Hot Springs Of Mexico
There are either 576, more than 1,000 hot springs or too many to count in Mexico, depending on whom you talk to. There are also a couple of dozen spas in Mexico. Mexican spas are bargains, but do not usually have hot springs. Most of Mexico's hot springs are in the states of Michoacan and Guanajuato, though there are Mexican hot springs in Durango, Veracruz. Zacatecas, Jalisco, Chihuahua, Sonora, Hidalgo, Puebla and other Mexican states. My book, Spas & Hot Springs of Mexico covered 60 spas and hot springs, but it is out of print -- but a few copies were recently found in a garage. so click the image at the right to order.
About 40 chapters are on the hot springs, with mineral content, water temperature and driving directions for the out-of-the-way hot springs. A lot of work went into it and it is the only Mexico-specific hot springs book. For sample chapters see samples.
These are the last extant copies of the book, Spas & Hot Springs of Mexico. I've seen this book on Amazon for $70 and even talked to some people who paid that for it. Get your own autographed copy of Spas & Hot Springs of Mexico for a mere $19.95 plus shipping ($5). Contact me if you want to buy Spas & Hot Springs of Mexico.
The spas of Mexico or Mexican spas are different than Mexican hot springs. Like in the United States, a spa doesn't need to have a hot spring. There is only one Mexican spa with a hot spring, Rio Caliente. Ixtapan spa no longer has a hot springs-fed pool.
Many Mexican hot springs are commercial enterprises, called balnearios. You have to be careful when asking locals about hot springs. To Mexicans, a balneario doesn't have to have hot water. It is a generic term for a bathing place. To find a hot spring, ask for un lugar con aguas termales (thermal waters). You might still get a wrong answer, but you have a better than 50-50 chance of finding a hot spring for a soak. Also, upper-class Mexicans do not frequent Mexican hot springs. So if you ask one of them about a balneario, they are more likely to refer you to a spa.
As time goes by, I will put a few Mexican hot springs on this site. Meanwhile, use the menu for links to a holistic hot springs retreats (Amatlan de Canas, Jalisco), US hot springs, and spas of Mexico.
If spas of Mexico are more your interest,