HEALTH TOURISM

THE BAÑOS DE MONTEMAYOR SPA

CONTENTS

• TECHNICAL DATA
• A SHORT HISTORY
• THE WATERS
• THERAPEUTIC PROPERTIES
• FACILITIES
• THE SURROUNDING AREA
• LOCATION

TECHNICAL DATA

Name

Balneario de Baños de Montemayor

Address

Avenida de las Termas, 57 10750 Baños de Montemayor. Cáceres

Telephone number +34 927 48 83 02 Fax +34 927 48 81 27

Director

D. Antonio Sierra De Miguel

 

 

Location and access

The Spa is located in the very centre of Baños de Montemayor and is easily reached from either Plasencia or Cáceres by taking the N-630 through the Ambroz Valley. From Salamanca, after passing Béjar and the mountain pass of the same name, Baños de Montemayor is the first village we come to in the province of Extremadura. From Madrid the best route is via Ávila and Béjar (in the province of Salamanca), barely 16 kilometres from Baños de Montemayor.

Seasons

From the 1st of March to the 30th of November.
Spa Opening Hours
Mornings from 9:00 to 13:00
Evenings from 17:00 to 20:00

A SHORT HISTORY

Up until 1999 many historians and writers voiced the opinion that the origin of the Spa was to be found in the ancient “Aquae Caprense”, known also as Baños de Béjar and Baños de Montemayor, which dates back to the time when these lands were dominated by the Romans, a chronology which makes the Spa one of the most venerable in the entire Iberian Peninsula. Following the refurbishment and the extension of the baths which came to an end in June 2000, these historical estimations have been proven correct. As well as equipping the building with the most up to date installations, the work provided Extremadura’s historians with data and archaeological discoveries which demonstrated the great importance of the baths during the Roman era and also with the great fortune of being able to see in situ the magnificent restoration and improvement work carried out on the original Roman thermal baths.

Many secular discoveries made in 1999 and 2000 – votive offerings, altars dedicated to nymphs and abundant Latin epigraphs – corroborated the fact that during the period of Roman domination these thermal springs were used and venerated by Roman military personnel and civil servants and also by the Hispanic-Roman populace which in the 2nd century BC found considerable relief from their ills in the beautiful lake formed by these gushing sulphuric waters.

At the beginning of the century, the principal person behind the excavations and the reconstruction of the Roman Theatre in Mérida, Don José Ramón Mélida, had suggested that there were clear signs of what might well be the original Roman thermal baths which through time had been lost due to the constructions and rebuilding which had thereafter been carried out in the area. As was the case in other highly important thermal sites throughout Europe, Baños de Montemayor would continue to be used in later epochs, favoured by what for centuries was the Roman Vía de la Plata (Silver Road) and later the N-630 and the present day A-66 which links the north and the south of Extremadura and the neighbouring communities of Castile-León and Andalusia.

At the beginning of the 17th century the usefulness and the renown of the baths were reaffirmed and in 1628, in the days of the Marquis of Montemayor, Don Juan Luis de Silva y Ribera, the regulations of these north Extremadura Baths were reformed. In the final years of the 18th century, Bishop Laso took an interest in the thermal waters of Baños, in gratitude for the improvement which took place in those users who took the waters. This illustrious citizen of Palencia ordered that access roads be built and bridges repaired. This important work which benefitted the village and its thermal waters was continued by the Bishop of Porras and the Chantry of Plasencia who ordered that the waters be collected and channelled, that washing places and a covered area for bathing be built together with a gallery with basins for the use of bathers.

At the beginning of the 19th century, in 1817, the Spa was allocated its first Director, Don Francisco Martínez and in 1833, the town councils of the neighbourhoods of Béjar and Montemayor decided that the Spa should be the property of the villagers, who then created what was known as the “Protective Council of the Establishment”. At considerable cost, important modifications and gradual extensions were carried out throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the result of which was an attractive, cosy Spa beside which a magnificent hotel was built, under the same name, at the beginning of the second decade of the 20th century. The Spa was rented out to the famous politician and member of the Radical Party, Alejandro Lerroux who considerably boosted the Spa’s growth. He ceded ownership to Ferrero and Company PLC which was dissolved in 1944 leaving Don Miguel Ferrero Pardo and his heirs as the Administrators of both the Spa and the Hotel. This family did not hesitate to dedicate effort and enthusiasm to the maintenance of both the Spa and the Hotel which had important repercussions on employment in the village, to say nothing of the medicinal benefits enjoyed by both patients and visitors.

The construction in 1995 of a new building, opposite the old one, has succeeded in creating a thermal complex which is unique in Spain. The charm of the “old” totally reformed building survives as the existent structures were maintained and new rooms built for baths, massages, parafango and aerosol treatment, swimming pools etc.

The impressive thermal pools are indeed outstanding, located as they are in the lower part of the Spa, beside the museum. The walls of this ample vaulted space are of secular brick and the floors are of white marble. Classical statues stand in a beautiful pavilion and are accompanied, as if transported from ancient times, by the restored original Roman baths.

In Baños de Montemayor the thermal buildings are still supplied by the waters which gush from the spring, just as in the days of the Romans.

THE WATERS

The waters are classified as sulphurous, sodium and oligometalic. Its spring temperature is 43ºC. The waters are principally recommended for:

Rheumatologic processes, Arthritis, Infections of the respiratory system.

They also have an invigorating and embellishing effect on the skin. The water itself comes from two nearby springs which are called Columna and Arqueta, (Column and Small Chest).

THERAPEUTIC PROPERTIES

Rheumatology Treatments

Thermal baths, Oxygen baths (bubbles), Thermal jets, Vapour stoves for feet and hands, Thermal bath with a Niagara style programmable sub-aquatic jet, Thermal bath with distributed and progressive Aqualel style hydro massage, Thermal bath with pressure-regulated sub-aquatic massage (a deep bathtub), Shower or fusion (Vichy massage), Jet columns (hydrotherapeutic).

Respiratory Treatments

Inhalations, Pulverisations, Nose bath, Humid inhalation, Sonic aerosol.

 

Other treatments

Parafangos, Pressotherapy, Finnish Sauna, Gymnasium, Massage, Drinking water, Therapeutic swimming pool, Free-use swimming pool, Paraffin, Microwaves.

Range of Cosmetics

Over the last few years the centre has been able to create an interesting range of cosmetics which includes a series of products which feature:

Face cream, Facial Tonic, Thermal Gel, Thermal Shampoo, Thermal Soap, Thermal Balm, Body Milk, Cologne, Sulphureous pomade, Cleansing Milk.

FACILITIES

The Spa’s medical facilities include:

- An initial appointment in which a clinical history is opened and treatment prescribed.

- Subsequent complementary attention, according to the client’s needs.

- Treatment provided in the Spa.

- Facilities such as changing rooms, halls and relaxation terraces are free of charge.

- There is an underground car park.

- A Cafeteria.

- An historical thermal exhibition.

THE SURROUNDING AREA

Granadilla, Hervás y Plasencia.