During our road trip in Hungary, we chose to forget about driving around and sightseeing, and we spent half a day doing nothing, but relax in a rather unusual place.

The Miskolctapolca Cave Baths is a really cool resort of thermal water pools in the Miskoltapolca town of Hungary. The cave in which the pools are now, is a natural one and the thermal waters come from natural springs from the hills around.

The thermal water (temperature: 30°C/86°F) is reputed to reduce joint pain, and since it has a lower salt content than most thermal waters , people can bathe in it for much longer, practically an unlimited amount of time.

The experience is quite unique for a first time. The cave offers a maze to swim through. There are also outdoor pools that communicate with the ones from the cave, the water being hot as well. So for us, even if it was a cold September day, with no sun, we could enjoy a nice swim outside as well.

The resort looks very nice, it has all the needed facilities, including a sauna and Jacuzzi area, which we also tried and enjoyed to the maximum.

The place can get very crowded, especially since there are lots of people who come here for treatment, not only relaxation. We were lucky enough to get there quite early (just in time for opening) and for almost an hour we were the only ones exploring the cave.

The place is open all year round, except January and it’s a perfect place to go when the weather outside is not really nice. Here‘s a list of the admission fees.