Soak in hot springs in Guangdong

Writer: Chen Xiaochun  |  Editor: Stephanie Yang  |  From: Shenzhen Daily  |  Updated: 2021-01-11

Sudden plunges in temperature leaves everyone trembling in the freezing air. One of the best things to do in such cold weather may be taking a soak in a hot spring before wrapping yourself in a warm quilt in bed.

When talking about the hometown of hot springs, Guangdong is definitely the place. First of all, there are a total of 54 officially recognized hot springs. Secondly, the hot springs here boast good water quality. The hot springs in Conghua contain radon, one of the only two places in the world that have hot springs containing radon. The other is the Alps in Switzerland.

In addition, Guangdong offers a variety of hot springs for people to enjoy, ranging from Japanese outdoor style, to exotic Thai style, a hot spring in a Hakka stone house, hot springs in palaces and villas, and the hot spring in Lingnan garden, plus many others.

Hot spring with a taste of Japan

A bird's-eye view of the KHOS Qingyuan. File photos

Huddled among rolling hills, KHOS Qingyuan is the first resort hotel under Rosewood Hotel Group. Designed by the Japanese company KKS Group, the hotel consists of 217 luxurious guestrooms decorated with solid wood furniture, Japanese-style lamps and traditional Japanese-style wooden grating. The design of the hot spring pools also adopts traditional Japanese design.

The natural hot spring of the hotel has been certified by the national hot spring research institute of Japan as a first-grade alkalescent hot spring. To provide a better hot spring experience, the hotel sets the bathtub of each guestroom near the window or even on the balcony to provide guests with a better view of the surroundings.

Thai-style hot spring in Conghua

Outdoor swimming pools in the shape of a bird’s nest at Dusit Devarana Hot Spring Hotel Conghua.

Located in Conghua, the back garden of Guangzhou, Dusit Devarana Hot Spring Hotel Conghua is a luxurious hot spring resort. With different Southeast Asian-style gardens and Thai-style villas, guests may feel as if they were entering an ancient city in northern Thailand.

Among the indoor and outdoor swimming pools, the famous pools in the shape of a bird’s nest are the ones that you must try. The unique pool design plus the rare sodium bicarbonate and radon hot spring provides you an opportunity to reap wows on social networks even while giving your body a delightful treat.

Hot spring in Hakka stone house

The exterior of the Guangzhou Deng Stone House Pastoral Resort.

There are many Internet celebrity accommodations around Baishuizhai Scenic Spot, a one hour’s drive from Guangzhou; one of them is the Guangzhou Deng Stone House Pastoral Resort. The resort is renovated from an ancient village of Hakka rounded houses, and boasts a history of nearly 200 years. A 22-meter-tall ancient blockhouse stands in the courtyard, from which you can take in the distant views including mountains, a bamboo forest, fields, ponds, rivers and orchards.

In the bamboo forest behind the resort there are outdoor hot spring pools. Additionally, some guestrooms are equipped with indoor hot spring pools.

Hot spring in China’s best modern manor

Imperial Springs is located in the foothills of the scenic Conghua Phoenix Mountain in the heart of the prime hot spring valley in Guangdong, and is just 40 minutes from the Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. It covers over 2.8 square kilometers and features the Imperial Springs Convention Center.

For decades, Conghua has been a holiday destination for China’s leaders, and since 2012, Imperial Springs has been the choice of the business and political elites from around the world. Nestling among hills and rivers, the resort features buildings with the architecture style of the flourishing period of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). It has received over 100 former political elites from over 70 countries, who praised it as “China’s best modern manor.”

Hot spring in Lingnan garden

Three hours’ drive from Guangzhou, Springfield Resort is the top-level hot spring resort in Heyuan. The 12 guestrooms and four villas scatter around courtyards and gardens built in the Lingnan and Jiangnan styles.

In the public space of the hotel, there are hot spring bathtubs and pools. There are also independent hot spring bathtubs in each guestroom. The hot spring here is a bicarbonate iron hot spring, which originates from the flowing hot spring 1,000 meters underground