Los Baños Árabes

One of our cultural activities in Sevilla, and one of my favorites, was a trip to Los Baños Árabes, or the baths that have been around since the Moorish occupation of Spain (they are old). 

The baths are tucked away on Calle Aire, a remote street sandwiched between the Cathedral and the Reales Alcázares. Still used today, they're somewhat of a luxury for los Sevillanos. My host mom told me that she only gets gift certificates to the baños for her daughter on her birthday. 

You can smell all sorts of incense upon walking in, giving you a sense of calm and purity. It's a nice break from the usual busy streets of Sevilla.

Like most buildings constructed in the traditional Mudéjar style, the bathhouse has a main patio area with a fountain.

View from second floor where the dressing rooms are.

 From the entrance you're given shoe coverings, a hostess takes you up the stairs and gives you slippers (terry cloth with rubber soles so you don't slip or get warts in the baths), and you're free to change into your swimsuit and enjoy a two hour session in the baths.

Canopy covering the main patio area to keep out environmental stressors. 

There are a handful of rooms in the bathhouse:

One room has a whirlpool that gives you a pretty nice back massage when you place yourself strategically around the tub. 

There's a steam room.

My favorite part of the bathhouse is basically like a hot water swimming pool. You walk in and there's a pool of warm water to swim around in (or relax on benches along the walls) to get into another area that has two more baths; one with really hot water in order to get your blood flowing properly, and another bath with freezing water in order to reduce inflammation. I personally was too much of a weakling for the cold bath, but the hot one was amazing.

There's also a pool of salt water on the bottom floor. The room itself is really cool. The ceiling is still the same old concrete/brick ceiling from years and years ago, and it almost feels like a cave. The pool has a bar along the side of it, and you rest your head along the bar to keep you in place while you float (the salt concentration allows you to float effortlessly). I feel like this room, aside from the hot water pool, is the most beneficial. Salt draws out impurities from the skin and relaxes the muscles, so it's probably the most healing of the baths. Only downside was that if you got any of the water in your eyes it would sting for a bit. 

There's also a lounge room between the whirlpool and warm water pools where you can eat fruit and cookies and drink some tea, juice, or water. 

If you pay extra for a massage, they have a massage room, too.

Ceiling of the corridors in the bath house.

 All in all, if you are in Sevilla for more than a day and have some time to spare, this is definitely a VERY ;) necessary part of your experience and a nice pause from all the touristy activities.