Immerse yourself in a ‘therma-break’

From hot springs and hammams to an underwater sauna, Issy Von Simson picks 20 ways to stay warm and well this winter

Even as the thermometer hovers around zero, there will be a hardy crew queueing in their swimming caps on the wooden pontoon, ready to slip into the still ponds of Hampstead Heath or the chilly waters of the Serpentine in London, or with toes on the ladders of lidos up and down the country. Everyone has gone wild for cold-water swimming. It has swept through the wellness scene in the past few years, along with a trend for general shivering, so much so that spas now give top billing to ice baths and cryotherapy chambers.

But for those who baulk at the idea of a snow shower when it is actually snowing outside, now is the time to flip the switch. Heat-focused wallowing has been the hot ticket for more than 2,000 years, thanks to the Romans’ knack for building settlements around hot springs, most famously Aquae Sulis, which we now know as Bath. The Swiss, too, have been tapping into the benefits of toasty underground waters – charged with sodium, iron, sulphur and salts – for centuries.

Ever since the discovery of the springs in the Tamina Gorge in the 1200s (locals thought the steam rising out of the rocks was the breath of a dragon), the warm thermal waters have drawn pilgrims and wellness-seekers from far and wide. Back then, the ailing were lowered into the pools with rope tied round their waists – and there they dangled, sometimes for up to a week.

These days, experiencing thermal thrills is happily a more sophisticated and comfortable affair. Across the Alps there are numerous steamy retreats to which people flock in the depths of winter – drinking the water, steeping themselves in it, fingers turning to prunes, shoulders softening, racing thoughts slowing down. But it is not just thermal waters that warm things up. In North Africa and the Middle East, sweltering hammams act as the social gathering places for communities coming together to cleanse and to converse. Russian banyas, Nordic saunas, Japanese onsen and French thalassotherapy centres may all rely on different methodologies, but they all speak the language of heat.

These therapies are rooted in being restorative and, at best, are seen as a cure for ailments ranging from asthma to arthritis. At the very least they reduce stress, improve circulation, ease muscle pains and flush out toxins. Heat-seeking travelling (let’s call it therma-tourism) is nothing new, but at this time of year we are reminded why this ancient wellbeing ritual, so simple and effective, is such a good idea. Here are 20 healing hot spots around the world in which to turn up the temperature.

Scan to join in

Sign up for regular updates and inspiration from Telegraph Travel, delivered straight to your inbox twice a week

iWarm-up lane: swim at Naturhotel Forsthofgut, Austria, with ‘steamy mists rolling off the outdoor pools’ and snow-capped peaks in the background