For thousands of years, human societies have enjoyed time spent in water as a means of relaxation, social interaction, and healing. The name ‘spa’ (from the Latin verb spagere, to pour forth) was first used to identify a mineral hot springs in the year 1326 in the Ardennes range of France, and shortly afterward, pools were built in Spa, Belgium. European sanitariums, health resorts maintained for the preservation or recovery of individual well-being, would eventually be built on many popular sites boasting these treasured springs. In Japan, the onsen culture is quite literally at the center of society, and the oldest facility there, Dõgo Onsen, has a history stretching back over one thousand years.
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