From sauna shacks on beaches to lavish spas in luxuriant grounds, readers have shared their top picks for unwinding across Europe, with destinations ranging from Albania to the Irish Sea.
On Scotland’s Cowal peninsula, Karen Prosser praised the Portavadie spa, which features a heated outdoor infinity pool, sauna, steam room and treatments. “We had a lovely time not only because of the water but the wonderful views out across Loch Fyne,” she said. Public swims start at £8 for 90 minutes, including access to the indoor pool and whirlpool bath.
Laura recommended the Bënja thermal baths in southern Albania, reached by a rocky road and a short walk. “Visitors can spend the day soaking in the natural springs and coating themselves in the rich sulphurous mud, which is said to have therapeutic properties,” she said, while taking in the valley’s ancient stone bridge and azure sky.
David Innes-Wilkin described his favourite hot spring at Edipsos on the Greek island of Evia, where water spurts into the Aegean Sea. “A special joy is to swim in the Aegean as it becomes warmer near the silky-smooth shell-shaped pools,” he said. The area has more than 60 springs with temperatures from 34C to 71C, and the experience is free.
Other highlights include the Parco Termale del Garda near Lake Garda, with natural hot pools and gardens (evening entry from €25); the Salt and Ember mobile sauna in Bundoran, County Donegal, where €10 buys a 30-minute slot with views of the Atlantic; Budapest’s Széchenyi thermal baths (€24); the Sawna Bach on Porth Tyn Tywyn beach in Wales (shared sessions from £15); Andorra’s Caldea spa with its geothermal pool and glass-bottom pools over the Valira River; and the Moseltherme in Germany’s Traben-Trarbach, which offers a no-clothing sauna area with five saunas and a cold plunge.
