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People have been enjoying the
thermal waters at Berkeley Springs
for over 8,500 years. Mary Bemis
paid a visit to this bastion of the
US thermal bathing tradition
The birthplace of North America’s first spa, Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, is a quaint historic spa town, 90 minutes drive from Washington DC.
Life here has always been about the warm mineral spring water that flows at a constant 74.3°F (23.5°C) and at a rate of more than 1,000 gallons (4,546 litres) per minute.
The source rises in Berkeley Springs State Park in the heart of the town and locals and visitors have used the mineral waters for soothing and rehabilitation purposes for over 8,500 years, since Native Americans first stepped foot in the springs, leaving their traces in local archaeology.
By the 1720s, colonial travellers began visiting Berkeley Springs to take the waters, but it wasn’t until the 1770s that the town (first established as ‘Bath’) became a popular health resort.
America’s founding father, George Washington, first visited the town in 1748, as a 16-year-old apprentice surveyor, and wrote of the “warm springs” on the frontier land that was owned at the time by Washington’s mentor, British aristocrat Lord Thomas Fairfax.
At that time, visitors simply pitched a tent and took the waters in stone-lined pools, and today you can find a replica of George Washington’s rustic stone tub in Berkeley Springs State Park, while displayed on the wall of the Museum of Berkeley Springs is an endorsement from Washington himself: “I think myself benefited from the water and am now not without hope of their making a cure for me – a little time will show now”.
When the tents made way for the establishment of a 50-acre town in 1776, the Virginia legislature deemed it was “for the purpose of housing those who came to take the waters for their health”, while the springs – thanks to a decree by Fairfax – were designated “for the public use and benefit”.
Author and historian Jeanne Mozier once wrote: “Berkeley Springs may be the only town in America established for the express purpose of caring for, feeding, and housing those who came to take the waters for their health.”
Where past meets present Since the town was established, it’s survived fires in 1844, 1898 and 1974 and a war in 1860. Today, the springs act as the town’s municipal water source and are still popular with bathers. Commercial bottling of the water also began in 1903 with the establishment of the Berkeley Springs Bottling Works and in 1925, Berkeley Springs was turned over to the state of West Virginia and is now its smallest state park.
In more recent times, a well-loved chapter of the American spa experience was born at Coolfont Resort. Situated at the base of Cacapon Mountain, five miles from Berkeley Springs, Coolfont is where pioneer Martha Ashelman – one of the original founders of the International Spa Association (ISPA) – opened a spa with mineral springs and wellness treatments, as well as local nature activities.
In more recent times, Coolfont has come under the stewardship of Larry Omps and his family, longtime Berkeley Springs’ residents who lovingly renovated the iconic property that had been vacant since 2006. Coolfont Resort reopened in 2019 and Omps continues to evolve the property and its treatment menu (www.coolfont.com).
For the past 32 years, Berkeley Springs has extended its national fame by hosting the annual Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting event, which is held at the Country Inn – home to the Renaissance Spa. I was invited to be a judge at this year’s event and – along with seven other judges – spent hours tasting waters sourced from 18 countries, 16 American states, and three Canadian provinces.
After the water-tasting festivities, I toured the town with Scott Fortney, superintendent of Cacapon Resort and Berkeley Springs State Park and Jamie Foltz, Berkeley Springs/Cacapon Resort State Park spa manager and took time out to enjoy the waters at the Old Roman Bathhouse, where I luxuriated in the privacy of a 705-gallon walk-in-bath with steaming magnesium-rich spring water for the grand sum of US$27 (€26, £22).
Historic inspiration Foltz has worked in the spa and wellness industry for 27 years and has been manager of the West Virginia State Parks for the past four. She oversees the main bathhouse, as well as the new Healing Waters Spa, which is located within the lodge at Cacapon Resort State Park, just 10 miles from Berkeley Springs State Park.
The Healing Waters Spa, which opened in May of 2021, is the second spa in the state park system and derives its name from Cacapon which, she explains, is a term of Native American origin meaning ‘medicine waters’.
The 2,200sq ft (204sq m) facility offers four treatment rooms, a nail bar, a relaxation area, locker rooms and a patio lounge. Professional product lines used and retailed include Pevonia and Farmhouse Fresh.
A third wellness facility, Mountain Serenity Spa, has also opened at Pipestem Resort State Park earlier this year (www.pipestemspa.com).
Commenting on the historic relevance of the location, Foltz says: “Our guests, who come from all over the world, look to increase their feeling of wellbeing, relax in a beautiful state park setting, and embrace and honour the local history that helped to put healing waters on the American map.”
