Welcome to the Thermal Baths of Ledesma, where water makes history
On the doorstep of the Monumental City of Salamanca, you can stay in one of most steeped in history spa resorts in the Iberian Peninsula, whose origins date back to the first hot springs exploited in Hispania by the Roman Empire.
Entering the Baths of Ledesma, is like stepping into the history of balneotherapy and salus per acquam -i.e. health through water- in the Iberian Peninsula. With a tradition that goes back over two thousand years, historians believe the current thermal spa resort stands on an area where, first the Romans and later the Muslims of Al-Andalus, settled to exploit with baths and water cures the waters flowing up from a distant and mysterious aquifer, water sunk for years and years through riverbeds and rocks and naturally enriched with healing minerals in the process.
The healing properties of these waters are a real treasure protected by the Kingdom of Spain: back in 1886, they were officially declared Aguas de Interés Minero-Medicinal, attributing them mineral and medicinal value due to their proven virtues in the treatment and prevention of respiratory and musculoskeletal disorders, as well as neurological and skin conditions, such as psoriasis.
The baths were included in Spain’s National Heritage list in 1931.
The centrepiece of Balneario de Ledesma is the source. The thermal medicinal water is drawn by drilling at a temperature of 46.4 ºC.
The thermal waters are directly channelled from the source, through a network of ducts, into the individual treatment rooms located right next to it, to make sure none of the waters’ healing properties is lost along the way. Because of the high sulphur content and temperature, the waters are ideal for treating and preventing a wide range of diseases and disorders. The following are some of the most important ones:
The treatments available in the thermal spa – ultrasonic aerosols, inhalation through nose or mouth, nasal irrigation, pharyngeal sprays, bubble baths, partial and total hydrojet treatment, Jacuzzi, circular showers, vertical showers, dynamic thermal pool, stoves, hand and foot baths, contrast walk-in foot bath, mud wraps and massage-, are performed by bath attendants, masseurs and physiotherapists, upon prescription by medical practitioners specialised y Medical Hydrology.
