Turkish Baths & Health Spa Harrogate

First off, the décor here is amazing. It’s done very stylishly and really helps to relax.
They’ve got a hot room with inner sections of various temperatures, a steam room, and a cold pool. There was nothing better than heating up and making a dash for the cold pool — move fast and you’ll make it in, hesitate at all and he cold will beat you!
I took the opportunity to get my first ever treatment — a back, neck, and shoulder massage — which whilst not for me, was relatively cheap (about £30 for 30min).
The only slight downside was that from the three of us who had the same treatment, we all got recommended the same product to buy on our way out.
If you’re in Harrogate, I’d definitely make time to visit the Baths.

On a rainy cold day trip to Harrogate we found out that these baths existed which was a godsend. After hearing that they were the only one of its sort in England still in use, we decided it was definitely something to try out.
So we ended up booking a late evening slot (5−9pm) and rushing off to buy some swimwear — you need it for the mixed sessions. They hold single sex sessions where you can just go in the nude, if you wish.
The place is a stunning Victorian building with lots of original features. The tiles are amazingly beautiful.
I’ve never been to anything like it before, it has a sauna and three different temperature rooms with the last and hottest one being 70 degrees or thereabouts. You gradually build up to the last room and have a plunge bath in-​between rooms. There’s also a nice relaxation room when the heat gets too much.
It was great to experience and worth a visit.

This could be the best spa spot in the UK. Highlight of my work trip to Harrogate this weekend. Sneaky tip — book ahead and ask them when the less busy sessions are. Get there early and you’ll be let in before the others and therefore find it less crowded and more relaxing! I went on the Sunday evening session and paid just over 20 squids.
In essence, this building is bloody amazing. It’s an iconic listed royal baths, and the renovation here has been done just beautifully. All of the old 18^th and 19^th century features remain, including showers, taps, gorgeous wooden changing rooms and more. It’s like stepping into a time warp, a good time warp.
There is a process to follow to ‘take the waters’ which involves a lot of cold plunge pooling, showers, steam and heat rooms. I followed the plan exactly as directed and I felt amazing afterwards.
I also had a massage with the lovely therapist Bridget. She was knowledgeable and checked out all the details about my broken back before commencing. So relaxing and she gave me a few tips for my stiff neck afterwards also — result!
This spa alone makes me want to return to Harrogate. Please do go if you visit the town.

Let me just say ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh
I love it here, you are greeted by very pleasant and well informed staff so if you have never been before fear not! Everything is provided for you so you do not need to take a towel and to be honest you smell so divine afterwards I’d leave the shower gel at home! So there is a steam room which if you can handle it opens up every pore you would think never existed! Then the way it goes down is:
Shower
Ice pool (yes I said ICE pool and its sodding freezing!)
Room 1 — which is just a gentle warm room with stone seating and lounge
beds just to chill out and take in some heavenly warm breaths.
Shower
Ice pool — I’m not kidding
Room 2 — you may get the drift here but it’s a hotter room than room 1 and it’s a beautiful feeling of aromas and lovely hugging warmness.
Shower
Ice pool — now at this point the ice pool is a MUST do not fear! Once you have made the initial splosh it’s a wonderful feeling. It almost feels like a fresh spring and when you come out you kind of feel like a human mint.
Room 3 — now this room is blooming hot. if you like the full throttle this one is for you. Let the pores open and your toxins diminish!
Shower
Ice pool — mmmmmmmm
Then simply sit in the chill out room and let your body temperature regulate over a magazine, book or a little catch up.
Water is on hand here so drink plenty. The only downside is that for a Friday morning is it was very busy. Women only sessions can only mean one thing, I couldn’t completely relax for all the chitter chatter!!! A beautiful building which boasts a very Turkish feel! I would give yourself 2 hours for an all round experience.