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2022 issue 3
Editor's letter: Salus per natura
Although great buildings lie at the heart of the spa and wellness experience, operators are turning to nature to deliver healing journeys, says Liz Terry
Spa People: Thierry Malleret
We talk to the economist behind Monthly Barometer about key trends emerging in the wellness sector, such as a greater connection with nature
Spa People: Verena Lasvigne
The founder of VLF Spa Consulting shares her learnings from a career running spas on three continents
Spa People: Kim Weller
The wellbeing director of Banyan Tree tells us about the rollout of the company's new brand, Veya – for mind/body wellness
New opening: Loisium Spa
A look at the new luxurious spa situated at the heart of France's celebrated Champagne region
Interview: Neil Jacobs
The CEO of Six Senses talks about creating an eco-system around the brand to deliver hotels, clubs, residential, offices and resorts
Project preview: Next generation wellness
We take our first look at Tulah, the new clinical wellness retreat brand about to make its debut in Kerala, India, and speak to its CEO
ISPA Research: Rate of recovery
Russell Donaldson digs deeper into ISPA's 2022 US Spa Industry Study and considers the industry's resurgence since the end of pandemic lockdowns
Sponsored: Gharieni: Delivering results
Innovation is the hallmark of Gharieni experiences, meeting the rapidly
evolving needs of wellness seekers within the spa and wellness environment
New opening: Lanserhof Sylt
Lisa Starr reports on the industry's eagerly awaited wellness experience – nestled within sand dunes on the German island of Sylt
Healing: Emotional rescue
As people increasingly seek support for their emotional wellbeing, Jane Kitchen talks to the operators who are digging deeper to deliver genuine transformation
Promotion: TechnoAlpin: Powerful contrast
Spa clients can enjoy super-cool relaxation and pain-relief at Sächsische Staatsbäder in Bad Brambach thanks to a TechnoAlpin SnowRoom
Concept: Soneva Soul
The CEO and co-founder of Soneva, Sonu Shivdasani, talks about the philosophy behind the company's new wellness concept, Soneva Soul
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
People have been enjoying the
thermal waters at Berkeley Springs
for over 8,500 years. Mary Bemis
paid a visit to this bastion of the
US thermal bathing tradition
The birthplace of North America’s first spa, Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, is a quaint historic spa town, 90 minutes drive from Washington DC.
Life here has always been about the warm mineral spring water that flows at a constant 74.3°F (23.5°C) and at a rate of more than 1,000 gallons (4,546 litres) per minute.
The source rises in Berkeley Springs State Park in the heart of the town and locals and visitors have used the mineral waters for soothing and rehabilitation purposes for over 8,500 years, since Native Americans first stepped foot in the springs, leaving their traces in local archaeology.
By the 1720s, colonial travellers began visiting Berkeley Springs to take the waters, but it wasn’t until the 1770s that the town (first established as ‘Bath’) became a popular health resort.
America’s founding father, George Washington, first visited the town in 1748, as a 16-year-old apprentice surveyor, and wrote of the “warm springs” on the frontier land that was owned at the time by Washington’s mentor, British aristocrat Lord Thomas Fairfax.
At that time, visitors simply pitched a tent and took the waters in stone-lined pools, and today you can find a replica of George Washington’s rustic stone tub in Berkeley Springs State Park, while displayed on the wall of the Museum of Berkeley Springs is an endorsement from Washington himself: “I think myself benefited from the water and am now not without hope of their making a cure for me – a little time will show now”.
When the tents made way for the establishment of a 50-acre town in 1776, the Virginia legislature deemed it was “for the purpose of housing those who came to take the waters for their health”, while the springs – thanks to a decree by Fairfax – were designated “for the public use and benefit”.
Author and historian Jeanne Mozier once wrote: “Berkeley Springs may be the only town in America established for the express purpose of caring for, feeding, and housing those who came to take the waters for their health.”
Where past meets present Since the town was established, it’s survived fires in 1844, 1898 and 1974 and a war in 1860. Today, the springs act as the town’s municipal water source and are still popular with bathers. Commercial bottling of the water also began in 1903 with the establishment of the Berkeley Springs Bottling Works and in 1925, Berkeley Springs was turned over to the state of West Virginia and is now its smallest state park.
In more recent times, a well-loved chapter of the American spa experience was born at Coolfont Resort. Situated at the base of Cacapon Mountain, five miles from Berkeley Springs, Coolfont is where pioneer Martha Ashelman – one of the original founders of the International Spa Association (ISPA) – opened a spa with mineral springs and wellness treatments, as well as local nature activities.
In more recent times, Coolfont has come under the stewardship of Larry Omps and his family, longtime Berkeley Springs’ residents who lovingly renovated the iconic property that had been vacant since 2006. Coolfont Resort reopened in 2019 and Omps continues to evolve the property and its treatment menu (www.coolfont.com).
For the past 32 years, Berkeley Springs has extended its national fame by hosting the annual Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting event, which is held at the Country Inn – home to the Renaissance Spa. I was invited to be a judge at this year’s event and – along with seven other judges – spent hours tasting waters sourced from 18 countries, 16 American states, and three Canadian provinces.
After the water-tasting festivities, I toured the town with Scott Fortney, superintendent of Cacapon Resort and Berkeley Springs State Park and Jamie Foltz, Berkeley Springs/Cacapon Resort State Park spa manager and took time out to enjoy the waters at the Old Roman Bathhouse, where I luxuriated in the privacy of a 705-gallon walk-in-bath with steaming magnesium-rich spring water for the grand sum of US$27 (€26, £22).
