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Therme Vals, Switzerland
The Setting
Located in an isolated mountain valley of Switzerland’s easternmost canton, Therme Vals’s original draw was the elaborate baths designed by Peter Zumthor — an architectural monument that became the Bilbao of bathing overnight. My husband and I made a pilgrimage planning to spend one night; instead we stayed for three and left reluctantly. But our experience went beyond the baths. We loved the whole curious but charming dissonance of the place—from the hamlet town of 1,000 with its rösti restaurants, to the unsettling first impression that you’ve arrived at a drab ’60s ski resort (the mind-bending baths are built into the side of the hill), to the chain-smoking after-dinner lounge act.
The Spa
The bathing halls kept calling us back throughout the day. Constructed from ribbons of silver-gray Valser quartzite, the baths are sleek and monochromatic, but the panoramic picture windows invite the rich greens of the Swiss mountain face inside. The velvety sensuality of the stone encouraged focus on all the sensory experiences surrounding us: the smell of calendula in the flower petal pool, the bubbles of the naturally carbonated water gently clinging to our bodies, and the water massage provided by some powerful brass spigots. We felt like explorers spelunking through the vast labyrinthine world of Zumthor’s baths.
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Best of all were the silent midnight soaks. After dinner we returned to the bathing hall, careful to observe the signs at the entry that reminded us not to speak. We followed a tunnel to an outdoor pool where steam rose above the 97°F water and the moonlight splashed down on us — snowflakes powdered our eyelashes. Nearby were other couples, silently floating together, each engaged in their own private water dance.
Esalen, California
The Setting
Esalen is proof that God favors sensualists. It’s built on 27 acres of the Big Sur coast — a sublime stretch of shore studded with redwoods, beaches, waterfalls, and, of course, hot springs. Fifty feet above the swirling, crashing Pacific, 119°F mineral water, once revered by local Indians for its healing power, cascades into exquisitely designed cobblestone and concrete tubs. The funky sulfur scent rising from pools scattered across the sandstone deck hints at the water’s richness. Some tubs are exposed to the elements, others sheltered beneath dynamic cantilevered ceilings, and each one sucks the stress from your bones and soul almost instantly.
The Spa
Esalen is more an institute than a classic spa. Yogis, Buddhist teachers, authors, and musicians offer seminars year-round. There are even weekend tantric sex workshops for couples, but it is possible to arrange day spa services. In fact, people come from all over the world just to soak in the famed Esalen baths, and they’re all naked. The changing rooms are coed; the showers, built with sliding glass windows on the seaward side, are likewise unisex — the bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Public displays of self-assured nudity are rampant here — height, weight, body fat be damned. We’re talking contagious self-body-love, and, frankly, there’s nothing sexier.
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Priority #1 is to submerge in the shimmering pools, #1A is to enjoy Esalen’s singular massage. There is a soothing quality to the therapists’ long, sensitive strokes, and they are not clock-watchers. They work until the kinks are smooth and all tension is released. And if you’re too loose to leave, book a room with a view, enjoy the organic seductions they call dinner, and watch the sunset and moonrise over the ocean. Then strip down, feel the night air in all your glory, and hit the baths one more time.
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