Spa's and Thermal Springs

Spas and thermal springs in Turkey, spas in Turkey, Thermal springs in Turkey.

At the last count there was over 1,000 thermal springs in Turkey, offering their therapeutic qualities to the Roman civilisations which inhabited western Anatolia region and providing bags of untapped tourism potential to today's government. The natural resource that the thermal springs in Turkey provide is valuable to the country.

The Romans, recognising the benefit of the springs, built the city of Hierapolis close to the "cotton castle" at Pamukkale - a wondrous site of hot springs in the inner Aegean region.

Although there are 17 registered thermal spas in Turkey and mud baths in Turkey, the main locations can be split up into five sections: Bursa, Kangal Sivas, The Balcova Springs, Cesme and Dalyan.

True to form, the Roman Emperor Justinian built the baths at Bursa. The resort of Cerkige, to the west of Bursa, is the place to find numerous spas in Turkey and spa hotels, some offering beauty and health treatments.

The 'miracle' of the Kangal Sivas fish springs occurred in 1917, when a shepherd with an injured foot found himself healed by water from the springs. Since then pools have been built in the area and visitors come for treatment, some of whom have skin problems which cannot be cured by modern science.

Situated on the Roman site of the Baths of Agamemnon - possibly the first hydrotherapy site in the ancient world - the Balcova hot thermal springs in Turkey are used to this day for their therapeutic capabilities.

To the west of Izmir, Cesme (which literally means fountain or spring in Turkish) is home to the sites of Sifne Pasa Harbour, Buyuk Liman, Alacati and the Bay of Boyalik, featuring soothing springs and thermal baths.

Dalyan boasts the thermal resort of Sultanye, where the baths were first used in Caunon times by the Byzantine civilisation. Ruins from this period are situated under the nearby Koycegiz Lake.

With aforementioned destinations merely a sample of the huge number of spas and thermal springs in Turkey, it is not surprising that the government has planned a huge campaign in thermal tourism.

The Thermal Tourism Cities Project (TTCP) was launched by the ministry of culture and tourism last year, with the aim of making Turkey the top destination in the world for thermal tourism by 2023.

Estimates from the Turkish Geothermal Association forecast that the campaign could lead to £8 billion-worth of revenue. The organisation names Turkey as the country with the most thermal resources in Europe and the seventh-most in the world.

If the government is to meet their ambitious target, they must attract more than the current rate of 500,000 'thermal tourists' a year. And, with a $100 million budget at their disposal, expect the number of spas and thermal springs in Turkey to rocket in the next few years. Turkey is a huge country and has no shortage of space. Couple this with the rich resources it is able to draw on and it would not be surprising if thermal tourism begins to shape the face of Turkish tourism in the future.

Use the links below to find out more about where these spa's and thermal springs can be found:

• Balcova Springs
• Bursa
• Cesme
• Dalyan
• Kangal Sivas