Sofia Central Baths

Welcome to Sofia Central Baths!
This classic landmark with its colorful ceramic mosaics on the facades, here in the center of Sofia, dates back to the 20th century when it substituted the destroyed Turkish bath that was located nearby. Look at the building that boosts a façade in Vienna Secession style, with elements hinting towards the Byzantine and Eastern Orthodox. Opened in May 1913 this was the place where people went for a mineral bath and to collect hot mineral water from the tapped springs around the park. If you look around the beautiful garden you can still see people queuing with buckets and bottles to pour water.

This region has been known for its hot springs for as long as there have been people settling here. Remember the early settlement of the Thracians that emerged here hundreds of years BC? Already then people took advantage of the hot mineral springs of this city. And public baths also go way back in history here. There is evidence that a Bohemian traveler came here in the 16th century and noted that there existed three public baths around Sofia, which he also documented in his travelers journal.

This building survived some revere bombings during World War II and served as a public bath up until the 80s. Then it was closed for almost 30 years years for refurbishing, since the roof was threatening to break down and the rest of the building was rather deteriorated. Today this beautifully restored building is home to the first City Museum and a hydrotherapy center, which you can visit if you feel like it, or just sit down and relax on one of the benches placed around the park and watch everyday Bulgarian life go by. Then its time to move on to the next stop of our tour.

Photo CentralMineralBath-Sofia-8a 3 by MrPanyGoff is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0