Velingrad was put together from three old villages — Ladzhene, Kamenitsa and Chepino — and each had its own springs and its own bath. That is why five public baths work in one town today, each with its own spring, history and character. With two days you can try them all.

Velyova Banya — the legend

Velyova Banya in Ladzhene, by the pine park and the Lukovitsa river, probably dates from the mid-17th century and is named after Velyo, a local governor who, the story goes, was cured of skin sores in a warm pool on this spot. Today's building is from 1926. The water is about 43 °C and is used without cooling — strongly alkaline, pleasant-tasting, good for drinking as well as inhalation.

Radonova Banya — the two Ottoman baths

In Chepino, Radonova Banya is really two baths — one for men, one for women — from the mid-18th century. The men's pool dates from Ottoman times, and the women's bath keeps ornaments from the Ottoman masonry. The water is about 45 °C and contains radon, which gives the baths their name. Nearby are open-air soaking pools that locals look after and anyone can use.

Sarna Banya — the royal project

Sarna Banya in Kamenitsa was Tsar Ferdinand's idea, designed by the Italian Luigi Pietris on the model of Karlovy Vary and only finished in 1921. The spring is 88 °C, cooled to 38–39 °C in the bath. With almost 9 mg/l of fluoride it is recommended for preventing osteoporosis. Go into the pool up to your waist — not up to your neck.

Kalna Banya — water from the sand

Kalna Banya opened in 1937 over a spring that had formed healing mud in the sandy ground. The natural spring dried up in the 1970s, and the water now comes by pipe from a borehole — 84 °C at source, about 39 °C in the bath. It is not for drinking, but for tubs and pools for joint, skin and gynaecological problems.

Kremachna Banya — the oldest men's bath

Kremachna Banya in central Ladzhene was built in 1750–1751 by Hadji Yakub, as a marble inscription in the history museum records. Its water is cooler — 35–36 °C — so it is pleasant for a longer stay; it is recommended for neuroses, mild high blood pressure and menopausal complaints.

How to visit them

  • Start the morning with Kremachna and Velyova — both are in Ladzhene, a few minutes' walk apart.
  • In the afternoon, go to Kalna and Sarna in Kamenitsa.
  • Save Radonova in Chepino for the next day and finish at the open-air pools nearby.
  • Do no more than two baths a day — hot water tires you more than it seems.

The old Women's Bath by the mineral beach is sadly closed. Opening hours for all of them, and which is for men or women today, are on their pages and in Now!.