Historic inspiration Foltz has worked in the spa and wellness industry for 27 years and has been manager of the West Virginia State Parks for the past four. She oversees the main bathhouse, as well as the new Healing Waters Spa, which is located within the lodge at Cacapon Resort State Park, just 10 miles from Berkeley Springs State Park.
The Healing Waters Spa, which opened in May of 2021, is the second spa in the state park system and derives its name from Cacapon which, she explains, is a term of Native American origin meaning ‘medicine waters’.
The 2,200sq ft (204sq m) facility offers four treatment rooms, a nail bar, a relaxation area, locker rooms and a patio lounge. Professional product lines used and retailed include Pevonia and Farmhouse Fresh.
A third wellness facility, Mountain Serenity Spa, has also opened at Pipestem Resort State Park earlier this year (www.pipestemspa.com).
Commenting on the historic relevance of the location, Foltz says: “Our guests, who come from all over the world, look to increase their feeling of wellbeing, relax in a beautiful state park setting, and embrace and honour the local history that helped to put healing waters on the American map.”
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2022 issue 3
Editor's letter: Salus per natura
Although great buildings lie at the heart of the spa and wellness experience, operators are turning to nature to deliver healing journeys, says Liz Terry
Spa People: Thierry Malleret
We talk to the economist behind Monthly Barometer about key trends emerging in the wellness sector, such as a greater connection with nature
Spa People: Verena Lasvigne
The founder of VLF Spa Consulting shares her learnings from a career running spas on three continents
Spa People: Kim Weller
The wellbeing director of Banyan Tree tells us about the rollout of the company's new brand, Veya – for mind/body wellness
New opening: Loisium Spa
A look at the new luxurious spa situated at the heart of France's celebrated Champagne region
Interview: Neil Jacobs
The CEO of Six Senses talks about creating an eco-system around the brand to deliver hotels, clubs, residential, offices and resorts
Project preview: Next generation wellness
We take our first look at Tulah, the new clinical wellness retreat brand about to make its debut in Kerala, India, and speak to its CEO
ISPA Research: Rate of recovery
Russell Donaldson digs deeper into ISPA's 2022 US Spa Industry Study and considers the industry's resurgence since the end of pandemic lockdowns
Sponsored: Gharieni: Delivering results
Innovation is the hallmark of Gharieni experiences, meeting the rapidly
evolving needs of wellness seekers within the spa and wellness environment
New opening: Lanserhof Sylt
Lisa Starr reports on the industry's eagerly awaited wellness experience – nestled within sand dunes on the German island of Sylt
Healing: Emotional rescue
As people increasingly seek support for their emotional wellbeing, Jane Kitchen talks to the operators who are digging deeper to deliver genuine transformation
Promotion: TechnoAlpin: Powerful contrast
Spa clients can enjoy super-cool relaxation and pain-relief at Sächsische Staatsbäder in Bad Brambach thanks to a TechnoAlpin SnowRoom
Concept: Soneva Soul
The CEO and co-founder of Soneva, Sonu Shivdasani, talks about the philosophy behind the company's new wellness concept, Soneva Soul
The UK spa review and discovery platform for consumers, the Good Spa Guide, has announced
it will host the Good Spa Guide Awards 2026 during an event on 16 November at Sopwell House
Hotel in St Albans, UK.
Eighty-four per cent of consumers now say wellness is a top priority in their lives, with this
percentage increasing year on year, according to a preview presentation of McKinsey’s Future of
Wellness 2026 research report.
Mass protests have been taking place since Monday 1 June in Albania over the development of
a luxury resort by Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner.
Global Wellness Day (GWD) marked its 15th anniversary on Saturday 13 June 2026, with the
theme: #JoyMagenta – a celebration of the healing qualities of simple gestures and activities
that spark joy.
Global luxury hospitality brand, Six Senses, has partnered with longevity healthcare provider,
HUM2N, to launch a clinic at Six Senses London, at The Whiteley.
As part of its first hotel partnership, Mayrlife – the medical health resort company known for its
site in Altaussee, Austria – has launched a day clinic at the Rosewood Vienna.
Premium London health club, KX Chelsea, will imminently unveil its most significant
redevelopment since its launch in 2002 to create an integrated wellness model combining
training, recovery and relaxation.
Rosewood Le Guanahani St Barth, on the northeast coast of Saint Barthélemy in the French
West Indies, is offering a programme of ocean-inspired yoga classes between 8-14 June to
celebrate Global Wellness Day (GWD).
Hotel de France, located on the British Isle of Jersey, has created a wellness retreat package
that includes a hot yoga session that will take place in Jersey Zoo’s butterfly sanctuary.
The Ritz-Carlton, Langkawi, in Malaysia, has revealed a schedule for Global Wellness Day
(GWD) that includes guided rainforest walks, mindful movement and guided coastal meditation
experiences.
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