The delightful Turkish baths and spa, were visited with a group of girlies on a hen weekend, and after hearing good things I was looking forward to some relaxation time. The baths and spa are one of seven Victorian baths that remain, dating back from the 19^th century.
The reception area is very inviting with a lounge area, complete with comfy sofas that you just sink into with reading material such as newspapers and magazines on hand.
We were given a show around of the facilities — the changing rooms, steam room with eucalyptus infused steam (bliss!) heat chambers — chambers that get hotter in heat the further you go on, the ice cold plunge pool, and relaxation area with loungers.
I was happily going between each of the facilities from steam room, to cold shower back into the steam room and yes I did go into the ice cold plunge pool too! Must be mad!
It was lovely to be able to chill out in the heat chambers, and I could feel the stresses of modern day life drift away.
A superb way of spending a few hours relaxing. I will be back!

The website advises that you give yourself 1.5 hours here… I would advise longer.
This is an amazing place to come and relax and lounge and just *feel* the toxins leaving you. I thought the toxin thing was a bit nonsense to start but genuinely, I actually smelled different for a few days after my afternoon in the baths.
I didn’t have any treatments and kind of wish I had, but then the baths themselves were so decadent that I didn’t feel I needed any massage to go along with it. I was actually surprised at how busy it was for a Friday afternoon and expect that the weekend would be even busier, but everyone was incredibly lovely and chilled out.
I even thought the price was completely reasonable and would pay that much to spend a few hours in a Turkish bath for a treat once a month.
The Turkish Baths were the highlight of my trip to Harrogate and I would definitely return.

Prepare to cleanse those pores people! Huge fan of the Turkish Baths in Harrogate but beware the naked pensioners!
On my first visit with my mum we were given a thorough introduction to bathing including when to plunge ourselves into the icy pool — painful but so worth it!
I prefer the ladies only sessions but this does mean that swimming costumes are not obligatory so be prepared for some unsightly nudity.
A delcious way to spend the afternoon (allow a couple of hours) and a great way to revive yourself before a walk into town. Head straight to Betty’s if you’re in any doubt.

Harrogate is a cauldron of luxury from the bars to fine cuisine but you can’t go to Harrogate without a visit to the Spa Baths.
To have such a decadent and relaxing venue on tap (excuse the pun) is a dream. What is does is totally unwind all those everyday stresses away and makes you feel a million dollars. Now this is pampering.
Choose from any number of luxury treatments or just spend time relaxing in the beautiful steam rooms. It is an ideal gift and somewhere to take your friends and family for a day to recharge the batteries. I suggest the deluxe chocolate wrap which is a delicious body treatment using cocoa. You may want to eat it but don’t. If it’s facials you want, then again no worries on that account. There are loads to take your pick from. Although it isn’t dirt cheap, I think it offers real value for money. There are different options for whatever your budget. If you are feeling especially flush then go for a full on package for a total spoiling session. Then finish off with a visit to the baths for some steam treatments and a day of utter indulgence. This is as good as it gets.

A beautifully restored Victorian (?) building. Don’t expect fanciness when it comes to this spa, but expect to feel the history of it. Be sure to have a look at the old Victorian photographs on the wall in the café.
A traditional Turkish Baths, the place is busy on peak sessions, usually mixed, but if you go on off peak sessions you can generally have the place between 5 – 6 of you.
For just short of £20 for 2 hours this is a lovely way to spend an evening, or a morning whiling away the hours with friends. I’ve been lots of times and return again and agin and again.

