15 Hot Springs Around the World

Detoxifying Beauty Treatments

It may seem like good looking, healthy skin is all about what you put into it — moisturisers, serums and the like. Of course, products like these can certainly go a long way in this regard. But it’s also important to think about what you take out of your skin too.

“Your skin is your largest organ and it ‘breathes’ in pollutants and chemicals from your environment every day,” says Jordan Barton, a spa manager at Canyon Ranch in Lenox. “You may make an effort to reduce the toxins in your diet to stay healthy. Detoxifying beauty treatments are designed in a similar spirit—to help rid your skin of substances that can hinder it from looking and feeling its best.”

When perusing your favorite spa’s menu of services, consider these detoxifying options:

Sea Salt Scrubs Body Wraps

Your body has several ways it detoxifies itself naturally, and sweating is an important one. Body wraps can encourage this process while nourishing the skin. For example, a technician may place seaweed on your skin; wrap you in a hot, wet sheet and then cocoon you in a warm, dry blanket. The bundling raises your internal body temperature to encourage the purging of toxins, which also makes the skin more prime to take in the antioxidants from this nutrient-rich “ocean grass.” Body wraps can come in many varieties, all designed with these end goals in mind.

Mud or Clay Treatments

Dead skin essentially blocks cell turnover and regeneration. It also traps in environmental toxins that can further contribute to dry, dull skin. In this detoxifying treatment, the grittiness of the sea salt sloughs off superficial skin—and the impurities in it— to cleanse and rejuvenate. After removing dead skin at the surface, the salt’s nourishing properties give the added bonus of remineralizing the skin, improving its hydration and overall health. do. What makes these treatments extra sweet, however, is the fact that sugar contains natural alph% hydroxy acids, which help cells regenerate properly.

The thought of covering your body in what’s essentially dirt may seem counterintuitive when you’re looking to cleanse your skin. As mud and clay dry, however, they detoxify the skin by pulling impurities out, which later get rinsed away.

Dry Brushing

This service may be offered individually, as an addon or as part of another treatment. Like scrubs, it helps detoxify skin by removing dead skin cells that harbor impurities. The motion also helps stimulate circulation, which increases blood flow and, therefore, helps support another one of your body’s natural detoxification processes—circulation. Lymphatic Massge

Your lymphatic system is a network of organs, nodes, ducts and vessels that move clear fluid from tissues to the bloodstream, in part, to detoxify the body. “Think of it as your body’s natural waste disposal,” explains Barton. Lymphatic massage is specifically geared to help this system function properly by opening up blocks in Lymphatic massage is specifically geared to help this system function properly by opening up the blockages.

While it’s not a beauty treatment per se, you may notice less skin puffiness and inflammation as a result. It can also bring greater body-wide benefits, like improved energy.

Sauna and Steam

When you’re done with your detoxifying beauty treatment, it’s worth spending some time in the spa’s sauna or steam room. Remember that sweating it out helps your body flush out toxins. But if you switch between these hot rooms and cold environments, like a dip pool, you can also increase circulation

15 Hot Springs Around the World That Are All About the Natural Views

By Caitlin Morton and Betsy Blumenthal

Hot springs, where scalding water has bubbled up to the surface, are some of the most amazing natural wonders you can encounter. For centuries, these mineral-rich waters have either gathered naturally into pools or have been channeled into man-made spas, both options providing therapeutic and medicinal benefits—-and some good old-fashioned relaxation. (Because who doesn't love - hot tub?) And while you may not be able to take a dip in some of these springs, they're still photogenic enough to get you hundreds of likes on Instagram. Here, 15 of the best hot springs around the world.

Pamukkale, Denizli, Turkey

The 17 tiered pools of Pamukkale (“cotton castle” in Turkish) are as beautiful as hot springs get. The still, 94-degree Fahrenheit waters, contained in milky white travertine (a form of limestone) formations, perfectly reflect the cerulean Aegean sky and overlook the southwestern city of Denizli, about a six-hour drive south of Istanbul. Pamukkale is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with the nearby ancient spa town of Hierapolis, where various forms of hydrotherapy were once used in tandem with religious rituals. Take a dip in the nearby Cleopatra pool, also known as the Pamukkale Antique Pool; it’s said to have been a gift from Marc Antony to the pharaoh herself.

Khir Ganga, Himachal Pradesh, India

Starting from the village of Barsheni in India’s gorgeous Parvati Valley, it takes about four hours to hike up to these hot springs. But it’s well worth the effort to reach Khir Gang-—- meadow where Hindu god Shiva is said to have meditated for 3,000 years—especially when you get to immediately bathe in the pools and take in surrounding views of the Himalayas. There are two pools (one for men, one for women) at the springs, as well as a nearby Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva.

