Wellness – I Am A Polar Bear

One really simply does not walk into Mordor: swimming in a volcano & getting stranded in a lava field

February 2, 2026

This is a really old adventure that’s had two or three posts over the years but deserves a new write-up and a new place at the very front of this blog rather than being buried in its bowels: the day I swam in an active volcano, got stranded for hours in a lava field and … More One really simply does not walk into Mordor: swimming in a volcano & getting stranded in a lava field

A spa day at Spa, the spa that named all spas

November 24, 2025

If you’re writing a book about hot baths, thermal water, steam rooms and bathing culture, sooner or later you’re going to find yourself in eastern Belgium in Spa, the town with natural thermal mineral water that gave its name to many towns with natural hot water and all places where you go to get properly … More A spa day at Spa, the spa that named all spas

Is the biggest spa in Europe overrated? My day at Therme București

November 10, 2025

“Are you going to the spa in Bucharest sometime?” It was just a comment on someone else’s Instagram, left over a year ago, on a post I shouldn’t even have been stalking but it set it all into motion. From the moment Therme București shoved its way into my consciousness, the biggest spa in Europe, … More Is the biggest spa in Europe overrated? My day at Therme București

Mývatn Nature Baths becomes Earth Lagoon and other changes in Iceland’s lagoons

October 9, 2025

Imagine the shock I got on Monday night, lounging in the bath after walking a mile uphill from Rangers to be greeted on Instagram by an announcement from an unknown Earth Lagoon in Iceland. A new lagoon? How did I not know it was coming? The mystery was quickly solved: after 21 years in business, … More Mývatn Nature Baths becomes Earth Lagoon and other changes in Iceland’s lagoons

What was the best place I swam in Iceland?

October 6, 2025

That was the question my boss asked as I signed off the day before I headed to London. “I want you to do me a favour. Tell me where you swim and tell me which is the best pool”. I already knew that was far too big a question to be answered with a single … More What was the best place I swam in Iceland?

Grettislaug: camping at a saga pool (North Iceland part 1)

September 1, 2025

This is the first of a little trilogy about the north of Iceland. Tourists flood to the south west and the South Coast but tend to skip over the north. If you ever watch a Ring Road vlog on YouTube, they cover the South Coast in excruciating detail, might do Stuðlagil and then skip over … More Grettislaug: camping at a saga pool (North Iceland part 1)

Everything you ever wanted to know about Iceland’s Canyon Baths

August 28, 2025

Húsafell’s Canyon Baths are a little bit mysterious. You don’t get to just turn up at the door – indeed, there is no door – but instead you meet at the activity centre in Húsafell where a guide drives you to the edge of the canyon and you have to walk down into it. It’s … More Everything you ever wanted to know about Iceland’s Canyon Baths

I tried Emser Therme’s naked riverside sauna

March 13, 2025

The last of the four spas I visited on my Great German Spa Towns trip and let’s get the spoiler out of the way early – it was probably my favourite. Bad Ems is a tiny place that doesn’t instinctively feel like the place to put an interesting spa with a unique feature but it … More I tried Emser Therme’s naked riverside sauna

KissSalis Therme: the one with the mushrooms

March 10, 2025

Next on the Great German Spa Towns adventure is KissSalis, in Bad Kissingen. So far I’ve been to Baden-Baden’s Caracalla Therme, which sits on the spa/waterpark borderline, and Friedrichsbad, which is as close to Roman as you’re going to find in 2025. And now, after a bus, three trains and a stroll, I made it … More KissSalis Therme: the one with the mushrooms

A swimwear day at Friedrichsbad, Baden-Baden

March 6, 2025

When I went to Baden-Baden, I was expecting the famous spa town to be a bit like Budapest, in that it would have a different spa on every street corner and I’d need to spend at least three or four days to work through a good selection, so I was quite disappointed to find there … More A swimwear day at Friedrichsbad, Baden-Baden