When my friend suggested we go to a Turkish Bath for the evening I imagined a load of overweight, naked, wrinkly men slouching around like kings with their crown jewels on show around steamy pools of murky water. She insisted it wasn’t like that at all, and so I gave in and packed by bikini, slightly nervous as to what I was letting myself in for. We got the train from Leeds to Harrogate which cost about £4 return and then took the short walk from the station to the baths. On arrival we paid for a session (£13 for up to 4 hours) and were shown into a small corridor of changing booths and asked to change into our swim wear and to put our belongings in a locker (for which you will need £1 but you get it back). We then walked curiously through a luxuriously decorated, and toasty warm hall which was lined on either side with reclining wooden deck chairs and covered in bright white towels. This was the relaxing area. This lead onto a wide pool which was filled with chilled water, used to cool down bathers after they had been in the steam rooms, a healthy way to revitalise and apparently good for the blood flow. Then their were the actual Turkish baths, which are in fact not actually baths but heated rooms where people can laze around, sweat out all of the weekends toxins and flick through magazines like exotic royals. You would imagine shiney muscular men in little pants wafting reclining customers with palm leaves, it is pure lazy indulgence. There are three of these heated chambers that increase in heat as you go on. The first (Tepidarium) the second (Calidarium) and the last (Lacomium). They are all a little bit much at first although you do get used it. The idea is that you heat yourself in them, and cool yourself in the pool and then repeat this process. They also have a steam room with eucalyptus which is heavenly. After a few rounds of the heating and cooling we lay in the relaxation area and I very nearly fell asleep. After we left, I felt euphoric and slightly giddy. It is an amazing experience and one I would highly recommend.

I love this place. The facilities are gorgeous and unique … worth a visit if you’ve never been, and worth visiting regularly if you’re into it. I would give it more stars (like five) if the facilities and staff were more consistently excellent.
I love the old polished wood, the victorian showers and tiles, the velvet drapes, the heat, the eucalyptus in the steam room, the plenteous supply of cold drinking water, the abundance of fluffy white towels, the drone of the fans … everything.
It usually takes me over two hours to do a couple of circuits of the rooms, and by the time I’m finished my skin is softer than a baby’s, and every bit of me is completely relaxed (including my brain).
If you’re not into extreme heat and saunas, this place isn’t for you.
I’ve been about a dozen times, and have been disappointed a few times when things were out of order (the steam room, the loungers) … and last year (2008) and a few times this year, the staff were not great … they would start cleaning the place while people were relaxing in the saunas still. Nothing like having to walk barefoot through a few inches of bleach water, or inhale detergent fumes, to kill a relaxation buzz.
But the last time I went (a month ago) they had sorted out the cleaning, and I’m going again tomorrow yay!
If you find it difficult to do nothing, take a good book or magazine with you.

Had a nice time there, the Paradise Pinda massage I had was nice enough, but left me feeling a bit ‘Is that it?’ at the end of it.
The showers in the changing rooms need revamping as they’re well worn now and weren’t at all powerful.
Also noticed after reading a review from July 2008, ½hr massages have gone up £7. that is a hike!
Didn’t notice any rude ginger ladies behind reception

I had been looking forward to this visit. I’d read about the baths a number of years ago and was fascinated by what the experience would be like.
The visit was at the beginning of September and they were doing a service on the boiler. Now they had called me up to say that the hot tub would be out of action as I was booked in for a treatment in the spa next door, but they missed out the bit about the baths not in full action. Had they said so I would have postponed the visit but instead I went and had a disappointing experience.
The baths are meant to be very hot but as the boiler was being serviced it was more like lukewarm. Also the plunge pool wasnt icy cold as I had expected it to be. My only consolation was the steam room which was working but it was no different from my local gym!
The place is beautiful to look at though having recently been awarded a substantial heritage lottery grant.
Staff were very helpful but unable to help with my complaint. Felt bit cheated as I had put a lot of effort into the visit.

We came here for my friend’s birthday and it was a real good treat mmm. The building itself is beautiful, and once you get the hand of getting in the plunge pool after each stage, it’s really really enjoyable.
We didn’t try any of the treatments, but when we left we didn’t want to put our clothes back on because our skin felt so soft and we were so relaxed :)
The only quibble I have is with the ginger lady behind the counter. She was very rude and unhelpful. Everyone else working there was lovely though and made up for their ill-​behaved colleague quite nicely. I will still give her evils the next time I go though

What a fantastic place!!! The staff are professional, friendly and treat you so well that you just don’t want to leave. The baths are an expereience to behold… plung in ice cold water (yes, ice cold!), shower in cold water and move on to the hot rooms ranging from warm to absolutely roasting. All this will leave you so relaxed and calm that may you may not want to try any of the beauty treatments available… but you can always come back another time!