Blue Lagoon, Iceland from the capital of Reykjavik, is otherworldly in appearance—black lava rock punctuated with milky blue waters, and steam billowing like clouds. But the visual appeal is only part of the experience. A soak in the 100-degree waters (which come from the output of a nearby geothermal plant) is a spalike experience all its own, with silica mud masks and mineral salts ensuring your skin will look and feel better than it did when you got there.

Chena Hot Springs, Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska

About 60 miles northeast of Fairbanks, Alaska, is where you’ll find Chena Hot Springs, a natural hot springs with its own resort. Discovered in 1905 by a pair of gold mining brothers, the hot springs are the main attraction. At the boulder-encircled lake, guests can soak in 106-degree Fahrenheit w-aters— and, if they’re lucky, catch a glimpse of the aurora borealis. The resort has plenty of other options for taking a dip, including indoor and outdoor tubs, Jacuzzis, and an indoor swimming pool, and doesn’t

require visitors to spend the night to enjoy the springs. Bonus: the resort is also home to the Aurora Ice Museum (open year-round), crafted from over 1,000 tons of ice and snow, where you can sip an appletini at an ice bar.

Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

At about 370 feet wide and 120 feet deep, Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest hot spring in Yellowstone and the third largest in the entire world. The center of the pool is piercing blue (and, at about 188.6 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to be sterile), surrounded by rings of color ranging from green to orange—an effect produced by bacteria that thrive in the warm, mineral-rich waters. No swimming is allowed here, for obvious reasons, but it’s still the most photographed thermal fe-ture in the national park. Spend the night at one of our favorite national park hotels: the Old Faithful Inn, just - 20-minute drive south of the spring.

Deception Island, Antarctica

Deception Island is like a song of ice and fire, where an active submarine volcano has formed a caldera in the middle of Antarctica’s freezing South Shetland Islands. The island keeps its heat hidden below the surface, so visitors will often dig into the black sand beaches to feel the geothermal heat after taking a polar plunge in the sea. And while there -are no “official” hot springs, there are thermal springs along the shoreline of Pendulum Cove that can reach temperatures of over 158 degrees Fahrenheit. When that water mixes with the cold ocean water, you have yourself a viable natural hot tub. You can reach the island via cruise—we recommend Norwegi-an Cruise Line’s

Huanglong National Park, Sichuan, China

The entire Huanglong Valley, in the northwest of Sichuan province, is a UNESCO World Heritage site, known for its giant panda population, snowy mountains, travertine landscape, and hot springs. The terraced pools of crystal clear water stretch on for 2.2 miles—t-aken together, the formations are even thought to look like a huge dragon, snaking its way through the mountains— and an ancient Buddhist temple sits atop the valley. You can’t get in the electric blue waters, but you can view them from above, at the top of the valley, by walking up a paved path or via - short cable car ride.

Banjar Hot Springs, Bali, Indonesia

You know Bali for its rocking beach clubs, electric surf scene, and thick, verdant jungles—but it’s also home to another, lesser-known attraction: Banjar Hot Springs. Set in the island’s far northern reaches, less than a mile from the famed Brahma Vihara Arama Buddhist monastery, the hot spring is a destination unto itself, with a private pool and Jacuzzi area, a spa that offers massages and body scrubs, and a 50-seat shaded outdoor restaurant that dishes out both Western and Indonesian f-are. But it’s those healing waters you’re here for. With - 26 percent sulfur content that can help ease itchy, inflamed skin, and a temperture of about 100.4 degrees, the glossy green waters feed into three different pools: there’s - 6.5-foot-deep main swimming pool, -a three-foot-deep children’s pool, ideal for bathing, and a pool with overhead spouts in the shape of dragons.

Terme di Saturnia, Tuscany, Italy

The Cascate del Mulino waterfalls and Terme di Saturnia thermal spa are a popular attraction in southern Tuscany. The falls flow onto travertine rocks, which have formed small pools over the centuries. The spring water—which sits at about 99 degrees Fahrenheit—is said to help alleviate everything from acne to tonsillitis. If you want to spend more than half a day experiencing the destination, we recommend penciling in a few nights at the eponymous onsite resort, which is also equipped with its own sprawling golf course and spa.

Uunartoq Island, Greenland

Hot springs are abundant in South Greenland, but the uninhabited island of Uunartoq is home to the only hot springs in the country that are warm enough to bathe in all year round. The waters range from 93 to100 degrees Fahrenheit, even during the freezing months of winter, and the springs can be