitors as well as overnight guests.

Sirmione, Lombardy

A lakeside thermal spa in Sirmione with indoor and outdoor pools fed by sulphurous spring water, a vascular circuit, saunas, and a day-pass option.

Piešťany, Trnava Region

Spa Irma on Piešťany's spa island offers historic mud and mirror thermal pools, a hydrotherapy circuit and a 60-treatment medical spa menu, adults only.

London, England

A Russian-style banya bathhouse in Belgravia offering oak-lined steam rooms, cold plunge pools and leaf-massage rituals, with day passes by reservation only.

Aix-les-Bains, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Medical thermal baths in Aix-les-Bains treating respiratory and oral mucosal conditions with sulfur-rich water, mostly through prescribed multi-day cures.

Vals, Grisons

Peter Zumthor's quartzite thermal baths in Vals, built into the mountain, open to day visitors as well as hotel guests.

Berlin

A saltwater thermal pool under a concrete dome near Berlin's Tempelhofer Feld, with sauna, steam room and occasional DJ nights.

New York City, New York

Thermal bath circuit and massages in a restored 1883 Tribeca textile factory, with a skylit tepidarium and candlelit thermal pools; reservation required.

Vichy, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Adults-only thermal baths in Vichy using the town's mineral spring water, with a hydrotherapy circuit and thermal pool, booking required.

Leukerbad, Valais

Thermal baths inside a 19th-century hotel in Leukerbad, Valais, with mineral-rich pools open daily from 9am to 8pm.

Bad Ragaz, St. Gallen

Hotel resort spa in Bad Ragaz built around the valley's 36.5°C thermal water, with saunas, pools and treatments open to overnight guests.

Dead Sea, Balqa

Resort spa on the Dead Sea shore with 40 treatments, thermal pools, sauna and steam, open to day guests aged 16 and up.

Buxton, England

A hotel spa built into Buxton's historic Crescent, centred on a thermal pool, hydrotherapy circuit and salt room, open to hotel guests only.

Bad Blumau, Styria

Rogner Bad Blumau is a Hundertwasser-designed thermal resort in Styria with geothermal pools, outdoor baths and hotel-guest-only access.