What I learned tackling burnout in a remote resort town in Greece

Independent

6 days ago

An overpowering stench of rotten egg rises from clouds of steam surrounding a bathtub-sized hole. It was carved out of the rocks here several millennia ago.
Shivering in the late spring breeze whisking off the bay beneath me, I slip into my swimsuit and slide inside. Worn by the bodies of countless bathers, the stone is silky soft. I soon forget the eggy scent of sulphur as I sink up to my neck in the hot spring waters and watch the sun descend in a scarlet blaze over the bay where Agamemnon sheltered with his warships on his way to Troy.
I'm in the remote town of Edipsos in northern Evia on the first stage of my journey to see if Greece's mineral-rich waters, which the ancient Greeks once prescribed for treating 'imbalances in the humours' and akidia (brain fatigue), can heal my writer's burnout.
Bubbling out of the ground at 35C, Edipsos' mineral-rich springs – that were 'sent by the gods for healing' according to ancient Greek philosopher Pausanias – have been popular with 'greats' ranging from Aristotle and Strabo since the 4th Century BC. A celebrity magnet right up until the late 20th century, stars including Greta Garbo, Omar Sharif, and Maria Callas once flocked here in their bathing suits and budgie smugglers to 'take the waters'.
In the post-war years, however, when holistic treatments were replaced by quick-fix chemical cures, Edipsos' glitzy hotels went out of fashion. Nowadays, the resort has plenty of abandoned buildings. With their peeling ochre facades and gaping windows, they frame weed-tangled alleyways crisscrossed with rivulets of steaming spring water where endangered spur-thighed tortoises love to hibernate.
I'm staying at Thermae Syllae. Edipsos' first spa hotel, which opened in 1896, it's one of the few resorts that have remained open. Named for a Roman general who was cured of a mysterious skin disease here in 84BC, the resort has won countless awards for its hot-spring-fed pools and medical spa complex. Wrapped from top to toe in slimy thermal mud in one of Therma Sylla's treatment rooms on the following day, I ponder on the sanity of this trip. 'It doesn't feel very nice now, but you'll feel great later,' therapist Ioanna says soothingly.
When the dried mud cracks like the veneer on an old painting and Ioanna power-showers me clean, my skin feels soft and smooth. 'It's volcanic mud and full of minerals needed by your skin – and your soul,' she laughs.
That evening, sipping a refreshing ouzo sour made with anise liqueur and lemon juice at Venti, a clifftop taverna perched high above Euboea's storied bay, I begin to enjoy my hot spring trip.
After a hearty breakfast of local treats – spoon sweets in creamy yoghurt and fried feta pie tiropitaria – I trundle across the Euboean Gulf in one of the open ferries that Greeks call pantoufla (slipper) because of their sloppy shoe shape, and drive around the bay to Kamena Vourla. Backed by the pine-furred foothills of Mount Knimis, and overlooking a golden sand beach, this seaside resort loved by Greeks – but rarely on tourist radars – is home to countless hot water springs that contain radon – dangerous in high doses, but beneficial for both mind and body when taken occasionally. I spend the day dipping in and out of the different spring pools. ' I come here all the time,' a healthy-looking octogenarian tells me. 'It's good for me and it's free – what could be better?'
The following night, I go upmarket with a stay at Mitsis Gallini, a wellness resort and spa with the largest mineral spring pool in the Balkans. Although the lagoon-like pool with its tree-studded islands surrounded by trimmed lawns is stunning, I can't help wondering why I'm paying so much money for a health treat that I'd enjoyed on the previous day for free.
Just along from Kamena Vourla on the main Lamia road, I discover the spear-waving statue of Leonidas, the Spartan King who launched a suicide mission to defend the pass against vastly superior Persian forces in 480 BC. It signals the entry to Thermopylae, a hot spring waterfall that's been a healing site since Mycean times. The stream of hot water gushes out of a cleft in pine-furred cliffs at 37C. Eyes closed, I let the hot water pummel my body. The noise is deafening.
Afterwards I feel relaxed and invigorated, just as Hercules must have done when he came here to restore his energy after killing the Nemean lion.
Vouliagmeni Lake a few hours' drive away, is my last stop. Greeks have soaked away their troubles in this hot spring-fed lake for more than 2,500 years, so it seemed like a good spot to end my journey. Floating motionless in the emerald-green waters, I stare up at the luminous blue vault of sky, realising that I haven't thought about work all day. These ancient treatments have been the perfect cure for my modern aches.
How to get there
Flights from London Heathrow to Athens with Aegean Airlines start at £147 return. From there you can hire a car with Hertz and drive three hours to Arkitsa, where the 'slipper' ferry leaves for Edipsos.
Where to stay
Thermae Sylla bookings include access to the resort's mineral-rich hot spring pools.
Mitsis Gallini room bookings include breakfast and pool access.